ABOUT THE PROJECT

The 2004 General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) gave authorization to the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, the Presbyterian Association of Musicians, and the Office of Theology and Worship to begin research into the feasibility of a new Presbyterian hymnal. The results of this feasibility study were to be reported to the 217th General Assembly in 2006. With the help of Research Services of the PC(USA), a questionnaire was developed assessing the need for a new hymnal and was distributed in August 2005 to members of the Presbyterian Panel. This Panel consists of three nationally representative samples of groups affiliated with the PC(USA): members, elders, and ordained ministers. Research Services tabulated the results of the Panel survey and then presented the results to the 2006 General Assembly, which granted authorization for the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation to research, develop, and produce a new hymnal. The Presbyterian Publishing Corporation is assuming all costs for the development and production of the hymnal, including the expenses of the Hymnal Committee. No money is being spent on the project from the denomination's budget.

Members of the Hymnal Committee have been selected, and had their first meeting in the fall of 2008. The Hymnal Committee consists of fifteen voting members (two of whom are under the age of twenty-five), the editor (with vote), and three ex officio members appointed by the three denominational entities that are charged with responsibility for the hymnal: the Presbyterian Association of Musicians, the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, and the Office of Theology and Worship. It is projected that the work of the Hymnal Committee will take four to five years. During this time there are plans for the church at large to have multiple opportunities for input into the hymnal process. Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, again working with Research Services, will undertake several significant surveys to gather opinions about what materials from the current 1990 Presbyterian Hymnal should be carried forward into the next hymnal and to ascertain what materials not found in the current hymnal are being used often in PC(USA) congregations. All the information gathered through these surveys will be given to the Hymnal Committee to help them make their decisions regarding content of the next hymnal.

The biblical narrative contains many references to singing joyfully to our God. In every generation we are called to claim our song and bear witness to what God is doing in the world. A new hymnal will give us an opportunity to make available a great wealth of hymns and spiritual songs that have arisen since the 1990 hymnal, to acquaint worshipers with wonderful resources from Christian communities around the world, and to review again the great heritage of congregational songs that have been passed on to us from past generations of faithful worshipers.

May God continue to guide us on this path of discernment, and may our next hymnal help God's people sing joyfully for generations yet to come!

COMMITTEE STATEMENTS

Click here to read the Theological Vision Statement and the Statement on Language from the PCOCS that are guiding the development of the new hymnal.

HISTORY

In the early days of the American colonies, the governing bodies of Presbyterians left all decisions about whether to sing hymns or psalms up to the individual congregations. This resulted in a variety of different psalters and hymnals being used by the young congregations. Most of these collections contained words only and rarely were the tunes printed. Early American church leaders and congregational members usually lacked a musical education. To correct this problem, singing schools were established which caused a growth in the desire for new tunes. By 1800 there were over 130 different collections of tune books in print. This meant that singers held two books, a tune book and a collection of texts. It was not until after the Civil War that most hymnals looked like the ones we use today with the text printed with the tune.

Presbyterian governing bodies resisted all efforts to form an official hymnal committee until the PCUSA General Assembly in 1819 finally granted approval. Psalms and Hymns Adapted to the Public Worship was first printed in 1830 and became the first official American Presbyterian hymnal in 1831. Other Presbyterian denominations continued to sing only psalms.

In 1874 The Presbyterian Hymnal was published by the newly reunited "Old" and "New" schools under the direction of a committee of five headed by Joseph T. Duryea.

In 1895 Louis Benson, one of the foremost hymnologists in America, edited The Hymnal, published by authority of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. This hymnal was revised in 1911.

The General Assembly of the PCUSA authorized a new hymnal in 1933. Clarence Dickinson was the Editor of The Hymnal that is still in use in some Presbyterian churches in the United States. A statement in the Preface still rings true for the current hymnal project, some 75 years later:
"Probably no one church will use all the hymns in the book, but the editors have earnestly sought to make the hymns included so representative and so varied that every church will find in it a sufficient number to suit its particular needs and preferences."

In 1949, representatives of the United Presbyterian Church of North America and the Reformed Church in America began working together on the possibility of jointly preparing a Psalter hymnal which would include metrical versions of the psalms and a selection of hymns. In 1950 the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States appointed a committee to approach the group already working and inquire as to the possibility of joining in the production of the new hymnal. The Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church and the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America also joined in the project, making it a cooperative project of five American denominations of the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition. David Hugh Jones served as Editor with David Kissling as Chair of The Hymnbook Committee. The Hymnbook was published in 1955.

In 1972 The Worshipbook: Services and Hymns was published as a joint project of the Presbyterian Church in the United States, the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, and the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America. As the title of the book suggests, it was in two parts. The Worshipbook - Services was published first and was the successor to The Book of Common Worship (1946). The publication of the complete volume, The Worshipbook: Services and Hymns provided Presbyterian churches in North America with the type of liturgical collection that was first produced at the time of the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century. The Joint Committee on Worship did not have the intention of publishing a general hymnal. Instead their purpose was to provide musical materials which would complete the Service for the Lord's Day. The hymns in this collection were intended to provide resources for the Lectionary for the Christian Year. Robert Carwithen was Editor for the musical portion of The Worshipbook with Cecil W. Lower chairing The Committee on Selection of Hymns.

The General Assemblies of 1980 and 1983 directed that a hymnal be developed "using inclusive language and sensitive to the diverse nature" of the church. A committee of 18 persons began work in April 1985 and concluded the selection process in July 1989. The Presbyterian Hymnal: Hymns, Psalms, and Spiritual Songs was published by Westminster/John Knox Press in 1990. There have been about 2.4 million copies of The Presbyterian Hymnal sold as of April 1, 2008. LindaJo McKim served as Editor and Melva W. Costen chaired the committee.

This brief overview of hymnals in the Presbyterian tradition is not meant to be exhaustive, but to give large markers along the path that leads to the work just beginning on a new Presbyterian hymnal. Many collections of hymns, other than those mentioned above, have been published for use by Presbyterians. We are a singing people, and the history of hymnal publishing is rich.

(Note: Much of the above information on early Presbyterian hymnals was published in the 2005 Presbyterian Historical Society Heritage Sunday materials called "Learning to Sing: Presbyterian hymnals and psalters.")