Who Needs A Hymnal?

Since worship is the “work of the people,” it is hardly debatable that the central— and only indispensable— music of the church is congregational song.
- Donald P. Hustad

     In the 16th century, Martin Luther gave to the German people the Bible and the hymnbook in their common tongue, so they could hear directly from God and respond back in singing. In early American tradition, the pilgrims worshipped with two books: the then newly-published King James Bible, and the first book published in the colonies, the Bay Psalm Hymn Book. Today, most churches seem to have lost the value of what hymnals have to offer, their theological depth, and their usefulness for the congregation to offer up a united response to the saving work of Jesus Christ. To be clear, I am not speaking about an individual hymnal, nor the physical book itself, but the corpus of songs sung by congregations both past and present, that are doctrinally sound, God-centered, poetically written, and specifically designed for congregational involvement.
     The hymns are essential to church worship in at least three ways:

First, hymns deliver Scriptural truths with “aesthetic transcendence” through poetry, massed voices, and instrumentation. Many may struggle with Scripture memorization, but those who grew up in a hymn-singing congregation can sing verse after verse of dozens, if not hundreds of their favorite hymns. This is because hymns capture the whole of a person: the body (singing), the emotions (“feeling” what is sung), and the will (aligning oneself to the Truth). We are creative beings, and God has created us to enjoy beautiful things. Poetry, rhythm and rhyme, word-imagery, beautiful instrumentation, or simply a cappella singing and hearing a unified mass of people filling the sanctuary are all aspects of hymns that can help a church bring glory to God with their voice. Dr. Donald P. Hustad, director of the sacred music department at Moody Bible Institute in the 1950s and later the full-time organist for Billy Graham, said that “Congregational singing is both revelation of God and response to God, since great hymns always have been saturated with scripture and thus become expressions of biblical theology.”

      Many may be self-conscious about their own voice, but they are entirely missing the point. Martin Luther said the question is not “Do you have a voice?” but “Do you have a song?” Congregational singing is the single most unifying factor in a church; it is the only time the body of Christ stands together, sings together, and with one heart, mind, and voice proclaims the power of the Gospel through Jesus Christ. Second, hymns create solidarity within the church. It is the tool for the church to corporately declare who God is, His work in the world, and His work in individual lives. When a church body gathers and sings, there are “no other human listeners present, only other singer-participants (Hustad).”

     Lastly, hymns encourages personal music making and participation. Martin Luther said, “If any would not sing and talk of what Christ has wrought for us, they show thereby that they do not believe.” The discouraging trend in churches today is this “entertain me” mindset that has infiltrated church services. A leading voice of evangelical worship in the 20th century, Donald P. Hustad, says about this trend:

I am often tempted to believe that in recent years non-liturgical Christians have sold their birthright of believer-priest singing for the pleasure of spectators’ music, performed by choir, ensemble, or soloist. It seems that people would rather be sung to, than to sing for themselves.

Music leaders of any congregation need to make every effort to help congregants recapture the joy of offering their praise personally. 

     Though many worship songs, styles, and trends have risen and fallen throughout the history of the American church, the hymns of the church firmly holds their place of relevance, worth, and validity in bringing a unique beauty to the truth of Scripture, unifying a congregation, and in facilitating individual participation.