United Methodist Hymnal
Encyclopedia
The United Methodist Hymnal is the hymnal
used by The United Methodist Church
. It was first published in 1989 as the first hymnal for The United Methodist Church after the 1968 merger of The Methodist Church with The Evangelical United Brethren
Church. The 962-page hymnal is noted for many changes that were made in the lyrics of certain hymns, so as to modernize the hymnal.
, also known as The Book of Hymns, or a 1982 supplement, while The Evangelical United Brethren Church had its own hymnal, The Hymnal, which was first published in 1957, and other congregations sometimes used special hymnals oriented to different nationalities.
The release of United Methodist Hymnal in 1989 followed the updates of several other denominational hymnals in the previous decade, such as Lutheran Book of Worship
in 1978 and the Episcopalian The Hymnal 1982
. The United Methodist Hymnal was developed by a revision committee composed of twenty-five members led by editor Carlton R. Young (who also edited The Methodist Hymnal), and chaired by Bishop Rueben P. Job
. It was the first hymnal following The Methodist Church's merger with The Evangelical United Brethren Church.
In selecting and arranging hymns, many that contained masculine pronouns were altered so as to include gender-neutral pronouns instead. Male references to God
, such as "Master", "Father" and "King", were retained, and a hymn entitled "Strong Mother God" was rejected.
The editors had also considered eliminating militaristic references, and in 1986 the hymnal revision was the subject of controversy as the editors had considered eliminating "Onward Christian Soldiers" and some verses of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic
," but retained both hymns after receiving more than 11,000 protest letters. The line "white as snow" was changed to "bright as snow" in "Nothing but the Blood of Jesus", so as to eliminate the imagery of black and white respectively being images of sin and redemption. A line in "O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing
" containing references to blindness, deafness and muteness was marked with an asterisk to indicate that it may be omitted. Several international hymns were also selected, including Spanish, Asian and American Indian hymns, as well as Black spirituals. Duke Ellington
's "Come Sunday" was also included. In compositions by John Wesley
, many of the lyrical changes made by his brother Charles
were reverted, and most uses of "thee" were replaced with "you".
The hymnal also contains four forms of the Holy Communion ritual, known as the Service of Word and Table, and also of the Baptismal Covenant, along with several musical settings for both of those services. It also contains the marriage
and funeral
rites, forms for morning and evening Praise and Prayer, and a Psalter
based on the New Revised Standard Version
of the Bible but with a few revisions.
Before the hymnal's official release, The United Methodist Publishing House sent a 73-page sampler to several churches. More than three million copies were sold by July 31, 1989, and the total was over four-and-a-half million ten years later. A supplemental hymnal, The Faith We Sing, was issued in 2000.
There are two other equally official hymnals of The United Methodist Church: Mil Voces Para Celebrar: Himnario Metodista (published in 1996) and Come, Let Us Worship: The Korean-English United Methodist Hymnal (published in 2000).
Hymnal
Hymnal or hymnary or hymnbook is a collection of hymns, i.e. religious songs, usually in the form of a book. The earliest hand-written hymnals are known since Middle Ages in the context of European Christianity...
used by The United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
. It was first published in 1989 as the first hymnal for The United Methodist Church after the 1968 merger of The Methodist Church with The Evangelical United Brethren
Evangelical United Brethren Church
The Evangelical United Brethren Church was an American Protestant church which was formed in 1946 by the merger of the Evangelical Church with the Church of the United Brethren in Christ...
Church. The 962-page hymnal is noted for many changes that were made in the lyrics of certain hymns, so as to modernize the hymnal.
History
Prior to the release of The United Methodist Hymnal, The United Methodist Church used the hymnals that were in use by The Methodist Church and The Evangelical United Brethren Church at the time of the merger. The Methodist Church typically used The Methodist HymnalThe Book of Hymns
The Book of Hymns was the official hymnal of The Methodist Church, later the United Methodist Church, in the United States of America, until it was replaced in 1989 by The United Methodist Hymnal. Published in 1966 it replaced The Methodist Hymnal, published in 1935, as the official hymnal of the...
, also known as The Book of Hymns, or a 1982 supplement, while The Evangelical United Brethren Church had its own hymnal, The Hymnal, which was first published in 1957, and other congregations sometimes used special hymnals oriented to different nationalities.
