Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer (1917-1977) was born in Mississippi in 1917. Starting at the age of six, Hamer, the youngest child of a sharecropper family, picked cotton. She was only able to attend school until the age of 13 because her family needed her labor. She married Perry Hamer at the age of 27, and together they worked on a plantation owned by a man named Marlow for the next 18 years. They took in two poor girls whom they later adopted. Throughout her life she was known for her singing of hymns of freedom.
During the 1950’s, Hamer became involved in the Civil Rights Movement. She decided to join the effort for voting rights. She joined a group and traveled to Indianola, Mississippi to register African American voters. When she returned to the plantation she was fired by Marlow.
Hamer was recruited by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and began traveling around the South, singing hymns and doing activist work for the organization. While doing this work she was arrested on a false charge and severely beaten. This experience affected her deeply but did not stop her work for justice for Black people. Her work grew national attention, even disturbing the Southern Democratic Party. Lyndon B Johnson referred to her as “that illiterate woman.” Hamer ran for Congressional office in 1964 and 1965 but failed to win. However, she continued her work for justice until her death on this day in 1977.
As she wrote: “I believe that we have just got to keep some kind of faith that the people who want to make this country a good place to live can gain and influence politics in this country. I do have faith, as bad as the situation is now, for if I hadn’t had faith four years ago I wouldn’t have gone to Atlantic City, New Jersey, to tell the Democratic Convention why the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party should be seated in place of the “regular” Democrats from Mississippi. …And if I didn’t have faith, I wouldn’t spend so much of my time talking to ninety percent white audiences all over the country, and going to these ninety percent white political conventions, and writing pieces like this for the magazine of the Southern Churchmen.” 1
Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/3p25j5h5
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer;
my God is my saving strength. Psalm 18
Merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you
with our whole heart and mind and strength.
We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
In your mercy forgive what we have been,
help us amend what we are,
and direct what we shall be,
so that we may delight in your will
and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your holy name. Amen. BCW
Music: https://tinyurl.com/ufxekitx
God, come to my assistance.
Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
HYMN: Spiritual
Recording: led by Fannie Lou Hamer https://tinyurl.com/vk22c96d
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!
This little light of mine, I’m gonna let it shine!
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!
Additional stanzas:
Ev’rywhere I go, I’m gonna let it shine!
I’ve got the light of freedom…
Jesus gave it to me now…
Shine, shine, shine…
PSALMS
Psalm 71 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/ybx8s3ew)
1 In thee, O Lord, have I put my trust,
let me never be put to confusion *
but rid me, and deliver me, in thy righteousness;
incline thine ear unto me, and save me.
2 Be thou my strong hold, whereunto I may alway resort *
thou hast promised to help me,
for thou art my house of defence, and my castle.
3 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the ungodly *
out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
4 For thou, O Lord God, art the thing that I long for *
thou art my hope, even from my youth.
5 Through thee have I been holden up ever since I was born *
thou art he that took me out of my mother’s womb;
my praise shall be always of thee.
6 I am become as it were a monster unto many *
but my sure trust is in thee.
7 O let my mouth be filled with thy praise *
that I may sing of thy glory and honour all the day long.
8 Cast me not away in the time of age *
forsake me not when my strength faileth me.
9 For mine enemies speak against me,
and they that lay wait for my soul take their counsel together, saying *
God hath forsaken him; persecute him, and take him,
for there is none to deliver him.
10 Go not far from me, O God *
my God, haste thee to help me.
11 Let them be confounded and perish that are against my soul *
let them be covered with shame and dishonour that seek to do me evil.
12 As for me, I will patiently abide alway *
and will praise thee more and more.
13 My mouth shall daily speak of thy righteousness and salvation *
for I know no end thereof.
14 I will go forth in the strength of the Lord God *
and will make mention of thy righteousness only.
15 Thou, O God, hast taught me from my youth up until now *
therefore will I tell of thy wondrous works.
16 Forsake me not, O God, in mine old age, when I am gray-headed *
until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation,
and thy power to all them that are yet for to come.
17 Thy righteousness, O God, is very high *
and great things are they that thou hast done;
O God, who is like unto thee?
18 O what great troubles and adversities hast thou shewed me!
and yet didst thou turn and refresh me *
yea, and broughtest me from the deep of the earth again.
19 Thou hast brought me to great honour *
and comforted me on every side.
20 Therefore will I praise thee and thy faithfulness, O God,
playing upon an instrument of musick *
unto thee will I sing upon the harp, O thou Holy One of Israel.
21 My lips will be fain when I sing unto thee *
and so will my soul whom thou hast delivered.
22 My tongue also shall talk of thy righteousness all the day long *
for they are confounded and brought unto shame
that seek to do me evil.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 72 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/ya9qaxre)
1 Give the King thy judgements, O God *
and thy righteousness unto the King’s son.
2 Then shall he judge thy people according unto right *
and defend the poor.
3 The mountains also shall bring peace *
and the little hills righteousness unto the people.
4 He shall keep the simple folk by their right *
defend the children of the poor, and punish the wrong doer.
5 They shall fear thee, as long as the sun and moon endureth *
from one generation to another.
6 He shall come down like the rain into a fleece of wool *
even as the drops that water the earth.
7 In his time shall the righteous flourish *
yea, and abundance of peace, so long as the moon endureth.
8 His dominion shall be also from the one sea to the other *
and from the flood unto the world’s end.
9 They that dwell in the wilderness shall kneel before him *
his enemies shall lick the dust.
10 The kings of Tharsis and of the isles shall give presents *
the kings of Arabia and Saba shall bring gifts.
11 All kings shall fall down before him *
all nations shall do him service.
12 For he shall deliver the poor when he crieth *
the needy also, and him that hath no helper.
13 He shall be favourable to the simple and needy *
and shall preserve the souls of the poor.
14 He shall deliver their souls from falsehood and wrong *
and dear shall their blood be in his sight.
15 He shall live, and unto him shall be given of the gold of Arabia *
prayer shall be made ever unto him, and daily shall he be praised.
16 There shall be an heap of corn in the earth, high upon the hills *
his fruit shall shake like Libanus,
and shall be green in the city like grass upon the earth.
17 His Name shall endure for ever;
his Name shall remain under the sun among the posterities *
which shall be blessed through him; and all the heathen shall praise him.
18 Blessed be the Lord God, even the God of Israel *
which only doeth wondrous things ;
19 And blessed be the Name of his Majesty for ever *
and all the earth shall be filled with his Majesty. Amen, Amen.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 71 (Karl Kohlhase: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-71-KH.mp3)
I take refuge in you, LORD;
let me not always be shamed.
In your righteousness deliver;
extend your ear and save.
Be to me a rock of refuge
where I can always come;
For you give command to save,
my fortress and my rock.
My God, please rescue me
from the hand of the wicked
From the grip of evil men,
from the grasp of the embittered,
Lord GOD, you are my hope,
my confidence from youth.
You have held me since my birth,
even from my mother’s womb;
My praise is perpetual
I’m a wonder to the crowd,
my refuge is so strong.
My mouth is filled with praise
and your glory all day long.
Don’t leave in my old age
nor when my strength expires.
For my foes who watch my life,
take counsel and conspire
Saying, “God has left, give chase;
seize him with none to save”
My God, be not far off;
and to my help make haste!
O let them be ashamed,
who bring my soul alarm
O cover them with shame,
who seek to do me harm.
My praise is perpetual
As for me, I’ll always hope,
and praise you more and more.
Of your justice my mouth speaks,
your salvation all day long;
Their sum cannot be known,
all the deeds of the Lord God;
Of your righteousness I’ll tell,
of yours and yours alone.
God trained me from my youth,
and still your works I’m praising.
Even when I’m old and gray,
O God, do not forsake me,
Until I tell your power
to this age and those to come
Of your justice to the heav’ns.
Who is like you, O my God?
My praise is perpetual
You who’ve shown me many trials,
again you will revive me,
From the deepest place on earth
you’ll bring a new arising.
My greatness you’ll increase
when you turn back to console.
I will praise you with a harp,
for your faithfulness, O God;
With the lyre I’ll sing to you,
O Holy One of Israel.
And my lips will shout for joy;
the praise of my redeemed soul.
My tongue will also tell
of your justice all the day;
For those sought my harm
are turned back and ashamed.
My praise is perpetual
My praise is perpetual
Psalm 72 (Karl Kohlhase: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-72-KH.mp3)
Give the King your justice, O God;
and your righteousness to the Royal Son
May he judge your people with equity
and all of the poor with justice
Let the mountains bring peace to the people
and the hills bear righteousness
He’ll defend the poor of the nation,
help poor children and crush oppressors
Amen and amen
May his honor endure like the sun
and as long as the moon for all ages
May he come down like rain on the field,
like showers that water the earth
In his days may righteousness flourish
and great peace till the moon is no more
Amen and amen
May his rule be from sea to sea,
from the river to the ends of the earth
Desert dwellers shall bow down to him,
and the hostile shall all lick the dust
May the kings of Tarshish bring tribute
and the kings of Sheba bring gifts
O let all the kings fall prostrate,
and may all the nations serve him
Amen and amen.
