Plymouth UCC Church
  • Welcome!
    • I'm New Here
    • I'm a CSU Student
    • LGBTQ
    • How Do I Join?
    • Staff Writings
  • Worship
    • Join Worship Online
    • Download Bulletins
    • 6pm Service Link
    • Newcomer Card
    • Learn More >
      • What is Worship?
      • Sermons
      • Music Program
      • Dinner Church
  • News & Events
    • Today's Schedule
    • Upcoming Events
    • Calendar & eNews
  • Living Our Faith
    • Faith Statements
    • Staff Reflections
    • Social Justice & Outreach >
      • Grocery Cards
    • Christian Formation Overview >
      • Children
      • Youth
      • Adults >
        • Lenten Blog 2021
        • Plymouth Reads
        • Visiting Scholar
        • Sophia Circle
    • Calling & Caring
    • Labyrinth
  • Connect
    • Community
    • Lay Leadership
    • Gallery
    • Contact Us >
      • Clergy & Staff
      • Text Connection >
        • Fun Text Question
        • Text Responses
        • Wellness Check-In
      • Building Rental
  • Give
    • Online Giving
    • Pledge Card
    • Evergreen Partners
  • Members
    • Forms & Resources >
      • General Forms
      • Calendar Request Form
      • Newsletter Submissions
      • Zoom Resources
      • Kitchen Videos
    • Weddings & Funerals
    • Library
    • Constitution & Policies
    • F1Go
  • Welcome!
    • I'm New Here
    • I'm a CSU Student
    • LGBTQ
    • How Do I Join?
    • Staff Writings
  • Worship
    • Join Worship Online
    • Download Bulletins
    • 6pm Service Link
    • Newcomer Card
    • Learn More >
      • What is Worship?
      • Sermons
      • Music Program
      • Dinner Church
  • News & Events
    • Today's Schedule
    • Upcoming Events
    • Calendar & eNews
  • Living Our Faith
    • Faith Statements
    • Staff Reflections
    • Social Justice & Outreach >
      • Grocery Cards
    • Christian Formation Overview >
      • Children
      • Youth
      • Adults >
        • Lenten Blog 2021
        • Plymouth Reads
        • Visiting Scholar
        • Sophia Circle
    • Calling & Caring
    • Labyrinth
  • Connect
    • Community
    • Lay Leadership
    • Gallery
    • Contact Us >
      • Clergy & Staff
      • Text Connection >
        • Fun Text Question
        • Text Responses
        • Wellness Check-In
      • Building Rental
  • Give
    • Online Giving
    • Pledge Card
    • Evergreen Partners
  • Members
    • Forms & Resources >
      • General Forms
      • Calendar Request Form
      • Newsletter Submissions
      • Zoom Resources
      • Kitchen Videos
    • Weddings & Funerals
    • Library
    • Constitution & Policies
    • F1Go

​In Quiet Joy

5/1/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
By Christian Pulfrich - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=63958699
At last Sunday's services, we experienced through the Taizé worship experience what I like to call a "quiet joy." It is an indication I have seen written in certain ethereal organ works I play also. For example, Tempo: Adagio, "In Quiet Joy." 

The term can challenge common impressions of musical affects. For example, is not a minor key always sad (d minor, naturally, the saddest of all...) and a slow tempo an oppressive dirge? Well then surely a tune in a major key at a brisk tempo must evoke happiness and the purest form of joy...right?! The truth is that there are many shades in between colored by our own subjective senses, of course. But I felt those in attendance at last Sunday's services truly experienced the "quiet joy": an Easter service internalizing the resurrection and what it means for our own lives. 

