Leonard Bernstein was commissioned to write a piece for the 1965 Southern Cathedrals Festival at Chichester Cathedral in Sussex, England, hence its title. The second movement opens with a pastoral setting of Psalm 23 accompanied by two harps that is sung first by solo treble, then repeated by the women of the choir. All is abruptly interrupted by the men, brass and percussion aggressively depicting the text of Psalm 2. The juxtaposition of the two Psalm texts illustrates the struggle between living a life of trust in God and the allure of earthly power.