This morning’s texts are reprinted under onelicense.net #A-717945. Sing a New Church – words by Delores Dufner, © 2003 G.I.A. Publications, Inc. Let Us Build a House – words by Marty Haugen, © 1994 G.I.A. Publications, Inc. Praise with Joy the World’s Creator, words by The Iona Community, © 1987 G.I.A. Publications, Inc. Who is My Mother – words by Shirley Erena Murray, © 1992 Hope Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

♪ Music Notes ♪

DELORES DUFNER (b. 1939) is an American sacred music composer, librettist, and organist whose works have been included in Catholic hymnals in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. She is a nun of the Order of Saint Benedict at Saint Benedict’s Monastery in Saint Joseph, Minnesota.

MARTY HAUGEN (b. 1950) was raised in the American Lutheran Church in Minnesota, and is now a member the United Church of Christ. He holds a B.A. degree in psychology from Luther College and an M.A. degree in pastoral studies from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota. For the past 25 years, Haugen has pursued a career as a liturgical composer of contemporary hymns and anthems. He is also a performing musician, and holds a position as composer-in-residence at Mayflower Community Congregational Church in Minneapolis.

STEPHEN SCHWARTZ (b. 1948) is an American musical theatre lyricist and composer. In a career spanning over five decades, he has written such hit musicals as Godspell (1971), Pippin (1972), and Wicked (2003). Schwartz has also contributed lyrics to a number of successful films, including The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), The Prince of Egypt (1998, music and lyrics), and Enchanted (2007). He has won three Grammy Awards, three Academy Awards and has been nominated for six Tony Awards. In 2015, Schwartz received the Isabelle Stevenson Award – a special Tony Award, for his commitment to serving artists and fostering new talent.

JOHN GOSS (1800-1880) was an English organist, composer, and teacher. Born into a musical family, Goss was a boy chorister of the Chapel Royal, London, and later a pupil of Thomas Attwood, organist of St. Paul’s Cathedral. As a composer, Goss wrote little for the orchestra, but was known for his vocal and choral music. A music critic of “The Times” newspaper described him as the last of the line of English composers who confined themselves almost entirely to ecclesiastical music.

RON KLUSMEIER (b. 1946) composes, arranges, and edits new music for worship, and serves as a resource consultant for churches throughout Canada and the U.S. He has worked in music and arts as a full-time ministry since 1971 as a composer, editor, and arranger, and has also worked with over 2,000 churches in every Canadian province and almost every U.S. state. Voices United contains more hymn tune compositions by Klusmeier than by any other contributor, and More Voices, the most recent supplement to Voices United, includes yet more of his hymn tunes. In addition, his compositions are featured in the new Anglican, Presbyterian, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic hymn books in Canada, as well as many denominational hymn books in the U.S. He currently lives on Vancouver Island, British Columbia.

SHIRLEY ERENA MURRAY(1931-2020) was a New Zealand hymn lyrics writer. Her hymns have been translated into numerous languages and are represented in more than 140 hymn collections. In 2006, she became a fellow of the Royal School of Church Music. She received an honorary Doctor of Literature degree from the University of Otago in 2009. The same year, she was named a fellow of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada.