Espresso-Bibel” – in 80 Minuten um die Welt des Knüllers. Theater mit Eric Wehrlin
Bremgarten Ref. Kirche
In Lent, we are confronted with the reality of death, Christ’s specifically, but also our own, because of the Fall, when death entered the human race as a consequence of sin. The power and inevitability of death is the subject of the second verse of Luther’s hymn, Christ Lay in the Bonds of Death. It is the very emblem of our hopeless condition, as it was for the disciples who witnessed Jesus on the cross.
And yet it is not death itself that is the object of our contemplation so much as the struggle between death and the Prince of Life that occupies our attention. Here the great strife is played out on the largest stage, as we witness vicariously the drama of the Incarnate Word against the forces of death.
In this touching and dramatic movement, the two voices, soprano and alto, weave together in haunting counterpoint patterns that illustrate this titanic struggle–the wrenching character of it, the pity of it, the way that it pictures for us our own bondage. Yet all is not lost, for the voices end by singing hallelujah, praise the Lord. The second verse reads,
O’er Death no man could prevail,
If mortal e’er came near him;
Through guilt all our strength would fail,
Our sinful hearts did fear him.
Therefore Death did gain the day,
And lead in triumph us away,
Henceforth to dwell imprisoned.
Hallelujah!
In Lent, our first focus is on the Lord’s Passion, the crucifixion and
death of the Lord Jesus. But implicit in that focus is a perception of
the outcome resulting from the agony and bloodshed, as we are reminded
that He died for us – for our sake and in our place. In dying on the
Cross, the sinless Christ cancelled the penalty for sin, the power of
death over us, and made death the gateway to life eternal with Him. For
He rose and lives to direct His church towards the ultimate consummation
of God’s plan for the salvation of His people. For those in Christ,
there is now no condemnation.
We need to hold these great truths of our faith and hope before us
constantly, lest we fall into error or worldly distraction. So, this
verse from Luther helps us by holding up personified death to ridicule
and, echoing St. Paul, declaring the victory–all death’s rights have
been cancelled. As if to underscore the character of this verse, Bach
chose a declamatory mood and placed those mighty truths in the voice of
a powerful tenor solo, undergirded by a strong, driving obbligato from
the violin section. This time, the Hallelujah at the end is firm and
strong. The third verse reads,
Now Jesus Christ, the Son of God,
For our defence hath risen.
Our grievous guilt He hath removed,
And Death hath bound in prison.
All his might Death must forego.
For now he’s nought but idle show,
His sting is lost for ever.
Hallelujah!
Text: Robert McAnally Adams
Crescendo North America
DEUTSCH
In der Fastenzeit werden wir mit der Realität des Todes konfrontiert, insbesondere mit dem Tod Christi, aber auch mit unserem eigenen Tod. Dieser ist die Folge des Sündenfalls. Die Macht und Unausweichlichkeit des Todes ist das Thema der zweiten Strophe in Luthers Hymnus “Christ lag in Todesbanden”. Der Tod ist das Sinnbild für unseren hoffnungslosen Zustand; und so haben ihn auch die Jünger wahrgenommen, als sie vor dem Kreuz standen.
In dieser Strophe wird allerdings nicht nur der Tod thematisiert, sondern vielmehr der Kampf zwischen dem Tod und dem Fürsten des Lebens. Hier spielt sich der Kampf auf der größten Bühne der Weltgeschichte ab, und wir sehen vor unseren Augen den Kampf des menschgewordenen Wortes mit den Mächten des Todes.
In diesem ergreifenden und dramatischen Satz verweben sich die beiden Stimmen, Sopran und Alt, in eindringlichen Kontrapunktmustern. Sie veranschaulichen diesen titanischen Kampf, indem sie der Zermürbung, dem dadurch evozierten Mitleid und der Einsicht in unsere eigene Unfreiheit auf bewegende Weise Ausdruck verleihen.
Doch es ist noch nicht alles verloren, denn am Ende singen die Stimmen ein Halleluja.
Den Tod niemand zwingen kunnt
bei allen Menschenkindern;
das macht’ alles unsre Sünd,
kein Unschuld war zu finden.
Davon kam der Tod so bald
und nahm über uns Gewalt,
hielt uns in seinem Reich gefangen.
Halleluja.
Text: Robert McAnally Adams
Crescendo Nordamerika