Rating: 
Summary: ... a superb worship resource!
Review: At last, hymns that I can sing with wincing. If I could have only one hymnal, the New Century Hymnal would be it. The accompaniments are very musical and the selection is wide-ranging. I especially appreciate the inclusion of Spanish-language hymns and hymns from other countries. People who need to sing "thy" and "thou" in the 21st Century aren't going to like this hymnal; and people who don't really think about the text of what they are singing won't like the changes to the language. But, for everyone else the changes are enjoyable and enlightening: a breath of fresh air.
Rating:
Summary: If I could have only one
Review: At last, hymns that I can sing with wincing. If I could have only one hymnal, the New Century Hymnal would be it. The accompaniments are very musical and the selection is wide-ranging. I especially appreciate the inclusion of Spanish-language hymns and hymns from other countries. People who need to sing "thy" and "thou" in the 21st Century aren't going to like this hymnal; and people who don't really think about the text of what they are singing won't like the changes to the language. But, for everyone else the changes are enjoyable and enlightening: a breath of fresh air.
Rating: 
Summary: Old Errors, New Century
Review: I found the textual changes insulting to the original authors of these sacred texts. No regard is given to the biblical language or traditions. Ideology drove the creation of this hymnal, not a desire to glorify God. This is what happens when humans become the center of their faith instead of allowing God's Spirit to speak and reveal God's self to us. For shame.This book speaks neither to the classical nor the orthodox nor the biblical nor the evangelical understandings of the Christian faith.
Rating: 
Summary: Generally Good
Review: It is my belief that hymns' original lyrics were inspired. Although I do not doubt that the NCH editors are also very close to God, they cannot match the skilled poets of antiquity; thus, changing the lyrics of old hymns is quite silly.
Don't get me wrong: I am all for inclusive language. However, I am not all for changing previously written language (unless it's no longer intelligible!), especially if it provides comfort due to its familiarity. For example, "Our God Our Help in Ages Past," one of my favorite hymns, becomes "O God Our Help in Ages Past." Why? Many of these changes simply do not make sense! In some cases, as in "Mine"--oops, "My"--"Eyes Have Seen the Glory," elements of the hymn are inadvertently removed. For example, the aforementioned hymn has been changed so much that the element of witness ("I have seen Him") has been taken out ("God has been there" or something like that).
What I do like, of course, is the addition of new hymns that are inclusive. Many newer hymns in the NCH are quite good, such as "Let Us Talents and Tongues Employ," one of my very favorite communion hymns that I have, in fact, recommended to churches of other denominations.
As a church organist myself, I must say that the hymnal's arrangements are superb, and I am most pleased at the inclusion of many of R. V. Williams' masterpieces.
Overall, this hymnal is very good, albeit sterile. I would, however, warn against the discontinuation of other hymnals, such as the excellent Pilgrim Hymnal.
Rating:
Summary: Well balanced with only a few disappointments.
Review: My family joined a UCC church just as they were transitioning into using the New Century Hymnal. Since that time I have been very pleased with the hymnal as a whole. Not a season goes by that I am not surprised by something I find within its pages.
A big issue within the UCC as well as the christian community as a whole is the issue of inclusive language. I believe the intentions of political correctness are good. In the case of this hymnal this good-natured attempt often goes just a bit too far. In the case of new hymns set to poems by such authors as Brian Wren this hymnal stands out far beyond any others. My philosophy regarding inclusive language is that, rather than change the old standard hymns, we should write new ones with a more enlightened approach to equality. The new additions to the standard repertoire within this book are second to none.
On the other hand, many of the old standards in this book have been sent through the blender and come out resembling nothing closer than a distant cousin of their original ancestors. More times than I can remember I would turn to a hymn I was sure I had never heard of to find it to be an old favorite in disguise. Occasionally a stroke of genious finds its way into the inclusified "translation" such as "Good Christian Men" becomming "Good Christian Friends". This is an example of a very tasteful change that holds true to the feel and spirit of the original so well that the change goes by unnoticed. In other cases, such as "O Come let us adore him" becoming "O come in adoration" the term "inclusive" is really inappropriate for what has been done to our favorite hymns. "Mutually Exclusive" would be a better name for it. Seriously, is it really necessary to deny the gender of Jesus Christ?
