The story of redemption for children - help me expand it.
  • bonniebede
    Posts: 756
    you ma be familiar with this piece of work, called the story of redemption for children.
    http://media.musicasacra.com/books/redemption.pdf

    At our new choir, we have a lot of smaller children, so snack time is going to be a combined snack and story, in the interest of crowd control.
    But never one to miss an opportunity, story time could be an opportunity to introduce them to the bible, which is unfamiliar to many.
    If you are familiar with Jess Cavins and Scott Hahn, you might know some work they have done on the Great Adventure Bible study, and also on the covenants in the bible, basically providing a way of reading through the bible in a sequence that makes sense of it as a story. I think I would like story time to be a sequential telling of the bible story /history of salvation and the covenants, borrowing from the 'story of redemption' to include a musical element to the benefit of the children.

    However the story of redemption here skips neatly from Genesis 1-3, creation and the fall, to the annunciation.
    Can you help me fill in the blanks?

    Cain and Abel
    Noah and the flood
    Abraham
    Isaac
    Jacob
    Joseph and the descent into Egypt
    Moses and the exit from Egypt
    Joshua and the Holy land.
    various lovely OT characters - Ruth Esther Tobit etc
    Babylonian exile and return
    Maccabees

    Here is what I am looking for.
    The story of redemption is basically some verses written to tell the story, and then set to Gregorian psalm tones and some other Gregorian chant melodies, often trying to match the melody to the real chant that should be heard at that time.

    Do you know, or could you write, a versified version of one of those stories which could be set to a psalm tone?
    Do you know a hymn which tells the story of one of these episodes, or which could be incorporated into the telling of these stories?
    And yes, I know Handel's Messiah, but I am looking for something simple that our story teller can sing, not a polyphonic motet or an oratorio.

    If you get the idea, and have any ideas, please let me know.
    Thanks
  • Kathy
    Posts: 5,499
    This has been done! John Newton wrote the Olney Hymns with William Cowper (pronounced "cooper").

    There's some silliness, some permanent hymnal residents such as Amazing Grace and O! For a Closer Walk with God and Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken, and at least one unsung awesome hymn (Ere God Had Built the Mountains).

    See the table of contents, with references to the Scripture passages, here http://www.ccel.org/ccel/newton/olneyhymns.toc.html
    Thanked by 2CHGiffen bonniebede
  • bonniebede
    Posts: 756
    Thanks Kathy, thats fabulous stuff. Any thought to hymn tunes to go with it, or would one just select something appropriate for the meter?
  • Kathy
    Posts: 5,499
    I don't know many of them, and they are of different meters, so I would say, use your judgment!

    Thanked by 1bonniebede
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