Streams of Song: Developing a New Hymnal for the Presbyterian Church (USA)

Abstract

Congregational singing has been an integral part of Christian worship in America for 400 years, with the first British colonists bringing their psalters and religious singing practices to the New World. Since the publication of The Whole Book of Psalms Faithfully Translated into English Metre [the Bay Psalter] (1640), every generation has developed new resources for congregational singing. Presbyterians are no exception, having a long history of hymnal publication in America with the first hymnal appearing in 1831. In 2008, a 15-member committee was formed to develop a new hymnal: Glory to God: A Presbyterian Hymnal (2013). As with other mainline Protestant denominations, Presbyterians work in a changed and changing landscape. Declining membership, increased numbers of ethnicities, a diversity of theological groundings, and competing musical styles in worship create new challenges and opportunities for Presbyterian congregations. Glory to God includes hymns reflecting the denomination’s new demographics, new musical and liturgical styles and new emphases. This chapter discusses the development of this new collection focusing on the need for a new hymnal within the changing denominational landscape, its theological vision statement and the selection of contents with special attention to contemporary Christian and global songs. Working with thousands of psalm settings, hymns, and spiritual songs, the committee needed a means of categorizing and tracking materials. Hymnologist Michael Hawn’s seven “Streams of Song,” provided a useful metaphor and practical tool for organizing and discussing texts. The finalized collection includes more than 850 items from each of the seven “streams of song,” resourcing the next generation of Presbyterians with congregational song that preserves its Reformed heritage and yet is representative of a denomination with increased racial ethnic membership and diverse musical styles.