What hymnal(s) do you use?

I can see you couldn't fit much on there.

But the reading ahead thing stumps me. I found the hymnal very useful. I am not all that talented a singer, but I can find my "line" and sing it if I have the music. Cannot for the life of me just "figure it out".

Never had a problem keeping up.

I dare say many of us are in the same boat. So if we can't have the music on the screen, give us a hymnal.

We had a pretty telling discussion in SS today. Our keyboardist said lately she is convicted that sometimes church music programs are all about the musicians....what music they like, what instruments, what presentation (hymnal, screen, lining out, etc) rather than about what works for the congregation or even what scripture says. (Hard to be soberminded clapping and stomping to pharoah pharoah).

I think we are going to add the music program to what our church is reevaluating.

 

Right.

Generally, you shouldn't try to fit more than a couplet on a screen:

"Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine;
O, what a foretaste of glory Divine!"
​

That plus a bass & treble clef would be mighty "quick." Probably too much so to be practical.

Also, it would have to be quite large.

Finally, the music would likely be black notes against a white background, which takes away the aesthetics factor. Also, a bit harder to read than light text on a dark background.

Guess we'll have to sing "by ear." Now that's old-fashioned (pre-literate days...although I don't think we can quite get the "shaped-note" thing down).​

 

It's typically against copyright. A CCLI license only gives rights for the melody line to be projected or copied.

 

People will not bemoan the loss of the screen anytime soon.

We have been using hymnals since the beginning of Christian hymnody. There is also something theologically significant about a publication that contains the words of theological confessions that a congregation values. To do away with them reveals more than updated technology. It reveals a general (not complete) mentality that new music is, for the most part, disposable. You don't want to put them in a hymnal because syncopation is almost impossible to read and, next year, there will be a whole new collection of songs.

Also, it's ridiculous that our musicianship skills have regressed to the point where we see absolutely no value in making sheet music and complete poetry available at the time of use for a congregation. It doesn't matter that not everyone can read the music, but being able to follow along and read the words as a whole helps to preserve the integrity and cohesion of the poetry.

Also, it demonstrates that what was once a congregational exercise of faith has now become, largely, a consumable performance that one sings alone with, as my dad might have done when he saw Glen Campbell in concert in 1970.

Suffice to say, I feel very strongly about using hymnals. I also realize that I have spoken in non-exclusive generalities, for which I hope you will forgive me.

 

Wonder of wonders! It has happened again. I agree with you, Rev. My church uses hymnals, currently The Baptist Hymnal (1991), with organ, piano, and choir in robes. In fact, we have formed a committee to study buying new hymnals. We'll be looking at Baptist Hymnal (LifeWay, 2008), and Celebrating Grace Hymnal (Mercer, 2010), among others. We have never had anyone (so far as I know) raise the issue of screens. Even our youth are not in favor of our changing the way we do our music in worship.

Tim Reynolds

 

Baptist Hymnal, 1991 edition. All our hymns are also projected on a screen via Powerpoint.

 

We don't use hymnals, nor do we sing many hymns. If we do they have been rewritten to a more contemporary music style.

 

The Free Will baptist Hymn Book, Rejoice

 

Considering the same. Just Curious: How much cheaper were the license fees than the Hymnals?

 

Significantly. We pay about $500 for the license. Hymnals start at $10, we would have had to buy at least 1,000...that's a huge savings imho.

Besides our people, we reach a highly unchurched crowd and many with little church experience, don't get hymnals. We took the money we would have spent on hymnals and annual replacement cost and put it towards cheap pew Bibles. During the service we tell the page numbers where Scripture verses might be, and also let people know that if they don't have a Bible and really want one they can take it with them.

As I mentioned before, we don't use many traditional hymns in our worship times so the static, hardcopy hymnal doesn't fit our needs from a practical standpoint.

I mean seriously, how people in our pews and chairs can sightread music? Really I'm curious what we think a realistic percentage is.

 

The percentage of people in our church who read music is close to zero. I think what you state here is what all should be doing. Not using a hymnal or projector, but evaluating what works best for the congregation.

 

Off-topic: Sorry for the interruption, but what is a "worship pastor?" This is not a trick question; I've just never heard this description before. Is it what we used to call song leader, or music director, or is it a pastor who also leads the singing?

 

The choir can, for the most part. That doesn't mean that all choir members are fluent sight readers, however. For me, I'm not a very good sight reader, but in choir I can use the sheet music to figure parts out by looking at the other notes we sang and the position of the note in the chord. For example, if we have a second tenor note and I'm surrounded by first tenors and the second tenor note is, say, a perfect fourth below the first tenor note, I can figure that out easily. If it's a whole line, I can usually figure that out but it's easier if I can hear it once or twice in isolation.

Another thing you anti-hymnal people seem to be missing is that even if the congregation sings in unison, it adds a lot of depth to the sound if the choir sings in parts.

 

Thank you!