Bude Van Dyke is an educator, an Episcopal priest with strong connection to the soul space of his Cherokee ancestors, a recovering alcoholic with 30 years of sobriety, a singer/songwriter and loves to work and create with his hands. His fee is $100 per session but will work on a sliding scale with those who need and do the work.
A singer/songwriter from Sewanee, Tennessee, Bude is of Cherokee descent on his mother's side. His band, TSALAGI SOUL ᏣᎳᎩ ᎠᏓᎾᏔ, produces Native Americana Music. Budeserved as Fire Keeper for the 2010 Oklahoma IV Consultations, a gathering of over 100 Elders from 22 Native American reservations across the country.
Bude Van Dyke, DMin, is an ordained Episcopal Priest and Spiritual Director of the Extended Care Program for Bradford Health Services, a provider of addiction treatment throughout the Southeastern United States.
“That we be given the ability to walk, see and hear with trust, hope and love, even at difficult times.”
Decatur Daily, January 4, 2019
Article by Catherine Godbey, Photo Credit Chris Shimek
On Tuesday the world celebrated the first day of 2019 — a time of new beginnings and restored hope. Following a tradition dating back centuries, global, national and local religious leaders surrounded these new beginnings with prayer.
In the United States, the tradition of praying in the new year dates back to Dec. 31, 1862. On that day, at churches across the South, slaves, free blacks and white sympathizers sang and prayed until the stroke of midnight, when the Emancipation Proclamation declaring all slaves in the Confederacy free went into effect.
So began the tradition of sending out the old year and welcoming the new year in with worship. While the voices of the religious leaders offering up the prayers have changed, the content of the prayers have remained the same.
They pray for peace, patience, love, kindness, respect, salvation and wisdom.
During World War II, Alice Wallenfelz Cline penned “A New Year’s Prayer.” In the poem, she wrote, “We ask his guidance, we plead and pray that to all nations he’ll show the way. For the war and fighting and feuds to cease and the world will remain at peace.”
In his 2008 New Year’s prayer, the Rev. Billy Graham, who died in 2018, prayed for justice and protection.
“In the midst of our daily preoccupations and pursuits, open our eyes to the sorrows and injustices of our hurting world and help us to respond with compassion and sacrifice to those who are friendless and in need,” Graham prayed.
Pope Francis encouraged the world to embrace unity in his 2019 New Year’s address.
“How much dispersion and solitude there is all around us. The world is completely connected, yet seems increasingly disjointed,” he said.
Delivered on the World Day of Peace, Pope Francis also challenged every person to act as a peacemaker.
“We do not think that politics should be reserved only to political leaders: Everyone is responsible for the life of the ‘city,’ for the common good; and even politics is good in the measure in which each one does his or her part ‘in the service of peace,’ ” Pope Francis said.
As the world celebrates the beginning of 2019, local religious leaders shared their prayers. Here are excerpts:
Phil Waldrep, evangelist and founder of Phil Waldrep Ministries:
“My 2019 New Year’s prayer for our nation is to see people respect others, whether we agree or disagree with them, and for everyone to be more selfless.
"For our city to become a shining light in north Alabama by showcasing the quality and resources we have in the people who live here and by tapping those resources to move our city racially, educationally and economically in a positive direction.
"For me, my family and our ministry to grow in our relationship with Christ and to model Christlikeness so our Lord can use us to be part of the answer to the prayers we have for our country and community.”
Shannon Jordan, pastor at Westminster Presbyterian
“My prayer is my weekly benediction for the congregation, based on Ephesians 2:10. I pray that my congregation will more fully realize in 2019 that they are God’s beloved — God’s masterpieces — created in Christ, to do good in their families, workplaces, neighborhoods, throughout Decatur and wherever they may go. God has already prepared these good things for them to do and I pray that they will see these opportunities to experience and share God’s love with others who are hurting in body, mind or spirit.”
Bude Van Dyke, pastor at Church of the Good Shepherd:
“That we be given the ability to walk, see and hear with trust, hope and love, even at difficult times.”
Rick Chenault, deacon at Resurrection Catholic Chapel in Hillsboro:
“To … bring spiritual nourishment through our Lord’s Eucharistic presence and His holy word to all our brothers and sisters of Lawrence County and the surrounding area. For our country and all our leaders, that the good news of Jesus Christ this year may inspire them to serve the cause of right and that it will be a time of greater understanding and cooperation among all our leaders and the nations of the world.
