by Russ Araujo
I have a memory from the late 1980s, when Shelley Jackson Denham was our Music Director at Heritage UU Church. One Sunday morning she distributed hand-marked sheet music for a hymn she had composed, and we all sang “Credo.” I loved the song so much that I kept the handout. You can see it in the picture above (and can see a larger image by clicking the link at the end).
The hymn was later included in the new UU Hymnal, Singing the Living Tradition, as hymn number 354. They changed the title to be the same as the first line, “We laugh, we cry.” That must have happened to follow a rule the hymnal committee made, since I noticed it occurred with other hymns as well. But I still think of the song as “Credo” – a personal statement of belief.
Provided below is Heritage UU Church’s past Music Director, Les Tacy, playing the hymn.
Top Image: “Credo” sheet music, handwritten by composer Shelly Jackson Denham.
For a larger sheet music image, click this link, then click the resulting picture. “Credo” copyright is held by Heritage Universalist Unitarian Church. Used with permission.
Sheet music image provided by Russ Araujo.