Rock of Ages cleft for me
Hide me now, my refuge be
Let the water and the blood
From your wounded side which flowed
Be for sin the double cure
Cleanse me from its guilt and power
Not the labours of my hands
Can fulfil your law's demands
Could my zeal no respite know
Could my tears forever flow
All for sin could not atone
You must save, and You alone
Nothing in my hand I bring
Simply to your cross I cling
Naked come to you for dress
Helpless look to you for grace
Stained by sin to You I cry
Wash me, Saviour, or I die
While I draw this fleeting breath
When my eyelids close in death
When I soar through realms unknown
Bow before the judgment throne
Hide me then, my refuge be
Rock of ages, cleft for me
Words: A.M. Toplady
Music: Ruth Buchanan
This is the only one of the 5 songs I voted for that made it into the top 10. I love it. I think the words are beautiful, and combined with the music - it gives me goosebumps. According to Tim Mac, though, this song got in by virtue of a bunch of older members of the congregation. Hmm. I was quite happy when we started singing this at church recently, but apparently it only made it on to the song list because a few people had asked for it and the music team were indifferent. Tim says that the melody breaks some musical rules. Surely they're just guidelines, though...
10 comments:
It dosn't conform to the rules so they dont like it? Weird, I have no problem with the melody. But then I naver studied music. I think this one is quite popular amongst my christian friends, it's certianly one of my favourites...
Yarrr
Yarrr??
I have studied music, and I have not yet figured out which rules it allegedly breaks. I think it's popular among Anglicans more than Baptists...
older people? is tim calling us old lara? i had it as my number 3 song.
i sung it recently at summer school which is an anglican thing and so that backs up your thoughts lara.
i was thinking of asking to sing it at church in the evening service and all of a sudden we did sing it.
hurrah!
I think I suggested it quite awhile ago. I've played it during Communion a number of times.
Perhaps the music team was just getting sick of people asking for it to be sung at church, and since they didn't have any theological objections, they didn't know how to say no. After all, it doesn't have any "thee" or "thou", theological jargon or archaic language...
Yarrr -- Reference to your reference to guidelines. Meant to subtly indicate that I had picked up on and appreciated it.
I would suspect that it is popular amongst anglicans as Ruth was an anglican (At least I think thats the case) (and from wollongong too!)
Anyways, Good song. And no, were not old!
Yarrr -- Reference to your reference to guidelines. Meant to subtly indicate that I had picked up on and appreciated it.
Ah. I see. Obviously I'm not too good with subtlety today - and after I wrote a comment on a student's tutorial paper saying that he hadn't grasped the subtleties of the historiographical debate. Oops.
I guess sometimes I need to have things beaten into me. With a rock of ages, perhaps?
OK, that was really bad...
teehee lara :)
Finally I've made the big time - being slandered on a blog. But by Larissa??? Who would have thought??
For the record, it wasn't 'old' people entirely - in fact, the ones who convinced the (otherwise indifferent) music team to go for it were all around the age of 21. But in this year's voting it was skewed a *little* older than average.
BTW, the rule it kind of breaks (and yes, they are there to be broken if for a reason, but this one doesn't seem to have a reason) is not adequately resolving the leading note in the third line (of four). Of course that's not a reason not to do it - it was just my musing as to why the music team were a little underwhelmed by it. Most of the team still aren't huge fans, but I encourage them to keep choosing it anyway!
Another musing is that if you've been to a large Anglican conference that has done it, with a crowd of 1000, you have a more favourable first impression of it than if you've only heard it in your church...
it's abt the lyrics nots the melody.
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