Patterico's Pontifications

3/4/2018

Sunday Music: Bach Cantata BWV 102

Filed under: Bach Cantatas,General,Music — Patterico @ 12:01 am



It is the third Sunday in Lent. The title of today’s cantata is “Herr, deine Augen sehen nach dem Glauben” (Lord, Your eyes look for faith).

Today’s Gospel reading is John 2:13-22:

Jesus Clears the Temple Courts

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”

They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

The text of today’s cantata is available here. It was originally composed for the Tenth Sunday after Trinity, when the Gospel reading (at the time) was Luke’s description of the same incident in Luke 19:41-28: the expulsion of the money changers from the temple. The beginning of the cantata contains these words:

Lord, Your eyes look for faith! You strike
them, but they do not feel it; you plague
them, but they do not improve. Their
countenance is harder than a rock and they
will not turn themselves around.

And the first recitative begins in this way:

Where is the reflection that God polished for us,
when the perverted will sets itself against Him?

The melody of the final chorale is based on Martin Luther’s hymn “Vater unser im Himmelreich.”

Happy listening!

[Cross-posted at RedState and The Jury Talks Back.]

8 Responses to “Sunday Music: Bach Cantata BWV 102”

  1. Ding.

    That’s the extent of my classical music expertise (even though I watched Amadeus long ago.)

    Stashiu3 (466cdf)

  2. Once again, I must say thank you for this.

    felipe (023cc9)

  3. I’m sure you know about this but passing it along.

    http://bachinthesubways.org/losangeles/

    Patricia (3363ec)

  4. I did not, Patricia! Thanks for that.

    Patterico (115b1f)

  5. Wonderful, yes the point that was missed is the temple or church is not the building it is ultimately the congregation

    narciso (d1f714)

  6. Matthew 22

    The Greatest Commandment

    …38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commandments.”…

    This is why you can defend yourself, and your neighbor, I’ll elaborate further, if it’s not ****ing obvious as it is.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  7. I think Jesus would have approved this message.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)

  8. Psalm 3

    A psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.

    1
    Lord, how many are my foes!
    How many rise up against me!
    2
    Many are saying of me,
    “God will not deliver him.”[b]

    3
    But you, Lord, are a shield around me,
    my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
    4
    I call out to the Lord,
    and he answers me from his holy mountain.

    5
    I lie down and sleep;
    I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.
    6
    I will not fear though tens of thousands
    assail me on every side.

    7
    Arise, Lord!
    Deliver me, my God!
    Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
    break the teeth of the wicked.

    8
    From the Lord comes deliverance.
    May your blessing be on your people.

    Steve57 (0b1dac)


Powered by WordPress.

Page loaded in: 0.0766 secs.