Concordia marks Reformation week with hymn sing, caroling, and vespers service
Students gather for a group picture during the Reformation caroling event.
Photo credit: Grace Donnelly
By Dylan Buechler and Evelyn Rouland
The week leading up to Reformation Day brought a series of events to Concordia’s campus, including a hymn sing, Reformation caroling and a special vespers service for students to celebrate the 508th anniversary of Martin Luther’s posting of the 95 Theses.
Kickstarting the week’s events was a Reformation Hymn Sing on Oct. 26, when students gathered in Weller Chapel to sing Reformation hymns. The hymn sing was organized by Ministry Ties, a campus club that holds events for church work students.
“We started with some Reformation hymns that the Ministry Ties board picked out, and then we had people raise their hands to choose different hymns that they liked,” said sophomore Mitchell Stephens, who led the event.
Students gather in the lobby of the Borland Center for Music and Theatre before heading out Reformation caroling. Photo: Dylan Buechler.
Around 30 people attended from all different church work programs, said Stephens.
“It was a good time of fellowship and fun for all of the church work professions where we got to sing together and celebrate our history as Lutherans and the Reformation of the Church,” he said.
The second Reformation event was Reformation Caroling on Friday night, which is similar to Christmas caroling but with a Reformation Day spin. Around 20 people carpooled to professors’ homes to sing hymns like “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” and “Lord, Keep Us Steadfast In Your Word.”
“We go around to four of our music faculty’s houses and we sing them Reformation hymns,” said event organizer sophomore David Eatherton. “Part of the goal is just to have some fun, and you know, it’s kind of like a spoof of Halloween that we’re saying Reformation happened today too!”
Senior Grace Donnelly has been doing Reformation Caroling for three years. She said she enjoys getting to sing outside with her friends and the school’s professors and spreading the Gospel in small, unique ways.
“They [the professors] are always grateful,” Donnelly said. “To see how excited they are, it’s just a unique fun thing that you don’t really get to do anywhere else. Sometimes things happen that you don’t expect. Like, we go to different professors’ houses, but then their neighbors end up coming out, or people across the street, and they’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is so cool, could you come sing to us too?’”
Later on Friday night, over 100 students gathered in Weller Chapel for a Reformation Vespers service. The service included brass accompaniment and a sermon by the Rev. Brent Horne from St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Malcolm. Senior Hunter Remington organizes Evening Prayer services every Tuesday and Thursday night, and he organized the Reformation service.
“I was very pleased that like 100 plus people thought their confession of faith was so important and so distinct that on the night that the world is having fun, we are boldly confessing our Lutheran faith and heritage,” Remington said. “I thought that was very special.”
Students singing at the Reformation vespers service. Photo: Dylan Buechler.
Sophomore Vivian Marshall found the service very moving, and she said the Reformation events happening on campus were representative of the Concordia community.
“I think my favorite part of the service was the hymns, because I always just really enjoy all of the really beautiful hymns that we have in our service,” Marshall said. “I just enjoy seeing a Christian community celebrating something that was so impactful for the Christian church as a whole. And seeing how many students actually really care about the things in our church’s history.”
Sophomore Brianna Burns said she felt a sense of unity during the service and recognized the importance of celebrating the Reformation.
“When we were singing A Mighty Fortress, I was like, this is my culture, my tradition,” she said. “So I felt it was special to celebrate it today.”
