Psalms in Worship—Psalm 148 a Litany of Praise

Psalm 148 is a glorious psalm of praise. All of creation joins together in giving glory to the Creator, from the creatures in the depth of the sea to creeping insects, to birds soaring, to weather, mountains, trees, and all people—all ages, genders, ethnicities, and walks of life. Everyone and everything joins in a cacophony of praise to the redeemer of all creation. What a wonderful psalm for the Sunday after Christmas. 

Except, there’s a complication—if you follow the Revised Common Lectionary, in Year A Psalm 148 is paired with Matthew 2:13–23, the slaughter of the innocents. Thus, a psalm of praise is paired with the recounting of Herod’s massacre of baby boys in a failed attempt to kill the redeemer of creation. I checked and double checked that the listing of Psalm 148 was not an error. On a day when we would expect a psalm of lament, we are given a psalm of praise. 

I struggled to figure out how one would use this psalm in a service centered on the slaughter of children and not come off as pastorally insensitive and lacking all emotional intelligence. Then something occurred to me: Two things can be true at the same time. Horrific, evil things can be happening in our world, and in our lives even while we celebrate the gift of Christ, God’s son, our redeemer. In fact, the very act of joining all of creation in praise for our redemption is an act of faith—joyful defiance in the face of the evil in this world. Our Savior has come. Our Savior reigns. 

No matter what this coming year brings, the greatest act of resilient protest that we as Christians can bring is continued unending praise. We don’t do this in a bubble, ignoring the news of modern day massacres, unstable economies, the cries of mothers separated from children, unprecedented acts of injustice, or the impact of natural disasters and climate change. Neither do we live in denial of the effects of sin in our own lives: from struggles with addiction to illnesses both visible and unseen. Instead, we bring our declarative praise into those situations, making sure that brokenness doesn't have the last word. Yes, we may find ourselves in dark times but the darkness is not the full picture, the redeemer of the world has come and will come again when evil will be no more. 

While it may be intuitive to use this Psalm as a call to worship, consider instead using it as a statement of faith following the preaching of a passage like Matthew 2:13–23, or as part of the service of sending. The litany below is designed for two readers and congregation with Psalm 148 ^NRSVUE appearing in the brown font.