Morena Ke Modisa

The story of this hymn

'Morena ke modisa wa me' — 'The Lord is my shepherd' — is Psalm 23 in Setswana, and no words are more used at a Setswana funeral. The psalm reached the language early: Robert Moffat completed the Setswana Bible at Kuruman in 1857, among the first complete Bibles in an African language, and sung settings of the shepherd psalm followed in the church hymnals. Denominations sing it differently — as a metrical hymn, a chanted psalm or a repeated chorus — but the words are scripture, and most mourners know them by heart.

Where it sits in the service

Psalm 23 can carry any part of the service: it is sung at the gathering, read during the sermon, and sung again at the graveside as the coffin is lowered. Many families choose it precisely because everyone present already knows it. On the programme, print the title with 'Pesalema 23' beside it — mourners without a hymnal can then follow in their own Bibles.

In the programme, list it in the order of service as “Hymn — Morena Ke Modisa” with the leader or choir named beside it.

How it is actually sung

The Setswana Psalm 23, and the same role in a Setswana service that Crimond has in an English one — the item nobody needs to be taught. Sung in harmony, carries unaccompanied, and belongs at the graveside as much as in the church.

Printing the words

Traditional Setswana hymnody in general congregational use, though a published hymnal setting may be licensed. Print the first line and the hymnal number if the church uses one; the congregation supplies the rest without needing a page. Ask the church office before reproducing a full text.

This is practical guidance rather than legal advice. Reproduction rights vary by territory, by hymnal edition and by the licence your church holds — the church office is the right place to ask, and they answer this question often.