One Bread, One Cup Bobby Fisher, Ken Canedo, Greg Lee, Craig Aven	(Based on 12 votes)

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Lyrics

We all come before you now, hungry for your healing touch.
Here we stand with open hearts thirsting for your love.
You are the one who fills our every need,
so with one voice we lift our hearts in unity:

One bread, one cup,
one body of Christ, united in love.
One bread, one cup,
one living sacrifice poured out in your blood.
Holy Spirit, renew us, that in each other
we may see you, gathered as one family in love,
one bread, one cup

As we gather at your table,
broken like the bread we share,
fill our hearts with your compassion
for a world in need of care.
You are the way, you are the life, you are the truth,
the source of our salvation.
We find new life in you.

When we go forth from this place of perfect peace,
may your light shine in our lives
for all the world to see.

Artist Reflection

In December of 2002, Ken Canedo and I received an invitation from Robert Feduccia, who was director at the time for One Bread, One Cup, the youth liturgical leadership conference at the St. Meinrad School of Theology in Indiana. Robert wanted us to write a theme song for the conference, with the goal of having the song finished in time for the 2003 sessions in June.

In January of 2003 I began working on a musical idea for the song. At that particular time the quickest and easiest way to remember my idea was to sing it to myself over my voice mail. I continued to go back to this voice message for the next three months, but made little progress on the song. Then sometime around April I was inspired to write what was to become the central musical theme for the song. I ended up tossing out the original voice mail idea.

Realizing time was running short, and again stuck for more ideas, I got together with fellow songwriter, Greg Lee, who co-wrote "Go Out and Tell" and several other songs in Spirit and Song 2. Greg invited his friend, Craig Aven, a young singer/songwriter to join us in the process. Over a two day period of prayer and collaboration, the song was about 80% complete.

At this point Ken again joined the writing process. We were challenged by our inability to open the music files we were sending each other via email. What ended up working best for us was to fax our ideas back and forth (between Cincinnati and Portland). Finally, by the end of May, we finished the song in time to introduce it at the conference the next month.

Ken and I were teaching together that year at the conference and were actually writing the choral and instrumental parts on site, handing them out to our youth musicians/singers to use at Mass later that day. It was exciting to hear how the youth brought this music to life and especially how the whole assembly entered into singing it. Throughout the week we were able to incorporate the song into various parts of the Mass. In addition to full choral parts we were incorporating a variety of other instruments, including full rhythm section, electric and acoustic guitars, brass, strings, and woodwinds.

Later that year Jesse Manibusan and Helena Buscema recorded a beautiful acoustic rendition of it, which is on the spiritandsong.com Live It! CD. The song has been published as a choral octavo, appeared in the Choose Christ and Spirit & Song 2 songbooks, and will soon be included in the Breaking Bread missal.

When Ken and I began writing "One Bread, One Cup" we decided to base the text on the portion of Eucharistic Prayer IV which says, "Lord, look upon this sacrifice which you have given to your church; and by your Holy Spirit, gather all who share this one bread and one cup into the one body of Christ, a living sacrifice of praise." Most of the words to the refrain are derived from this text.

When we sing "united in love," we recognize that it is the love of Christ, which unites and gathers us as "one family in love." It is through the gift of the Holy Spirit, that our eyes are opened, enabling us to see Christ in each other. Through the renewal of this same Spirit, we are given the desire to love and serve God and our sisters and brothers.

Verse 1 speaks of our hunger and thirst for God and His healing touch. I believe we all have a hunger and need for love in our lives and a space in our hearts, which longs to be filled. Many people try to fill that space in a number of ways such as, drugs, alcohol, sex, relationships, etc. However, in the end run, it is only God who can "fill our every need."

Verse 2 acknowledges our need for healing "as we gather at your table, broken like the bread (Jesus' body) we share." I passionately believe that the Gospel calls us to work for justice and peace in a world also broken and in need of healing. Therefore we pray to Christ to "fill our hearts with your compassion for a world in need of care."

While I've used this song primarily as a Communion or Preparation song due to its Eucharistic theme, I've also used it as a Gathering hymn as well as a Sending Forth hymn, especially when singing the bridge. The words to the bridge call us to take the love we have received in the Eucharist and to carry it into the world, letting the light of Christ "shine in our lives for all the world to see."

The entire writing process was truly a team effort. It was an incredible honor and blessing to work with such talented and inspiring people. Thank you all!

By the time you read this, I'll have just finished teaching the music track with Curtis Stephan at the 2006 One Bread, One Cup conference. What an incredibly valuable resource this conference is for encouraging and empowering young people to participate in liturgical ministry and leadership as well as an opportunity to begin to discern the possibility of vocations. For more information about the conference click here for the St. Meinrad website. Under programs, click on "youth leadership," then click on "One Bread, One Cup Conferences."

- Bobby Fisher