The United Methodist Hymnal: Book of United Methodist Worship (Blue)

Rating:
Summary: Don't forget the subtitle!
Review: The United Methodist Hymnal is, in my opinion, one of the best worship resources you can own. It contains hundreds and hundreds of hymns, far more than many other hymnals that I own or have used. But this is more than a Hymnal: it contains Prayers, liturgies, Scripture selections (including 100 of the Psalms) affirmations of Faith and Creeds and so much more. The subtitle is "The Book of United Methodist Worship" and that is exactly what this is: a very useful worship book. You will find it useful not only in public worship but in private prayer and devotion as well. The indexes are very useful as well - you can look up songs, hymns, prayers, and chants, by title, or by subject, by tune name, or even by scripture references. The prayers and liturgies reflect some of the best of English language and are very much in keeping with the "Common Prayer Book" tradition of the Anglican Church out of which the Methodist movement was born. The collection of hymns is wonderful! There are so many and they are fairly diverse: traditional hymns; modern ecumincal ('catholic') hymns; some 'ethnic' hymns; and more good ole' evangeical 'revival' hymns than you can shake a stick at. Of course all of the hymns, prayers, Creeds and liturgies are thick with theology and are useful for anyone who wants to get a feel for Christianity as it is practiced by Methodists as well. This is a wonderful resource for public and private worship and I can't say enough about it! Every Methodist ought to have one - right next to his Bible.