For he saves the needy who call,
the afflicted and those with no helper
For the weak and the poor his compassion
will save the souls of the needy
From oppression and violence he saves them;
and their blood is dear in his sight
Amen and amen.
So long may he live!
May the gold of Sheba be given
Let there be perpetual prayers
and blessings for him all the day
May the grain of the earth be abundant;
may it wave on mountain peaks
May its fruit be like unto Lebanon;
in the towns let people blossom
Amen and amen.
May his name endure forever
and his fame live on like the sun
May men bless themselves by him,
and all nations call him blessed
Bless the LORD, the God of Israel,
who alone can work such wonders
Bless his glorious name forever;
may his glory fill the whole earth
Amen and amen.
PRAYER
O God,
you are light to the lost,
bread to the hungry,
deliverance to the captive,
healing to the sick, eternal vision to the dying,
and harbor to every soul in peril.
Gather the wanderers from every corner of the world
into the community of your mercy and grace,
that we may eternally praise you
for our salvation in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. BCW
THE WORD OF GOD
Reading: Job 14:1-22
Job continued:
All of us are born of women,
have few days, and are full of turmoil.
Like a flower, we bloom, then wither,
flee like a shadow, and don’t last.
(Yes, you open your eyes on this one;
you bring me into trial against you.)
Who can make pure from impure?
Nobody.
If our days are fixed, the number of our months with you,
you set a statute and we can’t exceed it.
Look away from us that we may rest,
until we are satisfied like a worker at day’s end.
Indeed there is hope for a tree.
If it’s cut down and still sprouting
and its shoots don’t fail,
if its roots age in the ground
and its stump dies in the dust,
at the scent of water, it will bud
and produce sprouts like a plant.
But a human dies and lies there;
a person expires, and where is he?
Water vanishes from the sea;
a river dries up completely.
But a human lies down and doesn’t rise
until the heavens cease;
they don’t get up and awaken from sleep.
I wish you would hide me in the underworld,
conceal me until your anger passes,
set a time for me, and remember me.
If people die, will they live again?
All the days of my service I would wait
until my restoration took place.
You would call, and I would answer you;
you would long for your handiwork.
Though you now number my steps,
you would not keep a record of my sin.
My rebellion is sealed in a bag;
you would cover my sin.
But an eroding mountain breaks up,
and rock is displaced.
Water wears away boulders;
floods carry away soil;
you destroy a people’s hope.
You overpower them relentlessly, and they die;
you change their appearance and send them away.
Their children achieve honor, and they don’t know it;
their children become insignificant, and they don’t see it.
They only feel the pain of their body,
and they mourn for themselves.
HYMN: Thomas Dorsey ©
Tune: Sung by Fannie Lou Hamer https://tinyurl.com/yc5nnc2h
1 Precious Lord, take my hand,
lead me on, help me stand,
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn.
Through the storm, through the night,
lead me on to the light.
Take my hand, precious Lord;
lead me home.
2 When my way grows drear,
precious Lord, linger near,
when my life is almost gone,
hear my cry, hear my call,
hold my hand lest I fall.
Take my hand, precious Lord;
lead me home.
3 When the darkness appears
and the night draws near
and the day is almost gone,
at the river I stand,
guide my feet, hold my hand.
Take my hand, precious Lord;
lead me home.
Reading: 1 Corinthians 7:32-40
I want you to be free from concerns. A man who isn’t married is concerned about the Lord’s concerns—how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the world’s concerns—how he can please his wife. His attention is divided. A woman who isn’t married or who is a virgin is concerned about the Lord’s concerns so that she can be dedicated to God in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the world’s concerns—how she can please her husband. I’m saying this for your own advantage. It’s not to restrict you but rather to promote effective and consistent service to the Lord without distraction.
If someone thinks he is acting inappropriately toward an unmarried woman whom he knows, and if he has strong feelings and it seems like the right thing to do, he should do what he wants—he’s not sinning—they should get married. But if a man stands firm in his decision, and doesn’t feel the pressure, but has his own will under control, he does right if he decides in his own heart not to marry the woman. Therefore, the one who marries the unmarried woman does right, and the one who doesn’t get married will do even better. A woman is obligated to stay in her marriage as long as her husband is alive. But if her husband dies, she is free to marry whomever she wants, only it should be a believer in the Lord. But in my opinion, she will be happier if she stays the way she is. And I think that I have God’s Spirit too.
