This
composer did not really promote this brief praise melody when he had the
opportunity to do so. That much might be said about Tom Fettke and “Worthy of
Glory” that he composed in 1992. He was 51 in 1992 when the song was written,
and had been or was still in California where his reputation as an educator or
music minister was well-established. In the middle and latter stages of his
professional career, on either side of crafting this praise hymn, Tom was the
senior editor of two hymnals. And yet, the latter of these two publications does
not contain his “Worthy…” song among the hundreds of hymns and songs therein. Perhaps
Tom just felt that so many other songs and hymns ranked higher than his own;
perhaps he was satisfied in the song’s promotion in other ways, too. And, maybe
his primary purpose in writing the song comes through in the words he penned – that
he wanted to cast light on his subject, and not upon himself.
No specific
details of what prompted Tom Fettke to echo the Revelation 4 creatures with the
words he penned in “Worthy…” are known, though it’s clear that he was interested
in something that would mentally and emotionally draw a worshipper toward God
on His throne. Tom’s arrangement (you can see a link to a recording of the song
below) is not merely a solemn collection of words, but an upbeat celebration,
perhaps what he could imagine himself at the moment of seeing the Almighty and
realizing that one’s life-dream has been realized – arriving at home with the
Redeemer, never to depart. That’s the imagery that Fettke’s music and words
engender, giving another dimension to what you can picture when reading John’s
account of something that no other human has yet seen. Tom’s song sounds like angelic
beings gathered in the throne-room, and maybe that’s intentional. In this
context – bizarre creatures magnifying Him and 24 elders prostrating themselves
before the Creator – it is not difficult to understand if Tom Fettke was
feeling humbled, and perhaps a bit reluctant to project his own agenda onto the
scene. His song words are, after all, just a rephrasing of what the great apostle
has said creatures and believers will all be saying in His presence. What Tom
is doing in “Worthy…” is giving you and me a little preview, a foretaste of
what’s to come. It’s not something easily grasped, but Tom doesn’t try to move
the listener with various adjectives or lavish phrases. Instead, it’s an injection
of zeal and wonderment that the musical harmony gives the listener, as one
listens to rapturous voices – perhaps something like the glorified, amazing
voices we’ll all possess there!
Tom Fettke
didn’t publish this song in the 1997 Celebration Hymnal that he edited (it is
in at least one other hymnal, Songs for Worship and Praise, edited by Robert J.
Taylor, 2010), but at least in some respect Tom might have felt he had
accomplished his goal by creating something primarily for a choral group to
sing. As an educator, Tom was undoubtedly intent on practice, a concept that must
have come across to the many students he mentored, as they sought to capture
something beautiful in the music and ultimately make an offering of excellence
to the Creator. ‘Practice makes perfect’, I can hear my band teacher saying many
years ago. For the introspective musician, the goal of well-rehearsed and -performed
music is not a pat on the back nor looks of approval from beaming parents, but transport
of all within earshot to another place. It’s a place of almost unimaginable, incredible
scenery, a moment that’ll in fact last forever. It would not be surprising if Tom
was also looking for this transportation-elevation. Aren’t we all?
See the
author’s biography here: https://www.halleonard.com/biographyDisplay.action?id=131&subsiteid=1
Also see here: https://hymnary.org/person/Fettke_Tom
Very brief
information here: http://www.hymntime.com/tch/bio/f/e/t/t/fettke_te.htm
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