A Legacy - How Great Our Joy

From My Perspective - - -

There are special moments that occur in human experience that are very special. The Link below shows one of them. On Saturday, October 30th 2010, The Opera Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and 28 choral organizations totaling over 650 persons gathered in the Grand Court at Macy's Department Store in Philadelphia. They mingled with the crowd and then, on cue, accompanied by the Wanamaker – the worlds largest working pipe organ, sang Handel's "Hallelujah Chorus" to a stunned and surprised audience, which some joined in to sing. This was presented by the Knights' Foundation, "Random Acts of Culture" .

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp_RHnQ-jgU

Someone who viewed the You Tube link above observed: I still find it odd that so many in our society will decry the Christian Faith, but will make claims of exultation, joy, etc. when pieces like this are sung. I find the presence of God in things like this. As a classical music fan, I also loved the artistic value, but I cannot separate the two. Music devoted to God is uplifting no matter the artistic intent of the artist(s) who may sing it.

Wikipedia contains a summary of the origins of the store and facility that is now known as Macy’s. “John Wanamaker, the founder of the store that once bore his name, was unable to join the U.S. Army during the American Civil War because of a persistent cough. Having been rejected from war duty, he ventured into business with his brother-in-law. In 1861, they founded a men's clothing store in Philadelphia called Oak Hall. In 1876, Wanamaker purchased the abandoned Pennsylvania Railroad station for use as a new, larger retail location. The concept was to renovate the terminal into a "Grand Depot" similar to London's Royal Exchange or Paris's Les Halles—two central markets, and forerunners of the modern department store, that were well-known in Europe at that time. The Wanamaker's Grand Depot opened in time to service the public visiting Philadelphia for the American Centennial Exposition of 1876, and in fact resembled one of the many pavilions at that world's fair because of its fanciful new Moorish façade…Wanamaker first thought of how he would run a store on new principles when, as a youth, a merchant refused his request to exchange a purchase. A practicing Christian, he chose not to advertise on Sundays. Before he opened his Grand Depot for retail business, he let evangelist Dwight L. Moody use its facilities as a meeting place, while Wanamaker provided 300 ushers from his store personnel. His retail advertisements - the first to be copyrighted beginning in 1874 - were factual, and promises made in them were kept. Wanamaker guaranteed the quality of his merchandise in print, allowed his customers to return purchases for a cash refund and offered the first restaurant to be located inside a department store. Wanamaker also invented the price tag…Innovation and "firsts" marked Wanamaker's. The store was the first department store with electrical illumination (1878), first store with a telephone (1879), and the first store to install pneumatic tubes to transport cash and documents (1880)… In 1910, Wanamaker replaced his Grand Depot in stages, and constructed a new, purpose-built structure on the same site in Center City Philadelphia…The palatial emporium featured the Wanamaker Organ, the former St. Louis World's Fair pipe organ, at the time one of the world's largest organs. The organ was installed in the store's marble-clad central atrium known as the Grand Court…Despite its size, the organ was deemed insufficient to fill the Grand Court with its music. Wanamaker's responded by assembling its own staff of organ builders and expanding the organ…The organ still stands in place in the store today, and is the largest operational pipe organ in the world, with some 28,000 pipes. It is famed for the delicate, orchestra-like beauty of its tone as well as its incredible power.

A Legacy is important. In the case of John N. Wanamaker, his legacy was his Christian commitment; his love of music and the arts; his sense of fairness and evenhandedness in the store he owned and operated. Proverbs 13:20-22 states, “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise…the righteous are rewarded with good. A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children…” In clicking on the Link above, you can share in a glimpse of and a portion of John Wanamaker’s legacy. He was one man who tried his best to make a difference in the lives of others. May his tribe increase! Consider these things with me!