Wesley Festival at Lincoln Center to Benefit UMCOR
By Linda Bloom*
Jan. 18, 2007 | NEW YORK (UMNS)
A United Methodist-related concert at New York’s Lincoln Center will honor hymn-writer Charles Wesley as it raises funds for relief work.
The 2007 Wesley Choral Festival, presented by Music Celebrations International, commemorates the 300th anniversary of Wesley’s birth. Events begin with a Feb. 15 gala dinner in Little Italy and culminate with a concert at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 18.
The idea for the festival originated with James Ramsey, the director of worship and arts at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Highlands Ranch, Colo.
Ramsey considers Wesley to be “the largest hymn writer known to mankind” who also had a significant impact on the denomination his brother founded. “From a historical perspective, without the hymns and without the rich history of hymn singing, the musical context of The United Methodist Church would be vastly different,” he added.
