Prelude: Hymnal Committees

“Those who sing, pray twice.” This phrase is often attributed to St. Augustine, and the sentiment is a good one! As we birth a new hymnal in The United Church of Canada and celebrate the church’s 100th anniversary, I have been reflecting on congregational song in the past century.

Hymn books that have come into existence in The United Church of Canada since the time of church union in 1925 include the following:

The Hymnary of The United Church of Canada (1930)
Songs for Little Children (1937)
The Canadian Youth Hymnal (1939)
Songs of the Gospel (1948)
Bless the Lord: Songs and Hymns for Young Children (1967)
The Hymn Book of the Anglican Church of Canada and The United Church of Canada (1971)
Songs for a Gospel People: A Supplement to The Hymn Book (1987)
All God’s Children Sing (1992)
Voices United: The Hymn and Worship Book of The United Church of Canada (1996)
More Voices (a supplement to Voices United) (2007)
Worship in the City: Prayers and Songs for Urban Settings (2015)
Then Let Us Sing! (2025)

I have been thinking about all the careful work of so many people who have been involved in these publications as editors, committee members, contributors (e.g., composers and poets), researchers, typesetters, and proofreaders. It takes hundreds of hours of dedication from everyone to create such a worthy reflection of who we are and what we believe. “Grant that what we sing with our lips, we may believe in our hearts…” These words from the Choristers’ Prayer are a serious admonition, and we know that hymn book committees, including the current one for Then Let Us Sing!, have indeed taken the task at hand very seriously!

Thanks be to God for the people who have committed to the process of creating hymn books, starting in 1930. As The Hymnary states in the 
preface, hymn books are created so that the people “may continue the gracious practice of singing and making melody in their hearts to the Lord.” Looking through the lists of committee members for the hymn books previously listed is an amazing “who’s who” of Canadian church music! We have been so richly blessed over the last 100 years through these people who have been channels of prayer, love, wisdom, and creativity!

Tammy-Jo Mortensen, Music Editor