It Was On a Friday Morning (Tune: Friday Morning - 5vv) [with lyrics]

"It Was On a Friday Morning" was written by Sydney Carter, published in 1969.
The tune is 'Friday Morning', also by Sydney Carter.
It is performed here by Reflection.
Video background by Klaus Hausmann [Pixabay 3520]

[@aleksazunjic9672]

I like this song because it serves as a mirror. All of those who are offended by the lyrics, would be offended by Jesus Christ himself. In fact, Jesus was crucified by priests, pious, righteous ... In their hypocrisy they rejected living God before them. And Jesus was accepted by tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners of all kind ... stone that was rejected became corner stone.

[@user-kr9wy2ss2m]

I don't agree with this song about accusing God, I've just subscribed and I'm not impressed, this song is blasphemy

[@ChetValleyChurches]

It is true that many non-believers accuse God: "I can't believe in a God who lets suffering exist..." and so on. The point of this song is that, unknown to the thief on the cross, God is doing the greatest act of love since the creation of the world. A carpenter did make the world; the one next to you is the God incarnate; God chooses not to send an angel army because Jesus does not ask (Matt 26:53); and so on. It is full of irony but profoundly orthodox if you read it right. But perhaps not one to use at a main Sunday service.

[@user-kr9wy2ss2m]

If your a Christian Bible based choir, and your aim is to reach out with the Gospel of Jesus to unbelievers, you need to remove this blasphemous song, I won't subscribe until you do.

[@ChetValleyChurches]

Hi. We are actually a group of rural churches in the East of England, not a choir. We started making videos of hymns during lockdown for our online services and we noticed that lots of other churches were using them as well. Although we no longer do online services we still continue to make the occasional new song or hymn video (578 so far) and people still seem to be watching (our channel has had 24 million views since April 2020). This song is not typical of what we upload and is not suitable for congregational singing but we would not have uploaded it if we felt it was blasphemous. Interestingly, we are very concerned with reaching out to unbelievers and we know that the language of this song will connect with some unbelievers in a way that a great hymn such as "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross" will not. Sydney Carter's song is very Bible-based. For instance, complaining to God is common in the Bible - see psalms 44 or 77, for instance. In verse three, the line "But you are being crucified for nothing, here below." is a clear reference to, for instance, Hebrews 4:15. We've already pointed out some other obvious Bible references in our previous reply. Perhaps the key thing, and the hardest, is "It's God they ought to crucify..." Orthodox Christians believe that Jesus was fully God (John 1:1) and fully human (John 1:14). This is hard, and many such as Christadelphians, Jehovah's Witnesses and Unitarians cannot accept it. But orthodox Christians have accepted it for nearly 2000 years and one of the things it means is that God was indeed crucified - which Sydeny Carter knew. This is a profoundly and disturbingly orthodox song, which is why we posted it - but it is just one among hundreds on our channel. We hope that this helps to explain where we are coming from, even if you don't agree with us and we wish you every blessing in your ministry.

[@rumbledoll3173]

Could you please remove this song from your channel, thank you.

[@andreaharwood-jones7503]

This song is as controversial as the Psalms.

[@genewood9062]

Hmm. There are 8 Comments so far. ............ This poetry IS well-written. But, sacrilegious. Not what I would seek out. ............ Not to mention, the criminals' aspersions actually were, "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" So, this song is not Scriptural. THAT is my biggest objection. ............ Now, I do remain a loyal subscriber, but will specialize in HYMNS you present, not this genre. :--}>

[@ChetValleyChurches]

Hi Gene. Blasphemous? Sacrilegious? This song has divided the crowd for nearly sixty years. It's certainly not a hymn and we can't imagine a congregation singing it. No, the words are not scriptural but if we could only use words from scripture when writing about Jesus then much would be disqualified, even things such as this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pKrJiYanosh3iJY which was written by someone in one of our congregations. It also struck us that there are some pretty harsh verses in psalms such as 44 and 77, yet we seem to be able to accept their criticism of God and maybe even found it pastorally helpful - it's good to know that I'm not the only person to get angry with God! You will have seen our thoughts in our responses to other comments. We hope that this will not cause division and disunity because we would hate to do that.

[@cathybennett2415]

Not sure what to think about this one to be honest 🤔

[@ChetValleyChurches]

We love its deep irony, Cathy. The perspective may be one which would be more commonly held by the unchurched but the outcome is a profound orthodoxy.

[@caroldixon3952]

I was surprised at the negative reactions to this. I first learned this Sidney Carter song in the 1970s and thought the paraphrased words of the thief on the Cross saying to Jesus 'It's God they ought to crucify' very ironic as it was God they were crucifying. I still think it is a good song for Good Friday.

[@cathybennett2415]

@@caroldixon3952 - not in my church it won't but to each their own....

[@hizunekin]

No bro.

[@2Hearts3]

Unsubscribing now.

[@ChetValleyChurches]

We're sorry to hear that. Some people find this song offensive and we appreciate that but we believe that if you dig a bit deeper you will find that it is profoundly orthodox. What it does is show how the unbeliever cannot grasp the mysteries of God. Our job is to help them understand.

[@2Hearts3]

@@ChetValleyChurches i appreciate your reply and explanation. I think I understand your message. However, a hymn's primary function is the praise and worship of God, then the edification of the people hearing and singing it. This hymn puts off the listener. Its words are blasphemous. I do hope that it doesn't intend to blaspheme; but that appears the case.

[@ChetValleyChurches]

We agree about a hymn's purpose. Actually, 'Friday Morning' isn't a hymn but a song - and certainly not for congregational singing. It would best be used in a small group where an experienced leader could point out all the implied Bible references in the song (Collossians 1; Matthew 26; and so on) and then wonder with the group how the message of salvation may be heard by those outside the church. The song is certainly not intended as a blasphemy. Sydney Carter was a devout, but questioning, Christian and many of his songs challenge us to think again about things which we may have come to take for granted. See his song about the Holy Spirit, for example: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gZSwoYJpnbici9k

[@aleksazunjic9672]

Take the beam out of your eye 😁