I leave you with the words of Scottish poet Robert Crawford in his poem "Quiet Joy." He has written extensively upon the link between science and religion and religious poetry. I find his words ring true in any context, secular and sacred.     
No Lethean ease, but such a mood as craves
For naught in earth and heaven, just to breathe
The simple air of our reality
Like creatures of the season, — earthy, and
Made for the earth, at one with all things here;
So in the generation of ourselves
To have the certainty of peace, and find
The natural favour of our functioning
Sufficient till the end ensue. 
​Mark Heiskanen
Director of Music/Organist 

Author

Mark Heiskanen has been Plymouth's Director of Music since September 2017. Originally from Northeast Ohio, Mark has experience and great interest in a diverse range of musical styles including jazz, rock, musical theatre, and gospel. He is thrilled to serve a congregation and staff that values diversity and inclusion in all facets of life.  Read his mostly-weekly Music Minute here. ​

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    December 2016

    Categories

    All
    2020
    Abundance
    Adult Formation
    Advent
    Alli Stubbs
    Alternative Giving Fair
    Animals
    Apocalypse
    Art
    Ash Wednesday
    Bach
    Bees
    Being Church
    Being The Body Of Christ
    Being The Church
    Beng Alive
    Better Angels
    Birthday
    Black Lives Matter
    Blessings
    Boulder
    Breath
    Calling & Caring
    Celtic Christianity
    Change
    Children
    Choices
    Choir
    Christian Formation
    Christmas Blues
    Church
    Church Governance
    Coffee
    Compassion Camp
    Consecration Sunday
    COVID 19
    COVID-19
    COVID Update
    Creed
    CSU
    DACA
    Darkness & Light
    Database
    Discipleship
    Easter
    Education For All
    Egg Hunt
    Election
    Farewell
    Fences & Bridges
    Finance
    Flexibility
    Flora Cash
    Fort Collins
    Forum
    Forum Series
    Friends & Family Sunday
    Gender
    Generosity
    Getting Settled
    Giving
    Goals
    Go Deeper
    Godspell
    Goodbye
    Gratitude
    Guest Author
    Gun Violence
    Habitat For Humanity
    Halloween
    Healthy Congregations
    Hobbies
    Holy Week
    Hope
    Housing
    Impermanence
    Inauguration
    Independence Day
    Interruptions
    Interterm
    Jazz
    John Philip Newell
    Joseph
    Joy
    Jubilee Sunday
    Known & Unknown
    Labyrinth
    La Foret
    Laura Nelson
    Lent
    Letting Go
    LGBTQ
    Listening
    Longest Night
    Magi
    Mark Heiskanen
    Masterpiece Cakeshop V. Colorado Civil Rights Comm.
    Matthew Shepard
    Ministerial Transitions
    Mission Trip
    Music
    Music Program
    Nationalism
    Newness
    New Year
    ONA
    Online Worship
    Ordinary Time
    Organ
    Pandemic
    Parking
    Pastoral Care
    Peace
    Pendemic
    Pentecost
    Pilgrimage
    Plymouth Grounds
    Plymouth Text Connection
    Popular Culture
    Prayer Service
    Psalm 126
    Psalms
    Reformation Sunday
    Releasing
    Rep. Joe Neguse
    Rev. Carla Cain
    Rev. Hal Chorpenning
    Rev. Jake Miles Joseph
    Rev. Jane Anne Ferguson
    Rev. Mandy Hall
    Rev. Mark Lee
    Ring Lake Ranch
    Risk
    Rocky Mountain Conference
    Rooted
    Rosebud Episcopal Mission
    Sabbath
    Sabbatical
    Search Process
    Signage
    Silence
    Singing
    Sleepout
    Solstice
    Soul
    Spiritual Growth
    Spiritual Practices
    Stewardship
    Stewardshp
    Stories
    St. Patrick
    Strategic Planning
    Students
    Suicide Prevention
    Summer
    Taize
    TARDIS
    Teacher Appreciation
    Thanks
    Thanksgiving
    The Church Organ
    The Magnificat
    Threshold
    Thrive
    Top Ten
    Transfiguration
    Transformation
    Tricia Medlock
    Trump
    Truth
    Tulips
    UCC
    Values
    Vespers
    Video Reflection
    Voting
    Waiting
    Weird & Holy
    Wilderness
    Wisdom
    Work
    Worship
    Yendra Tencza
    Youth
    Zoom For 7

    RSS Feed

916 West Prospect Road Fort Collins CO 80526

Worship Times

​STREAMING ONLY at 10 a.m. & 6 p.m. Sundays
Visit plymouthucc.org/streaming for details

Contact Us

970-482-9212

​Members, log into F1Go here.

Subscribe to our eNews