By Marcellus D’Souza

Lent is a time when the best hymns and music is put on display. The Psalms, speak of music. “Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works!" (Psalm 105:2). St. Paul writes that, when Christians gathered to break bread, singing was integral to their worship: “Sing to God with gratitude in your hearts.” (Colossians 3:16). Hymns continue to proclaim the truths of who God is and the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

‘The Old Rugged Cross’ written by George Bennard in 1912, is a timeless hymn. First performed in the Pokagoan Methodist Church, the words were so stirring that it was adopted into the Catholic Church. A hymn carries a duel meaning. To the believer in Christ, it means everything, To the non believer, it is the day when Jesus, was crucified.

"The Old Rugged Cross" has been a country gospel favorite ever since it became the title song of Ernest Tubb's 1952 gospel album. British television dramatist Dennis Potter used the gospel song prominently in several of his plays, most notably ‘Pennies from Heaven’ (1978); and the song also played a major part in ‘Gridlock’ (2007), an episode of the long-running sci-fi drama series ‘Doctor Who’. In early 2009, the song was covered by Ronnie Milsap on his gospel album ‘Then Sings My Soul’.

More hymns are written about the cross than about any other single aspect of Christian faith.

Another popular hymn is “God of Mercy and Compassion”. Written by English Redemptorist priest Edmund Vaughan (1827-1908), it is hard to date the hymn, but it appears in an 1849 hymnal: ‘The Advent Harpist’. "Near the Cross", alternatively titled "Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross" or "In the Cross", is a Christian hymn written by Fanny Crosby, published in 1869 and "At the Cross" set the atmosphere of the occasion.

While "There is Power in the Blood", captures the Lenten theme in four stanza hymn. Written and composed by Lewis Edgar Jones, who authored nearly 200 hymns, it is soul stirring to say the least. So is "How Great Thou Art" written by Carl Gustav Boberg, a Swedish poet in 1885? This hymn was popularised by George Beverly Shea and Cliff Barrows at a Billy Graham crusade in 1957 and was voted Britain’s public favourite hymn by BBC's ‘Songs of Praise’.

In the Anglican Church, three hymns are popular: “All glory, laud, and honor” and “Ride on, ride on in majesty” have been written for Palm Sunday, the day when Jesus was welcomed into Jerusalem. The Trinity Episcopal Church has its own set of Lenten Hymns. The Protestant Church’s favourite Lenten hymns are is ‘When I Survey the Wondrous Cross’ by Isaac Watts, Pies Divinos, and Manos Cariñosas, Manos de Jesus, by Alfredo Colom and Tenemos Esperanza / We Have Hope by Federico J. Pagura.

Lenten hymns are available in all languages in India. In Mumbai, the tradition of papiya or devats singing (meaning penitent in Marathi), an ancient tradition held by the East Indian community of Mumbai, using mournful chants accompanied by the haunting sound of a wooden clapper is being revived. The men who take part in this rendition are called ‘devats’ and are considered ‘devout’. They sing ‘purans’ or hymns which explain the agony of Jesus Christ during His agony. ‘Papiyas ’represent Jesus’ apostles Peter, James and John, who accompanied Him to the Garden of Gethsemane, situated at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. The group assembles before the Sunday before ‘Palm Sunday’.

Crosses were erected in Gaothans or settlements of East Indian. Famous amongst them are Khotachiwadi, Matharpacady, Andheri, Juhu, Marol, Orlem and Kurla. These crosses were erected in honour of Jesus or as a thanksgiving for favours received by the village. Many of them were erected during the plague of Bombay in 1896. Some of crosses in Mumbai are over 100-years-old. Today, a few ‘Papiya’ groups survive the onslaught of modernization and urbanization.
"Bhavando, utha tumche neezemanche, deemi ghala, lazaar kara, ek aamche bapala” and ‘Papiya re me agar’ are popular hymns that have survived the passage of time.

Goa and Mangalore have two Lenten hymns in common. The first hymn is “Doiall Deva Kaklutichea” which is rendered in Goa and in Mangalore is sung as “Deva doiall kakutichea”. The second hymn is “Papia tum rê nirbhagia” in Goa and “Papia Nirbhagia” in Mangalore.

Doiall Deva Kaklutichea, is the Konkani version of "God of Mercy". The original hymn is composed by Edmund Vaughan CSsR (1827-1908) and sung to the tune of "Au sang qu'un Dieu" by G.B. Pergolesi (1710-1736). While, “Papia tum rê nirbhagia” is found in the Diocesan hymnal "Gaionancho Jhelo", the Mangalorean version published in the diocesan hymnal "Somyak Dhinvasuyam", formerly the "Konknni Bhoktik Gitam".

The Archdiocese of Bombay, this year, has uploaded a play list of 119 hymns on Spotify. The playlist called, ‘Pass on Hope’, has been created by the Archdiocese’s Catholic Communication Centre (CCC) and include popular hymns like, ‘God of Revival’, ‘He is Lord’ and ‘Raise a Hallelujah.’