Hoor, Israel - Beurtzang naar psalm 32 (vers 8-10) = Hear, Israel - Antiphonal Song from Psalm 32:8-10, 1978 - 1981

WHO speaks is a personal pronoun-phrase for the name of God. Written in the 1970s, Oosterhuis was comfortable using the masculine pronoun HIJ - HE. The extended use of melismas highlights the relationship between words and tones, a technique known as woord-toonverhouding - syllable-notation bonding. Both in Dutch and in English, the mouth formation of text and notation coincide.

Hear, Israel - Shema, Israel, is the central narrative, the core of Judaism. It embodies the Law, as stated in Deuteronomy 6:4-9, 11:13-21, and Exodus 13:1-16. Shema is a cultic text, read aloud at each gathering for worship, a reminder that the Lord is One, Holy and Only One. Shema Israel is the basis of all Jewish life and worship. Oosterhuis chose Psalm 32 for his text, a hymn of thanksgiving to a merciful God, who not only forgives all sin but opens up new paths to follow, a sure defense even when the deluge breaks loose. Faith is not a system of doctrines and dogmas but a way of life, of discipleship. It begins when we recall One-Who-Is-For-Us, as experienced in the history of the community. This is the path to renewal, of constant oscillation in decision-making to embrace the life and teachings of the One who has called us. In the Gospel of John, meeting Jesus face to face are critical moments, times of self-judgement when we are confronted with choices and make the right decisions.

Huijbers' structure of this short piece is a basic Antiphon 1, followed by Verse 1. Then Antiphon 2 is followed by Verse 2. The piece ends with Antiphon 2, then Antiphon 1. Optional choral SATB settings are provided for these. His choice of melodies embrace two Gregorian settings. Media vita is a Penitential Antiphon, an old medieval moralist song, in the midst of life is death. And Veni - come, is the call of the Advent O Antiphons, sung on each of the seven days before Christmas. Every moment of life, we are reminded that now is the time of expectation, not some cataclysmic end of the world event billions of years in the future. In the here-and-now, as we walk with each other, the Risen Jesus is entangled in our human condition. As verse 2 sings, who yields to God shall live for all eternity, within the continuum of living in the present. The cyclical time of Liturgy implies neither beginning nor end, but continuity. Certainty is to be found in the midst of doubt and hope. --Tony Barr