Church Hymnal

Rating:
Summary: A treasured friend
Review: I grew up with this hymnal in the back of the pew at my home congregation. Singing many of these hymns have strengthened my faith in God. As a hymnal collector I still pull this treasure out to find hymns and hymn writers. A unique feature tells a brief bibliography of most writers.

Rating:
Summary: A treasured friend
Review: I grew up with this hymnal in the back of the pew at my home congregation. Singing many of these hymns have strengthened my faith in God. As a hymnal collector I still pull this treasure out to find hymns and hymn writers. A unique feature tells a brief bibliography of most writers.

Rating:
Summary: Pleasantest Possible Surprise
Review: I hold in my hand the hymnal pictured in Amazon's display (I think it is, anyway; the cover looks the same but my copy has no ISBN.)

At any rate, my CHURCH HYMNAL has exactly the same cover and modest, generic-looking title, but it is in no way generic. Herald Press also includes the Mennonite Publishing House but this hymnal isn't Mennonite, if by that word we mean "ethnically German."

What it is, is a delightful hymnal dating back to the late 1920s, containing what a typical American congregation of that day might want to sing. It is bigger and fuller than the hymnals Broadman and Cokesbury were putting out at that time and betrays little, if any, regional bias. It has "How Firm a Foundation" and "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us" as well as "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" and "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus."

But it is in Anglo-American hymnody (specifically British, not Scottish or Irish) that the CHURCH HYMNAL excels. (The index credits Fanny Crosby as author of eleven hymns; Charles Wesley, 32.) It has most of what we'd expect to see along those lines, such as "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name," or "Jesus Shall Reign Where'er The Sun." But it also has the lyrics we know set to tunes we might not--check out "Rejoice, the Lord is King," for example. Also LOTS of tunes rendered unfamiliar by time, some of which will probably by new for the professional, most new to the amateur or hymnal-collector. And, for your nostalgic friends, the CHURCH HYMNAL uses shaped notes!

CHURCH HYMNAL is well fabricated, uses ANSI-standard recycled paper, and is a good deal for its price. Whether the purchaser uses it as a gift for someone who remembers the "good ol' days," to a serious organist or historian of hymns, or just to look good on the spinet, there are all kinds of reasons this lovely, surprising work gets thumbs double-up-plus.

Rating:
Summary: Keeping an Old Favorite Up-to-Date
Review: In September of 2003 I wrote a very similar review of this *CHURCH HYMNAL* and filed it privately, to retain anyonymity, so as not to conflict with a study project I was working on. Since there is now no conflict-of-interest, I am now free to update information about this fascinating hymnal and freshen the review under my own name.

Although the publisher, Herald Press, is part of the Mennonite Publishing House of Scottsdale, Pennsylvania, this hymnal isn't intended for ethnically German congregations. Instead, it is a delightful hymnal dating back to the late 1920s, containing what a typical American congregation of that day might want to sing. It is bigger and fuller than the hymnals Broadman and Cokesbury were putting out at that time and betrays little, if any, regional bias. It has "How Firm a Foundation" and "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us" as well as "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" and "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus."

But it is in Anglo-American hymnody (specifically British, not Scottish or Irish) that the CHURCH HYMNAL excels. (The index credits Fanny Crosby as author of eleven hymns; Charles Wesley, 32.) It has most of what we'd expect to see along those lines, such as "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name," or "Jesus Shall Reign Where'er The Sun." But it also has the lyrics we know set to tunes we might not--check out "Rejoice, the Lord is King," for example. Also LOTS of tunes rendered unfamiliar by time, some of which will probably by new for the professional, most new to the amateur or hymnal-collector. And, for your nostalgic friends, the CHURCH HYMNAL uses shaped notes!

CHURCH HYMNAL is well fabricated, uses ANSI-standard recycled paper, and is a good deal for its price. Whether the purchaser uses it as a gift for someone who remembers the "good ol' days," to a serious organist or historian of hymns, or just to look good on the spinet, there are all kinds of reasons this lovely, surprising work gets thumbs double-up-plus.

As an update, I've learned that the facsimile of the cover Amazon portrays on the screen above is just as my actual copy appears, reading "Church Hymnal" with no denominational imprimatur on the cover (and nothing at all on the spine).

The hymnal has been in print since its initial publication in the late 1920s and according to Herald Press, still sells several thousands of copies each year.

Not difficult to understand . . .
.

Rating:
Summary: Keeping an Old Favorite Up-to-Date
Review: In September of 2003 I wrote a very similar review of this *CHURCH HYMNAL* and filed it privately, to retain anyonymity, so as not to conflict with a study project I was working on. Since there is now no conflict-of-interest, I am now free to update information about this fascinating hymnal and freshen the review under my own name.

Although the publisher, Herald Press, is part of the Mennonite Publishing House of Scottsdale, Pennsylvania, this hymnal isn't intended for ethnically German congregations. Instead, it is a delightful hymnal dating back to the late 1920s, containing what a typical American congregation of that day might want to sing. It is bigger and fuller than the hymnals Broadman and Cokesbury were putting out at that time and betrays little, if any, regional bias. It has "How Firm a Foundation" and "Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us" as well as "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" and "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus."

But it is in Anglo-American hymnody (specifically British, not Scottish or Irish) that the CHURCH HYMNAL excels. (The index credits Fanny Crosby as author of eleven hymns; Charles Wesley, 32.) It has most of what we'd expect to see along those lines, such as "All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name," or "Jesus Shall Reign Where'er The Sun." But it also has the lyrics we know set to tunes we might not--check out "Rejoice, the Lord is King," for example. Also LOTS of tunes rendered unfamiliar by time, some of which will probably by new for the professional, most new to the amateur or hymnal-collector. And, for your nostalgic friends, the CHURCH HYMNAL uses shaped notes!

CHURCH HYMNAL is well fabricated, uses ANSI-standard recycled paper, and is a good deal for its price. Whether the purchaser uses it as a gift for someone who remembers the "good ol' days," to a serious organist or historian of hymns, or just to look good on the spinet, there are all kinds of reasons this lovely, surprising work gets thumbs double-up-plus.

As an update, I've learned that the facsimile of the cover Amazon portrays on the screen above is just as my actual copy appears, reading "Church Hymnal" with no denominational imprimatur on the cover (and nothing at all on the spine).

The hymnal has been in print since its initial publication in the late 1920s and according to Herald Press, still sells several thousands of copies each year.

Not difficult to understand . . .
.