As for the modernization of the older hymns there really is no excuse. Is anyone really bothered by the "Ye" in "O Come all Ye Faithful"? Modern language is for modern hymns. This hymnal has at least its fair share of new and contemporary hymns and songs to balance out this difference in language styles.
I am quite pleased to see the inclusion of just about every possible variety of congregational music. Reviewer Allen Smalling seems to think there are some that have been excluded. As far as the examples he gives I find him to be dead wrong. The difficulty in finding old tunes when the titles may have been changed is alleviated by a very comprehensive index which includes common titles (those in italics) for many hymns that go by new or different names. "Creator of the Stars of Night" can be found on page 111 as "O Loving Founder of the Stars". "Of the Father's love Begotten" is on 118 as "Of the Parent's Heart Begotten" (They actually kept the word Begotten?). A few other examples of plainsong and chant can be found on 87, 184, 244. Medieval and ancient music has not been left out, nor have others. "On Eagles Wings" is not included as a hymn but is represented in the liturgical portion, #775. Taize music comes from a strong tradition of call and response and lends itself primarily to repetition. I would imagine the hymnal's editors felt that this music could be purchased separately for use by the worship leaders while congregations could participate without written music.
The short histories at the bottom of each page are an invaluable resourse to the church community. Occasionally this history is slightly biased toward the text while sometimes offering no history of the music at all but the vast majority offer the best information they can in such a small space. When I visit other churches I find I miss this feature more than any other.
As a musician I greatly appreciate the effort that has been made to include musically superior versions of the hymns. When one is available J.S. Bach's glorious harmonizations are included for all of the old German hymn tunes (sometimes more than one). When the same tune is set to several texts there are often several different harmonizations offered. When these exist a note refers to the other options throughout the book. For those churches who choose to do so there is a great variety of options for liturgical music in the back of the hymnal that can be assembled into a functional liturgy. The order of service guides in the front portion refer to these options as well. Also notable are the cantor/congregation psalm settings which are good for breaking the monotony of spoken scripture.
Overall the selection of hymns and songs included make this hymnal second to none in my opinion. While I disagree with some of the adaptations that were made, the content is as well balanced as it can be and has something to offer each and every one of us, in or out of the UCC.
Rating: 
Summary: Pilgrim's Regress
Review: People had been waiting a long time for the United Church of Christ's 1995 NEW CENTURY HYMNAL. Many of that denomination's churches had quite understandably skipped the mediocre, 300-hymn denominational hymnal from 1974, which seemed mostly an exercise in even-Steven hymn choice from the two groups that merged to form the U.C.C. in 1962, the Congregationalists and the Evangelical & Reformed churches. Then the NEW CENTURY HYMNAL came out. It is impressive. It is bulky, black, solid, and looks and feels like everything a "millenial" hymnal ought to be; but for most of us it is a severe disappointment. It's as though the professionals got shoved aside in favor of the "Original Amateur Hour" in the compiling of this hymnal. References that automatically defer to the masculine gender had to be removed--fair enough; after all, it seems weird that only 15 years or so ago we were singing "Good Christian *Men*, Rejoice." But this passion for purity further morphed into a kind of cultural Jacobinism, so out went not only masculine terminology, but any tiniest trace of 17th Century pronouns or nouns (Thee, Thine, Blest); also metaphors of royalty, hierarchy, miltarism, individuality ("I" becomes "We") and so on. That's why "Onward Christian Soldiers" has to go, and just imagine the embarrassment caused by "God, the Omnipotent, King Who Ordainest." As someone once said, figures of speech must serve a purpose, or what's a meta for? The complaint has been made for years that the people who administer the "oldline" Protestant denominations are insufficient in economists but superfluous in poets. Are they condescending to us poor pew-sitters? Do they think we're so dumb that we'll take "Onward Christian Soldiers" literally and feel justified in igniting some new kind of Trinitarian "jihad"? (At the risk of taking the Lord's name in vain, Sheesh!) For those charged with representing