57

Toda la tierra (All Earth is Waiting)

Scripture References

Further Reflections on Scripture References

“Toda la tierra” makes use of a whole host of Advent images to announce the imminent arrival of the One for whom the whole world is waiting (st. 1). He is “God with us” (st. 2), and, along with the mountains and valleys, we must prepare for his coming (st. 3). Though born in a stable, he is present in the world today, with and in his people, proclaiming and brining liberty (st. 4).

 

Sing! A New Creation

Confessions and Statements of Faith References

Further Reflections on Confessions and Statements of Faith References

The phrase “long-expected” and “the Savior promised long” are descriptors of Jesus and are familiar terms to many Christians. These words speak of generations who waited while centuries passed. Our World Belongs to God, paragraph 23 also uses such terminology in calling him the “long-awaited Messiah.” And Belgic Confession, Article 18 professes that this all happened only “at the time appointed.”

 

In this song, it becomes clear that the one waited for is “Emmanuel—God with us.” The confessions of the church are very eager to identify that Emmanuel as the only Son of God “according to his divine nature” (Belgic Confession, Article 10). Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Days 11-13, Questions and Answers 29-34 put great effort into explaining why he is called Jesus, Christ, and God’s only begotten Son.

 

When stanza 2 of “All the Earth is Waiting” sings “a virgin mother will bear Emmanuel,” it is worth considering Heidelberg Catechism, Lord’s Day 14, Question and Answer 35, which explains what the virgin birth and conception by the Holy Spirit means.

57

Toda la tierra (All Earth is Waiting)

Call to Worship

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
As we enter this season of Advent,
may the love of God the Father, and the grace of Jesus the Son,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be and abide with us all.
Amen!
[Reformed Worship 57:4]
— Worship Sourcebook Edition Two

Additional Prayers

Covenant God,
you heard your people yearning for a Savior.
Thank you for sending your Son so long ago.
We now rehearse your promise
that Christ will come again,
that death and suffering will end
and every tear will be wiped away.
Come, Lord Jesus, come.
As you fulfilled Israel’s hopes long ago,
so we long for all these promises to be fulfilled. Amen.
[The Worship Sourcebook]
— Worship Sourcebook Edition Two
O Lord Jesus Christ,
whose first coming brought joy to your waiting people,
keep us in faith and hope
as we eagerly await your coming again. Amen.
[Reformed Worship ]
[The Worship Sourcebook]
— Worship Sourcebook Edition Two
The following is a guide for extemporaneous prayers. The pattern provides a suggested text
for the opening and closing of each part of the prayer and calls for extemporaneous prayers of
thanksgiving, petition, and intercession.
God, our hope,
we rejoice that you became flesh and made your dwelling among us,
even as we long for your return.
As we wait, our hearts overflow with gratitude:
for the beauty of creation . . .
for your work in the world . . .
for signs of peace and reconciliation . . .
for our community and its leaders . . .
for your work accomplished through your church, especially for . . .
For all these reasons and so much more we give you praise.
As we celebrate the first coming of your Son as a helpless child,
we also yearn for his return,
for the day in which there will be no more sorrow, pain, or death.
Today we remember in prayer:
the nations of the world . . .
those in authority . . .
the needs of the community . . .
the church universal, its mission, and those who minister . . .
the local congregation and its ministry, especially . . .
those with particular needs . . .
We offer these prayers in the name Jesus Christ, our source of hope. Amen.
[The Worship Sourcebook]
— Worship Sourcebook Edition Two
57

Toda la tierra (All Earth is Waiting)

Tune Information

Name
TODA LA TIERRA
Key
D Major
Meter
irregular

Recordings

Musical Suggestion

The simple tune, in rounded bar form (AA'BA), is intended for unison singing. Your congregation or youth choir can sing "All Earth Is Waiting" during any Sunday in Advent. Light keyboard accompaniment is appropriate; for a more Spanish flavor, use guitars and castanets (or wood blocks).
(from Reformed Worship, Issue 49)
— Bert Polman
Nearly any collection of instruments can accompany this Advent hymn—organ, light guitar, piano. If you use a praise band, the feel of ‘70s soft rock is just about right for this song, perhaps also with maracas and wood block. Play at a relaxed tempo, breathing every two measures. Take your dynamic cues from the natural arch of the melody. A descant for C and Bb instruments can be found in Sing! A New Creation #93.  
— Sing! A New Creation
Alberto Taulé lived and worked in Barcelona, Spain after studying theology and sacred music in Rome. His music is in a Spanish folk style that made its way into the Catholic Church after Vatican II. It should be played simply and without the syncopations associated Latin American music.
— Greg Scheer
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Toda la tierra (All Earth is Waiting)

Author and Composer Information

Alberto Taulé (b. Barcelona, Spain, 1932; d. March 24, 2007), a Roman Catholic priest and musician from the culturally distinctive and semi-autonomous Catalunya region of northeastern Spain, originally wrote both text and music. The text is the one translated here by Gertrude Suppe, someone who has done much to make Spanish hymn texts available in English. This hymn was included in Cantoral de Missa Domincal Centre de Pastoral Liturgica in 1972, a post-Vatican II collection of folk hymns.
— Sing! A New Creation

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