Hymn Desk
Hymn Texts /

What Is This Place

What is this place where we are meeting

A hymn on the ecclesiology of worship — what the gathered assembly is and what it does. The three stanzas describe the church as a place of people, the Eucharist as the sharing of bread and wine, and the songs as the hymns of people who are God's own.

History & Background

Written by Huub Oosterhuis (b.1933), a Dutch Jesuit liturgical poet, in 1967. Translated into English. One of the finest contemporary hymns on the nature of the worshipping assembly as the body of Christ.

Hymnal Appearances

  • Evangelical Lutheran Worship — 524
  • Gather 4th Edition — 926

Bulletin Note

What Is This Place — Huub Oosterhuis, 1967

Preaching Connection

The nature of the worshipping community — who we are when we gather.

Catechism & Confessional Connections

Stanza Arc

The narrative or theological arc traced by this tune's stanzas: The Spirit's transformative entry into human life through Baptism, establishing identity in Christ and empowering missional living

Themes

Ecclesiology Worship Community Gathering

Look Further