the descendants of Yankee Pilgrims and Puritans, the compilers of the NEW CENTURY HYMNAL did a pretty good job of spitting on the one area which ought to be their custody--the Plymouth experience. That magnificent internal rhyme "may Thy congregation escape tribulation" got thrown out (was it the "Thy"?) in favor of some Cool-Whip banality written by staff. Person(s) had the arrogance to rewrite "Materna" ("O, Beautiful, for Spacious Skies") into "O Beautiful, Our Spacious Skies" followed by some very roundabout rhymes to make it more "inclusive" of "all the Americas." Wow--all of a sudden they want to make it inclusive. That sort of thing used to be called "cultural imperialism." Still is, in many, many other parts of the world. Ironic, isn't it--the more forward and progressive these authorities strain to be the more Puritan they become--dictating what is right for us to sing and think. Indeed, while NEW CENTURY is more than happy to dictate what goes in terms of faraway languages and cultures, it's here in this country that problems arise. Part of this is inherent in the denomniation and not anyone's fault or responsibility. Because of the historic westward spread of Congregationalism, the U.C.C. is geographically mostly a "Northern Tier" denomination, restricted mainly to big cities, a few dots in the Deep South where Congregationalists founded African-American colleges 130 years ago, New England, a narrow swath around the Great Lakes, the Upper Midwest, a dip into the Central Midwest and Plains where the old German E&R Church predominated, and the Pacific Northwest. So we can't blame Hymnal for slighting the South or Mid-Atlantic hymary, and Hymnal has done quite a good job including several hymns in Spanish and that bellwether of Caucasian coolness "Lift Every Voice and Sing." Good show. Shockingly, though, the NEW CENTURY HYMNAL is out to lunch on such phenomena as Roman Catholic plainsongs that have become quite common. Unlike other Mainline Protestant and private-market hymnals, it doesn't contain "Creator of the Stars of Night" or "Of the Father's Love Begotten." It doesn't have what is probably the Taize community's favorite chant, "Jesus, Remember Me (When You Come Into Your Kingdom)." And, it is quite resistant to the charms of the newer acoustic music like "Majesty" or "On Eagle's Wings." Too declasse, mayhaps?? Although I didn't grow up wealthy or landed in accord with the cultural stereotype, it's times like this make me ashamed to be a White and (mostly) Anglo-Saxon Protestant. I've belonged to UCC churches here in the Midwest and the members strike me as being not stuffy or hidebound, certainly liberal but not "looney left" or wedded to agendas. The tension in the UCC between the Congregational heritage--in which churches simply have no hierarchy--and modern denominationalism--is explained to some extent by the current UCC catch-phrase "responsible freedom." I do know that a lot of responsible church members--none of whom remotely resemble ignoramuses--feel betrayed by this hymnal, especially the more oddly-shafted and gratuitous cultural incursions such as rewriting "We Gather Together to Ask The Lord's Blessing" alluded to above. In my opinion a congregational or other independent church that is still making do with the PILGRIM or a fill-in hymnal to represent the Reformed tradition would do much better eschewing this weirdity and going with one of the more flexible (and fuller-contented) private-market hymnals. VOICES IN WORSHIP from Christian Publications in Colorado Springs can claim an historic thread to the Christian & Missionary Alliance, but in point of fact the denomination is now so large and ecumenically diverse that it is just as universally useful as is the equally admirable WORSHIP & REJOICE from long-time private-market hymnal publisher Hope. Both are available thru Amazon. If I call these "Unihymnals," it's not a slur--they contain the kind of hymns so blatantly lacking from NEW CENTURY. Unless, your congregation finds "Onward Christian Soldiers" so inherently offensive, they can RIP OUT THE PAGE and show what censorship means . . . I gave NEW CENTURY three stars instead of two because of superior binding and workmanship and acid-free paper -- and (my face is red--no amateur at work here)the hymnal does its users a true courtesy by printing a mini-history of each hymn's author and the hymn itself at the bottom of the hymn's page. Many denoms. charge a pretty penny to sell a separate book of history and anecdote surrounding the hymns in their hymnal, which then must be word-processed or otherwise imaged into the Sunday bulletin. I do honestly feel that no congregation should feel stampeded or made to feel like theological doofuses if they kick a few other hymnals' tires before deciding whether or not to go with the NEW CENTURY. They could do worse, but . . .