"For the sick, the poor, the persecuted and the abandoned ones, that through the ministries of the Church they may be consoled by our Lord and His Mother who experienced their sorrow and hardship. That the victims of drugs and all forms of addiction may find new hope in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. For healing and justice for the victims and their families of any clerical abuse experienced in the Church throughout the world. For a greater unity of all Christians.”
DECATUR DAILY February 9, 2018
Article by Catherine Godbey, Photo Credit Chris Shimek
Echoing off the red and white tiled floors, the acoustic chords rose above the burgundy hymnals, silver pipes of the organ and rustic wooden cross to the rafters of the cathedral ceiling.
Sitting in a circle in the middle of the sanctuary, novice and experienced musicians picked out sacred and secular tunes on guitars, dobros and violins. From traditional gospel hymns of "Amazing Grace" and "Shall We Gather at the River” to popular standards “Home on the Range” and “Have You Ever Seen the Rain,” each song carried a story of love or loss or life.
“Prose reaches the intellect; music nurtures the soul and opens new levels of connection with God, each other and ourselves,” the Rev. Bude Van Dyke said.
To nurture those connections, Church of the Good Shepherd, where Van Dyke serves as rector, organized weekly Americana Music Jams. Held every Saturday, musicians, for two hours, gather at the Southwest Decatur church “to engage in a conversation of song.”
Van Dyke, who started playing the guitar as a child, knows intimately the importance of creating those connections.
The Episcopal priest and spiritual director of a rehabilitation center lived 22 years of his life as a self-described “active drunk.” Alcohol took away, not only his desire to play, but his memories of creating music. After being invited to sit in on an impromptu jam session at a Christian retreat, Van Dyke rediscovered his love for playing.
“People would invite me to come and play along with them even though they knew that every third or fourth chord I was going to get wrong. I was something awful. But that is the way you learn,” Van Dyke said.
Now, the original songs he pens about his past, his loved ones and his sobriety play an integral role in his ministry.
“My songs come out of my faith. My understanding of faith is there is a conscious part and a subconscious part. The conscious part is focusing on the God of our understanding. The subconscious is the God of our understanding focusing on us,” Van Dyke said.
During a recent jam session at the church, Van Dyke led the fellow musicians in "Daddy's Boy," an original song he wrote in honor of his dying uncle.
“He was a really good guy and helped me a lot when I was in a pretty bad way. I wrote this song after going to see him and had that talk you always want to have with somebody," Van Dyke said. "I got to where I could do it without crying. I called my aunt and said I wanted to see him after church on Sunday. He died that Saturday.”
Moving clockwise around the circle, each musician offered up another song, another story, another bit of history.
They played "Tupelo Honey" by Van Morrison and heard how beekeepers load the hives on rafts and take them to the swamp when the Tupelo trees are in bloom. They played Merle Haggard's "I'm a Lonesome Fugitive" and learned how the country legend and former inmate started experimenting with music after hearing Johnny Cash perform at Folsom Prison. They played Van Dyke’s “Te-lah-nay’s Song,” which was inspired by the wall the late Tom Hendrix, of Florence, built to commemorate his Native American great-great grandmother’s five-year walk home from Oklahoma to north Alabama.
“At 17, by herself, risking being hanged if they caught her, she walked off,” Van Dyke said. “Each stone represents one of Mr. Tom’s great-great grandmother’s steps. It’s one of the most amazing places.”
Like Van Dyke, Jerry Cobbs and Brandy Dinsmore, who are engaged, chose originals, including the song they wrote — with Van Dyke’s encouragement — for their wedding. It was the first song where Cobbs wrote the music and Dinsmore wrote the lyrics.
As the duo played on dobros and sang the chorus, "Stay with me my love, don’t stray too far from my arms,” they routinely glanced at each other and smiled.
Sharon Landis, the former executive director of the Decatur Youth Symphony, selected “I’ll Fly Away,” a gospel classic, "You Are My Sunshine," the tune she sings for her grandchildren, and "Elk River Blues," a lament written by Ernie Carpenter expressing his grief about losing his West Virginia homeland to floods.
"Is it going to be sad," Van Dyke asked.
"It's going to be beautiful," Landis said.
The sessions take place on Saturdays, 4-6 p.m., and are open to all musicians with acoustic instruments and spectators. Most play from chord sheets handed out by the other musicians. Some play from memory. And a few, such as Van Dyke, prefer to play what comes naturally.