The release of United Methodist Hymnal in 1989 followed the updates of several other denominational hymnals in the previous decade, such as Lutheran Book of Worship
Lutheran Book of Worship
Lutheran Book of Worship is a worship book and hymnal used by several Lutheran denominations in North America. It is often referred to by its initials as the LBW, and in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America the LBW is sometimes called the "green book" as opposed to With One Voice, a...
in 1978 and the Episcopalian The Hymnal 1982
The Hymnal 1982
The Hymnal 1982 is the hymnal of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It is one in a series of 7 official hymnals of the Episcopal Church, including The Hymnal 1940...
. The United Methodist Hymnal was developed by a revision committee composed of twenty-five members led by editor Carlton R. Young (who also edited The Methodist Hymnal), and chaired by Bishop Rueben P. Job
Rueben Philip Job
Rueben Philip Job is a retired American Bishop of the United Methodist Church. Elected in 1984, he served the Iowa Episcopal Area, and retired in 1992.-Birth and family:...
. It was the first hymnal following The Methodist Church's merger with The Evangelical United Brethren Church.
In selecting and arranging hymns, many that contained masculine pronouns were altered so as to include gender-neutral pronouns instead. Male references to God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
, such as "Master", "Father" and "King", were retained, and a hymn entitled "Strong Mother God" was rejected.
The editors had also considered eliminating militaristic references, and in 1986 the hymnal revision was the subject of controversy as the editors had considered eliminating "Onward Christian Soldiers" and some verses of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic
The Battle Hymn of the Republic
"The Battle Hymn of the Republic" is a hymn by American writer Julia Ward Howe using the music from the song "John Brown's Body". Howe's more famous lyrics were written in November 1861 and first published in The Atlantic Monthly in February 1862. It became popular during the American Civil War...
," but retained both hymns after receiving more than 11,000 protest letters. The line "white as snow" was changed to "bright as snow" in "Nothing but the Blood of Jesus", so as to eliminate the imagery of black and white respectively being images of sin and redemption. A line in "O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing
O for a Thousand Tongues to Sing
O For A Thousand Tongues To Sing is a Christian hymn written by Charles Wesley. Charles Wesley wrote over 6,000 hymns, many of which were subsequently reprinted, frequently with alterations, in hymnals, particularly those of Methodist Churches....
" containing references to blindness, deafness and muteness was marked with an asterisk to indicate that it may be omitted. Several international hymns were also selected, including Spanish, Asian and American Indian hymns, as well as Black spirituals. Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
's "Come Sunday" was also included. In compositions by John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
, many of the lyrical changes made by his brother Charles
Charles Wesley
Charles Wesley was an English leader of the Methodist movement, son of Anglican clergyman and poet Samuel Wesley, the younger brother of Anglican clergyman John Wesley and Anglican clergyman Samuel Wesley , and father of musician Samuel Wesley, and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley...
were reverted, and most uses of "thee" were replaced with "you".
The hymnal also contains four forms of the Holy Communion ritual, known as the Service of Word and Table, and also of the Baptismal Covenant, along with several musical settings for both of those services. It also contains the marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
and funeral
Funeral
A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor...
rites, forms for morning and evening Praise and Prayer, and a Psalter
Psalter
A psalter is a volume containing the Book of Psalms, often with other devotional material bound in as well, such as a liturgical calendar and litany of the Saints. Until the later medieval emergence of the book of hours, psalters were the books most widely owned by wealthy lay persons and were...
based on the New Revised Standard Version
New Revised Standard Version
The New Revised Standard Version of the Bible is an English translation of the Bible released in 1989 in the USA. It is a thorough revision of the Revised Standard Version .There are three editions of the NRSV:...
of the Bible but with a few revisions.
Before the hymnal's official release, The United Methodist Publishing House sent a 73-page sampler to several churches. More than three million copies were sold by July 31, 1989, and the total was over four-and-a-half million ten years later. A supplemental hymnal, The Faith We Sing, was issued in 2000.
There are two other equally official hymnals of The United Methodist Church: Mil Voces Para Celebrar: Himnario Metodista (published in 1996) and Come, Let Us Worship: The Korean-English United Methodist Hymnal (published in 2000).