Rating:
Summary: Pilgrim's Regress
Review: People had been waiting a long time for the United Church of Christ's 1995 NEW CENTURY HYMNAL. Many of that denomination's churches had quite understandably skipped the mediocre, 300-hymn denominational hymnal from 1974, which seemed mostly an exercise in even-Steven hymn choice from the two groups that merged to form the U.C.C. in 1962, the Congregationalists and the Evangelical & Reformed churches. Then the NEW CENTURY HYMNAL came out. It is impressive. It is bulky, black, solid, and looks and feels like everything a "millenial" hymnal ought to be; but for most of us it is a severe disappointment. It's as though the professionals got shoved aside in favor of the "Original Amateur Hour" in the compiling of this hymnal. References that automatically defer to the masculine gender had to be removed--fair enough; after all, it seems weird that only 15 years or so ago we were singing "Good Christian *Men*, Rejoice." But this passion for purity further morphed into a kind of cultural Jacobinism, so out went not only masculine terminology, but any tiniest trace of 17th Century pronouns or nouns (Thee, Thine, Blest); also metaphors of royalty, hierarchy, miltarism, individuality ("I" becomes "We") and so on. That's why "Onward Christian Soldiers" has to go, and just imagine the embarrassment caused by "God, the Omnipotent, King Who Ordainest." As someone once said, figures of speech must serve a purpose, or what's a meta for? The complaint has been made for years that the people who administer the "oldline" Protestant denominations are insufficient in economists but superfluous in poets. Are they condescending to us poor pew-sitters? Do they think we're so dumb that we'll take "Onward Christian Soldiers" literally and feel justified in igniting some new kind of Trinitarian "jihad"? (At the risk of taking the Lord's name in vain, Sheesh!) For those charged with representing the descendants of Yankee Pilgrims and Puritans, the compilers of the NEW CENTURY HYMNAL did a pretty good job of spitting on the one area which ought to be their custody--the Plymouth experience. That magnificent internal rhyme "may Thy congregation escape tribulation" got thrown out (was it the "Thy"?) in favor of some Cool-Whip banality written by staff. Person(s) had the arrogance to rewrite "Materna" ("O, Beautiful, for Spacious Skies") into "O Beautiful, Our Spacious Skies" followed by some very roundabout rhymes to make it more "inclusive" of "all the Americas." Wow--all of a sudden they want to make it inclusive. That sort of thing used to be called "cultural imperialism." Still is, in many, many other parts of the world. Ironic, isn't it--the more forward and progressive these authorities strain to be the more Puritan they become--dictating what is right for us to sing and think. Indeed, while NEW CENTURY is more than happy to dictate what goes in terms of faraway languages and cultures, it's here in this country that problems arise. Part of this is inherent in the denomniation and not anyone's fault or responsibility. Because of the historic westward spread of Congregationalism, the U.C.C. is geographically mostly a "Northern Tier" denomination, restricted mainly to big cities, a few dots in the Deep South where Congregationalists founded African-American colleges 130 years ago, New England, a narrow swath around the Great Lakes, the Upper Midwest, a dip into the Central Midwest and Plains where the old German E&R Church predominated, and the Pacific Northwest. So we can't blame Hymnal for slighting the South or Mid-Atlantic hymary, and Hymnal has done quite a good job including several hymns in Spanish and that bellwether of Caucasian coolness "Lift Every Voice and Sing." Good show. Shockingly, though, the NEW CENTURY HYMNAL is out to lunch on such phenomena as Roman Catholic plainsongs that have become quite common. Unlike other Mainline Protestant and private-market hymnals, it doesn't contain "Creator of the Stars of Night" or "Of the Father's Love Begotten." It doesn't have what is probably the Taize community's favorite chant, "Jesus, Remember Me (When You Come Into Your Kingdom)." And, it is quite resistant to the charms of the newer acoustic music like "Majesty" or "On Eagle's Wings." Too declasse, mayhaps?? Although I didn't grow up wealthy or landed in accord with the cultural stereotype, it's times like this make me ashamed to be a White and (mostly) Anglo-Saxon Protestant. I've belonged to UCC churches here in the Midwest and the members strike me as being not stuffy or hidebound, certainly liberal but not "looney left" or wedded to agendas. The tension in the UCC between the Congregational heritage--in which churches simply have no hierarchy--and modern denominationalism--is explained to some extent by the current UCC catch-phrase "responsible freedom." I do know that a lot of responsible church members--none of whom remotely resemble ignoramuses--feel betrayed by