HYMN: Spiritual
Sung by Fannie Lou Hamer: https://tinyurl.com/5yjpe4t8
Sung by Mavis Staples: https://tinyurl.com/2dympkma
1 Woke up this mornin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus [freedom].
Woke up this mornin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
Woke up this mornin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
2 Walkin’ and talkin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
Walkin’ and talkin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
Walkin’ and talkin’ with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
3 No condemnation with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
No condemnation with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
No condemnation with my mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
4 Can’t hate your neighbor in your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Can’t hate your neighbor in your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Can’t hate your neighbor in your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
5 Love everybody with your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Love everybody with your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Love everybody with your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
6 Devil can’t catch you in your mind, stayed on Jesus,
Devil can’t catch you in your mind, stayed on Jesus,
Devil can’t catch you in your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
7 Jesus, the captain in your mind, stayed on Jesus,
Jesus, the captain in your mind, stayed on Jesus,
Jesus, the captain in your mind, stayed on Jesus.
Hallelu, hallelu, hallelujah.
Reading: John 11:17-31
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was a little less than two miles from Jerusalem. Many Jews had come to comfort Martha and Mary after their brother’s death. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him, while Mary remained in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died. Even now I know that whatever you ask God, God will give you.” Jesus told her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha replied, “I know that he will rise in the resurrection on the last day.”
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though they die. Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She replied, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, God’s Son, the one who is coming into the world.”
After she said this, she went and spoke privately to her sister Mary, “The teacher is here and he’s calling for you.” When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to Jesus. He hadn’t entered the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were comforting Mary in the house saw her get up quickly and leave, they followed her. They assumed she was going to mourn at the tomb.
CANTICLE Isaiah 55:6-11
(Setting by Gregory Wilbur: https://tinyurl.com/yawmg8fp)
Seek ye the Lord while he may be found,
Call ye upon him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the unrighteous man his thoughts:
And let him return unto the Lord,
and he will have mercy upon him;
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
As the heavens are higher than the earth,
My ways and thoughts are higher than yours.
And let him return unto the Lord,
and he will have mercy upon him;
and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
For as the rain cometh down, and snow from heaven,
And maketh it bring forth and bud that it may give seed to sow,
that it may give bread to eat.
So shall my world be that goeth forth out of my mouth:
It shall not return unto me void,
but it shall accomplish that which I please it shall prosper
in the thing whereunto I sent it.
THE PRAYERS WS2
God of our salvation,
we praise you for sending your Son, Jesus Christ,
to suffer for our sins so we may be redeemed.
We are thankful for the reminders of that redemption visible in creation . . .
the nations of the world when they . . .
our nation and those who govern as they . . .
our own community as it . . .
the church universal as it seeks to . . .
our local church as it . . .
the lives of those near to us . . .
our own life as we experience your saving grace . . .
We also ask that
as the source of the world’s hope and redemption
you hear our prayers on behalf of
all creation . . .
the nations of the world . . .
our nation and those in authority . . .
the community and those who govern . . .
the church universal, its mission, and those who minister . . .
our church and its ministry . . .
those with particular needs . . .
(Plainsong Mode 2: https://tinyurl.com/yctqq8cf)DL
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread;
and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Eternal God, we thank you for the witness of Fannie Lou Hamer, who was sustained by her Christian faith as she led the struggle for civil rights in the United States. Strengthen us, after her example, to make no peace with oppression and to witness boldly for our Deliverer, Jesus Christ; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. HWHM, alt.
Music: https://tinyurl.com/y9efvwm5
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen. 2 Cor. 13:14
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BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.
The scripture readings are © 2011 Common English Bible.
The traditional language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662). The modern versions of Psalms 71 and 72 are sung by Karl Kohlhase http://www.k4communications.com/karl/index.html.
Musical links are usually either to artists’ albums posted on Spotify or to recordings made available at smallchurchmusic.com. Audio stripped from YouTube videos is footnoted accordingly above.
Compilation © 2023 Stephen T. Benner. All links worked at the time they were created, but I cannot accept responsibility for their content or any damage resulting from their use. The linked content is under the control of the respective content creators and is subject to change at any time. Any copyright texts included in this compilation are provided for non-commercial purposes related to study or worship. Please contact the respective copyright holders for permission to use the texts in other contexts.
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