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The Women’s Sacred Music Project was proud to publish “Resounding Voices” in 2023. We presented it in 2024 in several gatherings of musicians and worship leaders. In the coming months, we intend to publish blogs that will introduce a song, a part of the collection, or some of the broader issues surrounding women’s contributions to worship.

MARCH 2025

How early do musicians settle on the music for coming services? For those who follow the liturgical year, here are some thoughts about Good Shepherd Sunday on May 11. What fresh insights and music might be part of the celebration? The Fourth Sunday of Easter will include these words from the gospel: “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me…No one will snatch them out of my hand." At a time when so many in our society are being attacked and marginalized, what if we called attention to the woman in the lectionary readings and by extension, suggest some of the others who are often neglected? Here are two suggested songs from Resounding Voices for this year's Fourth Sunday of Easter.

Acts 9 tells the story of the raising of Dorcas (Tabitha). It is the first lesson in this year’s lectionary. Consider “Dorcas Lived Her Life in Joppa.” Elizabeth Goman says of her song: “I wanted to write a tune for Rae E. Whitney’s fine text. I know that the hymn could be regularly sung on this Sunday. Dorcas served the poor and helpless--sewing, cooking, teaching, listening, caring not for wealth or fame. She was greatly loved. It is a good reminder that all ministries are valued by God, including the ones that some might consider ordinary or of little value either because they are unpaid or because they are done by so many. I have worked mostly in small churches, so I tend to write tunes that are simple and easy for a congregation to sing, with simple accompaniments. My goal is to have a tune that expresses the text well, so that there is a good marriage of text and tune. I am honored to be included in this collection.”

Our Shepherd Comes in Loving Care

MARCH 2025

We tend to sing the same settings of Psalm 23 every year. How about using “Our Shepherd Comes in Loving Care” this year? The new text by Jann Aldredge-Clanton, draws from the imagery in Psalms 23 and 84. She writes: “Shortly after the first edition of my book In Whose Image? God and Gender (Crossroad, 1990; 2nd edition, 2001) came out, my spouse David gave me a recording of Bobby McFerrin’s “The 23rd Psalm.” McFerrin refers to the Shepherd as “She” throughout his song, illuminating the comforting and empowering images in Psalm 23 in fresh ways. When I played McFerrin’s song at a retreat, people responded that they felt ‘totally surrounded by love and care,’ could ‘claim their own power for righting wrongs,’ had ‘overwhelming feelings of comfort and peace,’ felt the female images to be ‘more uplifting and reassuring, and the feminine language more natural.’ Convinced of the need for more female references to the Shepherd, I wrote ‘Our Shepherd Comes in Loving Care.’ The last line of the hymn echoes the beginning of Psalm 84 and the conclusion of Psalm 23: ‘And in Her lovely dwelling place forever we will stay.’”

FEBRUARY 2025

"O Kou Aloha No" (The Queen's Prayer), a late 19th Century Hawaiian prayer, was included in Resounding Voices both as a reminder of an ignored chapter in U.S. history and as a call to honor the marginalized. It is a useful prayer for Lenten services or any service of confession and assurance. It would also be a significant addition to any services in May for this year’s celebration of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

Liliuokalani was the last monarch of Hawaii. She was well educated and an accomplished musician and composer, writing some 160 songs about Hawaiian life. She became Queen in 1890 following the death of her brother Kalakaua. He had been forced to accept a new constitution that effectively disenfranchised the native Hawaiians. Liliuokalani attempted to write a fairer constitution. However, in a shocking coup, she was forced by a group of businessmen, assisted by US Marines not acting under orders from Washington, to surrender her country into the “protection” of the United States. Imprisoned, she wrote “O kou aloha nö,” commonly known as The Queen’s Prayer.

This hymn is sung at the absolution every week at the Episcopal Cathedral of St. Andrew in Honolulu. The words ask God to forgive her American oppressors. Roughly translated, the meaning is, “You are my light, your glory my support. Behold not with malevolence the sins of humankind but forgive and cleanse. And so, lord, beneath your wings be our peace forever more.”

There are several performance options to consider. Use it in a small group midweek Lenten series so that it becomes familiar. Have a soloist or small unison chorus sing it in worship for several weeks, inviting the congregation to hum along. 

JANUARY 2025

In many traditions the worship services in November include attention to autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, perhaps a celebration of those who have died, and often some thanksgiving for the blessings of the year.  

Here is what Victoria R. Sirota wrote about her song “I, John, your Beloved Brother” (The New Jerusalem):

The poetry is based on Revelation 1:9-11; 21:2-4; 22:5. As Vicar and Canon Pastor at The Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine in New York City, I wrote this text for the November 30, 2008, reopening of the Cathedral after it had been thoroughly cleaned from a fire that had broken out in its bookstore in December 2001. New York City felt fragile after the destruction of the World Trade Towers. This hymn evokes the vision of the Cathedral as part of the Morningside Heights City on a Hill as well as the image in Revelation of the New Jerusalem. The last verse was written on October 26, 2008, the day my mother Ruth B. Ressmeyer, a deacon in the Lutheran Church, died. Her life of service reminded me that “we shall be the New Jerusalem.” My husband Robert Sirota composed the music for this grand festive reopening and orchestrated it for organ, brass, and timpani.

Please use the Contact Us link on this website for your reactions. Note also that you are invited to our January Roundtable, “Sacred Sounds, Sacred Voices,” accessible under the Resources tab.

DECEMBER 2024

“Awaken” is a lovely morning prayer by Cantor Ellen Dreskin. In a group setting, it is easily introduced by a single singer, perhaps with a guitar or simple keyboard background. Dreskin provided these notes about the piece:

Judaism invites one to begin the day with a personal prayer (Modeh Ani) expressing gratitude to the Source of all Life and Existence that my soul has been metaphorically enlivened in me once again. This day holds a unique opportunity for me to be a letter in the infinite story that is the Book of Life, and my presence in this day may shape the story in ways I cannot begin to imagine. This same piece of liturgy ends with the Hebrew words, “rabba emunatecha / great is Your faith.” I have barely opened my eyes, and I am aware that something is counting on me. May my gratitude lead me to bring my best self, as much as I can, to every day, in whatever time I am here.

The melody is meant to be almost immediately accessible. It is meant to capture the optimism and opportunities of the coming day. The minor chord, used only in the last two measures, is a loving reminder of the temporal nature of this human journey