this hymnal, especially the more oddly-shafted and gratuitous cultural incursions such as rewriting "We Gather Together to Ask The Lord's Blessing" alluded to above. In my opinion a congregational or other independent church that is still making do with the PILGRIM or a fill-in hymnal to represent the Reformed tradition would do much better eschewing this weirdity and going with one of the more flexible (and fuller-contented) private-market hymnals. VOICES IN WORSHIP from Christian Publications in Colorado Springs can claim an historic thread to the Christian & Missionary Alliance, but in point of fact the denomination is now so large and ecumenically diverse that it is just as universally useful as is the equally admirable WORSHIP & REJOICE from long-time private-market hymnal publisher Hope. Both are available thru Amazon. If I call these "Unihymnals," it's not a slur--they contain the kind of hymns so blatantly lacking from NEW CENTURY. Unless, your congregation finds "Onward Christian Soldiers" so inherently offensive, they can RIP OUT THE PAGE and show what censorship means . . . I gave NEW CENTURY three stars instead of two because of superior binding and workmanship and acid-free paper -- and (my face is red--no amateur at work here)the hymnal does its users a true courtesy by printing a mini-history of each hymn's author and the hymn itself at the bottom of the hymn's page. Many denoms. charge a pretty penny to sell a separate book of history and anecdote surrounding the hymns in their hymnal, which then must be word-processed or otherwise imaged into the Sunday bulletin. I do honestly feel that no congregation should feel stampeded or made to feel like theological doofuses if they kick a few other hymnals' tires before deciding whether or not to go with the NEW CENTURY. They could do worse, but . . .
Rating:
Summary: ... a superb worship resource!
Review: The New Century Hymnal is a marvelous volume of hymns, with melodies AND texts that are a joy to sing. It does a great job of incorporating inclusive language into old hymns in a way that does not sound stilted, and also includes some entirely new pieces whose music and texts are incredibly rich, both aesthetically and spiritually. I highly recommend this hymnal for churches and individuals alike.
Rating:
Summary: Not the Good Book!
Review: The New Century Hymnal's editors wanted it to be 'the first hymnal on a new shelf', a fresh start in the development of Christian hymnity. This hymnal succeeds in part, through a scrupulous attention to justice issues in language and a zealous attempt to reflect the variety of ethnic and religious traditions found within the UCC (at least). The NCH seeks to include 'old gospel thumpers' as well insisting on inclusive language. That is a trade-off that will offend some on the right and the left of the theological divide (more on the right than the left). Some of the language changes are hard to take, most are un-noticed. Worshippers in the free-church tradition will have an easier switch to the hymnal, which maintains the 'worship logic' of the old (and by now, really old) Pilgrim Hymnal. Some hymns (most notably 'America') have been changed so much that they are really different songs entirely. Four stars rather than five because the hymnal neglects the growing charismatic response-song tradition and a few of the hymns reflect more where the editors want the church to go rather than reflect the worship of the people as they are. Kudos for the effort, though, as well as the rediscovery of English traditional songs and a wide variety and number of hymns.
Rating:
Summary: New Century Hymnal
Review: The New Century Hymnal's editors wanted it to be 'the first hymnal on a new shelf', a fresh start in the development of Christian hymnity. This hymnal succeeds in part, through a scrupulous attention to justice issues in language and a zealous attempt to reflect the variety of ethnic and religious traditions found within the UCC (at least). The NCH seeks to include 'old gospel thumpers' as well insisting on inclusive language. That is a trade-off that will offend some on the right and the left of the theological divide (more on the right than the left). Some of the language changes are hard to take, most are un-noticed. Worshippers in the free-church tradition will have an easier switch to the hymnal, which maintains the 'worship logic' of the old (and by now, really old) Pilgrim Hymnal. Some hymns (most notably 'America') have been changed so much that they are really different songs entirely. Four stars rather than five because the hymnal neglects the growing charismatic response-song tradition and a few of the hymns reflect more where the editors want the church to go rather than reflect the worship of the people as they are. Kudos for the effort, though, as well as the rediscovery of English traditional songs and a wide variety and number of hymns.
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