The church, 3809 Spring Ave. S.W., hopes the jams become community-building events.
“We have a building, the community has a need. We hope to meet the need,” Van Dyke said. “Helping people developing music by finding supportive communities to encourage and nurture them is an outreach we can provide.”
DECATUR DAILY August 25, 2017
Article by Catherine Godbey, Photo Credit Lily Herne
An evening of stories and songs featuring Native Americana and contemporary folk tunes will take place at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Decatur on Wednesday at 6pm.
Featured performers at “Tsalagi Soul” are Charles Collier, a poet, who served as a military adviser during the Vietnam War, Bonnie Collier, a third-generation musician, and the Rev. Bude Van Dyke, a Cherokee descendant and recovering alcoholic with 27 years sobriety. “Tsalagi” is the name of the Cherokee language.
“The songs and stories will range from my native tradition and recovery to the time Charles spent in Vietnam,” said Van Dyke, interim pastor at Church of the Good Shepherd.
One of the most haunting songs called “When Will They Return” describes Charles Collier’s service in Vietnam, Van Dyke said.
“It is amazing. It comes from when Charles would take soldiers and put them down in rice paddies. As the helicopter was lifting up, Charles would see the looks on the faces of these guys as they watched the helicopter fly away. He said that has haunted him for years,” Van Dyke said. “We will play that song as a tribute to all veterans.”
The free concert will include a potluck supper. The church is located at 3809 Spring Ave. S.W.
Q-and-A with Van Dyke
How does your faith influence your songs? My songs come out of my faith. My understanding of faith is there is a conscious part and a subconscious part. The conscious part is focusing on the God of our understanding. The subconscious is the God of our understanding focusing on us. The same way a sermon wakes me up at 2, 3 or 4 a.m. is the same way songs come to me.
What is your background with music? As a child, music was a big deal, but I made a terrible mistake when I was 10. The Beatles had just come out with the new album “Help.” For my birthday, I got a reel-to-reel tape recorder and, for some stupid reason, attempted an acapella version of “Help.” One day, the rest of the family and I went somewhere and when we came back, my older sister was standing in the kitchen with the recorder. I didn’t sing for years.
When did you perform again? I played the guitar when I was 11, but gave that up in my early adult years. Years later, I was at an Emmaus meeting and there was a guy that was playing a guitar. I remember thinking, man, that would be cool to know how to play. See, when my drinking was so bad, I had stopped playing and forgot that I had even played. I started messing with an acoustic guitar. People would invite me to come and play along with them even though they knew that every third or fourth chord I was going to get wrong.
When did you start incorporating your heritage into the songs? In 2010, I was asked to be the Fire Keeper at an event at University of the South. The Episcopal Church had invited elders from 22 Native American reservations to have consultations with the presiding bishop for four days and nights. My job was to build a fire ring, collect the wood and set up the fire. On Sunday, this Paiute grandmother, a lady in her 80s, walked out at the crack of dawn and said, “I’m going to have prayers, you can join me.” I didn’t know if she was telling me or asking me. I said, “Yes, ma’am.” We walked to the fire and she pulled out a seashell and a bottle of water. She said, “This water comes from Pyramid Lake,” it’s our sacred lake, and poured some in the shell. Then she pulled out some sage from a little pouch and said, “This sage is grown around Pyramid Lake, we use it for ceremony, cleansing and purification.” She started singing this prayer in Paiute. I didn’t know what any of the words meant. She took the sage and dipped it in the water and tapped my forehead, then my shoulders, and went all the way down to my feet and all the way back up. When she finished the prayer, she looked up at me and said, “Thank you for your fire.” I didn’t have to know what those words meant to know that I’d been blessed. After that the Cherokee culture became a part of the fabric of my songs.
How have you addressed your recovery in your songs? “Mystery Man” is about all the things I’ve learned about myself since my recovery. Even now, 27 years later, I’m still learning things about myself, some of it’s not good and some of it’s good, but all of it is important because it shapes how I make my choices. I was thinking about all of that one day when I was sitting down at the dock at Old River at Orange Beach, watching the pelicans soar across the river. I had my guitar out there. The next thing I know, this song hit me.
To book a show with Tsalagi Soul or to schedule a speaking engagement on the Spirituality of Recovery, click the contact button beside Bude’s dog.
