Photo by Joey Kyber on Unsplash
What Kind of World?
Hymn composed by
James UnderbergContextual information
“What Kind of World” was written for a music service at 4th Universalist Society in New York, in 2021, as much of the country was beginning to emerge from the depths of COVID while continuing to grapple with the police murders of Black Americans including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. Mixing the pastoral with the prophetic, the piece honors the heavy grief and anger many in the congregation were experiencing, while challenging us to reclaim our collective agency and power in its repeated query, “What kind of world will we build today?”
“What Kind of World” was written for a music service at 4th Universalist Society in New York, in 2021, as much of the country was beginning to emerge from the depths of COVID while continuing to grapple with the police murders of Black Americans including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. Mixing the pastoral with the prophetic, the piece honors the heavy grief and anger many in the congregation were experiencing, while challenging us to reclaim our collective agency and power in its repeated query, “What kind of world will we build today?”
Tune Name
[What Kind of World]
Tune Name
Text Meter
10.10.10.10.10. + Chorus
10.9.10.9
Song Composer
James UnderbergHymn Arranger
Composer Background information
James Underberg (he/him) has trained and served as a musician, spiritual care provider, meditation teacher, preacher, and facilitator of workshops and retreats in hospital, college, congregational, and other settings. With roots in Quakerism, Theravada Buddhism, and Catholic Mysticism, James’s deepest aspiration is to live all of life as a form of prayer, with music being a primary language of his heart.
Spiritual tags
Other tags
Lyricist Background information
James Underberg (he/him) has trained and served as a musician, spiritual care provider, meditation teacher, preacher, and facilitator of workshops and retreats in hospital, college, congregational, and other settings. With roots in Quakerism, Theravada Buddhism, and Catholic Mysticism, James’s deepest aspiration is to live all of life as a form of prayer, with music being a primary language of his heart.
Arranger Background information
Arranger Website LinkLyrics
So many friends who’ve had to say goodbye,
So many broken hearts struck open wide —
The sadness flows like rivers deep inside.
We need each other in these trying times,
So circle round each other side by side.
And may we heal these wounds together,
Bringing love to hold the pain.
We know we will not live forever,
So what kind of world will we build today?
So many living under fear and strife,
So much injustice that must face the light —
The anger burns like fire deep inside.
We need each other for the long-haul fight,
So circle round each other side by side.
And may we heal these wounds together,
Bringing love to hold the pain.
We know we will not live forever,
So what kind of world will we build today?
Nobody knows just what the future holds,
But if we try to live our principles
A loving world is more than possible.
And though we have a long, long ways to go,
We’ll circle round each other and we’ll grow.
And may we heal these wounds together,
Bringing love to hold the pain.
We know we will not live forever,
So what kind of world will we build today?
So what kind of world will we build today?
So what kind of world will we build today?
Resources
Music XML and MEI and MIDI and Musescore files