Bless, O Lord, us thy servants, who minister in thy temple.
Grant that what we sing with our lips, we may believe in our hearts,
and what we believe in our hearts, we may show forth in our lives.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
(The Chorister’s Prayer)
The Chorister’s Prayer has existed since the thirteenth or fourteenth century, first appearing (in English) in ‘The Choirboy's Pocket Book’ in the 1930s. There is something incredibly special about words that have been said, sung, and a part of prayer for over eight centuries.
They, like the detailed and intricate High Gothic architecture of the same era, have seen the world transformed beyond belief. How is it that words written and translated 800 years ago can be so relevant today? How do we understand them in 2025? What has changed? More importantly, what has not?
Though this is not a biblical text, it is inherently sacred, and all these years later, has deep meaning for each of us. Next month, Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church will launch a new music program for children from PreK-12th grade. These young musicians will be known as ‘Choristers’. Simply put, a Chorister is a singer in a church setting. Before each rehearsal, the Choristers will read and say this prayer. They will join those who have said these words countless times before them, those who happen to be saying it at the same time, and those who will say it in the future.
We become a community that goes beyond the confines of our building, of our city, of our denomination. May we read these words with a renewed sense of hope, as we lean on the past, to look forward to the future.
