Music accompanies us as Pilgrims of Hope, providing comfort, inspiration, joy and peace. Which songs for the journey will accompany your faith community throughout this year?
‘I Will Walk in the Presence of God’ by Cuban-American composer Tony Alonso comes from his album Pilgrim. Tony’s simple and memorable mantra has a singable melody in a comfortable singing range. The text acknowledges that there will be times of both consolation and desolation over the course of any year, also assuring people that God will be present as a constant and loving companion through it all. The music, including parts for several C instruments and two- and four-part choir, offers flexibility for a range of ensembles. ‘I Will Lift My Eyes’, from the same collection, is also a good fit for the Jubilee Year and a wonderful graduation song.
‘May You Walk’ by Sarah Hart includes options for verses that can be used for confirmation, graduation and wedding services. This versatile hymn offers another beautiful melody for a refrain that can be easily learned by a range of music groups and assemblies:
May you walk ever in the Lord
and may his Spirit be with you at all times.
May you stand always in the light of God.
May you walk ever in the Lord.
The music of Taize also includes options that focus on a spirit of pilgrimage and hope. These short mantras offer flexible arrangement possibilities, so can be adapted to suit a large range of assemblies. Some well-known selections include ‘In the Lord I’ll Be Ever Thankful’, ‘Confitemini Domino’, ‘Veni Sancte Spiritus’, and ‘Bless the Lord, My Soul’.
Traditional and well-known hymns, including ‘Lord of All Hopefulness’ and the ‘Servant Song’, also provide a wealth of possibilities for singing the Jubilee Year. The official hymn for Pilgrims of Hope and accompanying resources can be found on the Vatican Jubilee Year website.
An Australian hymn by Trisha Watts and Monica O’Brien that highlights one of St Mary of the Cross MacKillop’s most recognisable quotes is ‘We Are Travellers’.
As we walk together through the 2025 Jubilee Year, we ask God, the source of all our music, to be our song on the way.
Fiona Dyball works across parish, school and tertiary settings in Melbourne as a musician, educator and liturgist, and serves on the national executive of the Australian Pastoral Musicians’ Network.
Resources
‘I Will Walk in the Presence of God’ by Tony Alonso
Digital Download from GIA (includes music preview)
‘I Will Lift My Eyes’ by Tony Alonso
Digital Download from GIA (includes music preview)
‘May You Walk’ by Sarah Hart
Digital Download from OCP
YouTube
Music from the Taize community in France. Varous titles available in As One Voice 1 & 2, Catholic Worship Book II
Digital Download from GIA
‘Lord of All Hopefulness’ by Jan Struther (Text), SLANE (Tune)
CWBII 541, Digital Download from OCP
‘Servant Song’ by Richard Gillard
As One Voice 2 – 169, CWBII 461, Digital Download from OCP
YouTube
‘Pilgrims of Hope’ Hymn for the 2025 Jubilee
Digital Download (Vatican)
‘We Are Travellers’ by Trisha Watts and Monica O’Brien
Digital Download from Willow Publishing: