Almost 2,000 people ‘Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery’ on Southwestern Seminary campus

Almost 2,000 people came to MacGorman Chapel on the campus of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary on Nov. 11 as the student and faculty ensembles, choirs, and bands of the institution’s School of Church Music and Worship (SCMW) presented “A Prelude to Christmas: Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery” to the seminary and Fort Worth communities. 

In his welcome, David S. Dockery, interim president of Southwestern Seminary, said he desired that the attendees would “behold the wondrous mystery of the Lord Jesus Christ” as He would be “exalted and lifted through the praise” of the musicians as the focus was turned “to Him in anticipation of the forthcoming Advent and Christmas seasons.”

Based on the modern-day worship hymn, “Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery,” by Matt Boswell and Matt Papa, the evening’s musical selections were presented in five different themes, the mystery prophesied, arrives, received, proclaimed, and celebrated. Amid the candelabras, Christmas trees with white lights, vibrant stage lighting that changed throughout the performance, and red poinsettias that adorned the chapel’s stage, attendees heard musical selections presented by the Southwestern Singers, Texas Baptist College Choir, Southwestern A Capella, Cantico Nuevo, as well as the Southwestern Piano Ensemble, the Southwestern Guitar Ensemble, the Cowden Hall Band, the Texas Baptist College Band, Southwestern Music Academy Piano Ensemble and the Southwestern Children’s Choir. 

“Programs like ‘Prelude to Christmas’ give our campus and the Fort Worth community a glimpse of what the Lord is doing in and through the faculty and students in the School of Church Music and Worship,” said Joseph R. Crider, dean of the SCMW. “Our curriculum and the effectiveness of it is in many ways on display for everyone to see and hear, and our curriculum is based on three pillars: being rooted in Scripture, striving for musical excellence, and prioritizing a focus on ministering to others.” 

Before the two-and-a-half-hour event began, all the musicians gathered backstage and Crider shared a devotional based on 2 Corinthians 4:5: “For we are not proclaiming ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’s sake.” 

According to Crider, student soloists and small ensembles auditioned for a place in the program, including Claire Weaver and Kendra Hickerson, who sang and played the harp for their song “Forevermore,”; Emily Myers and Jihye Cheon, who played the guitar and piano while singing “The First Noel” in Korean and English; Landry Bennett a tenor who performed “See Amid the Winter Snow”; and Mariano Gongora, a tenor who played the piano while singing “We Are the Reason.”

Southwestern A Cappella sang the first song for the evening, “Come, Behold the Wondrous Mystery,” and which concluded with a tag of a stanza of “On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand.” Part I, the mystery prophesied, began with a focus on the prophecy of Christ with music selections including “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” and the TBC Choir singing “Psalm 46” with “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” and invited the congregation to join in the singing. “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” was played by guitarist Matthew Nazier and “Let Everything that Hath Breath,” performed by the Southwestern Singers, concluded the first part of the evening.

Southwestern Children’s Choir, singing “On this Christmas Day” and “Little Drummer Boy” were included as musical selections from Part II, the mystery arrives, which also included the Southwestern Music Academy piano ensemble performing “Simple Gifts” and “Count Your Blessings.”

Part II ended with sisters, Alison Beck, a Doctor of Musical Arts student, playing the piano and Elizabeth Beck, playing the violin while performing “In the Bleak Midwinter.”

The remaining parts of the evening encouraged the audience to reflect on the birth, proclamation, and celebration of Christ through songs, including “Benedictus,” “Shine on Us,” “Do You Heart What I Hear?,” and “O Holy Night.”

Bennett, a Master of Music in Worship Leadership student from Marietta, Mississippi, sings with Southwestern Singers and Southwestern A Cappella. His favorite song to sing during the evening was “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” he said, “because we are in Advent season and it speaks to the preparation of Christ coming and the longing to see Him revealed.” Though he said performing in Prelude to Christmas was “stressful,” he added “the grace of God just abounds in what we do and even though we strive for perfection, it’s really just that God is going to bless what we do tonight. We can’t do anything for our own glory, we do this for the glory of God.” 

Dave Toscano, a Master of Music in Worship Leadership student from Guadalajara, Mexico, plays in Cantico Nuevo and the Cowden Hall Band. He said he enjoyed playing the guitar solo at the beginning of “O Come All Ye Faithful.” 

“For me, it’s an honor to play in this prelude because we are giving the glory to God, and to give the glory to God is to make Him visible,” said Toscano.

The entire “Prelude to Christmas” can be viewed here.