Wesley’s Method Part VII: Singing and a Hymnal in Every Home

Singing is an important part of our Anglican Patrimony, and it is also an especially important part of Methodism. Hopefully it is well known to many that these two coincide with Charles Wesley. Charles Wesley’s hymns are more famous than John Wesley’s, and they have served our Patrimony for centuries. For Methodist and Catholic ecumenical dialogue, the Wesleys’ eucharistic hymns are great points of contact. Charles Wesley was the more High-Church of the two brothers, such that his son Samuel, a famous organist and composer in his own right, became Roman Catholic, much to the dismay of his father and uncle, Charles and John Wesley.

The Wesleys viewed congregational singing as vital to Methodist worship, and perhaps for this reason, the hymnal has become the primary book for Methodists. While there have always been prayerbooks for Methodists, the Hymnal was the book that everyone had a copy of at home. Many Methodist homes will have a Hymnal just as many Anglican homes will have a Book of Common Prayer. Perhaps for this reason too, nearly all of the orders for liturgy are present at either the beginning and end of the United Methodist Hymnal. It’s the one-stop shop, especially for laity.

If there is any Methodist resource that can and should be mined by Ordinariate parishes, it is the hymnals of the Methodist tradition, and there are a lot of them! The United Methodist Church alone offers many hymnals for various languages and traditions before considering other Methodist denominations. Come, Let Us Worship is a Korean-English Hymnal and Hymns from the Four Winds contains Asian and Asian-American hymns. The Africana Hymnal, Songs of Zion, and Zion Still Sings, are all hymnals that contain music from African-American tradition like “Down by the Riverside” and “Roll, Jordan Roll,” for example. Mil Voces Para Celebrar is the Spanish Methodist Hymnal that may be useful for Ordinariates in the United States and the Philippines. Worship & Song, the Cokesbury Hymnal, and the Faith We Sing, are all supplements to the United Methodist Hymnal that specialize in different styles or include music that was decided to have been neglected from the primary hymnal. These include music from contemporary praise and worship, southern gospel, and revival music, among others.

The United Methodist Hymnal itself is a treasure trove of music from a wide variety of genres. Ordinariate members would be familiar with some of the tunes like “Praise To The Lord The Almighty (Lobe den Herren)” and “All People That On Earth Do Dwell (Old 100^th).” Hymns from traditional American hymnody are also included like those of Fanny Crosby (“To God Be The Glory,” “Blessed Assurance,” and “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior”) and Robert Lowry (“Up From The Grave He Arose,” “Nothing But The Blood,” and “I Need Thee Every Hour”). Camp Revival classics like “Victory In Jesus” and “When We All Get To Heaven” are also to be found. Some hymns that Roman Catholics might be familiar with like “Now The Green Blade Riseth,” “One Bread, One Body,” and “O Sons And Daughters, Let Us Sing” are also included. The United Methodist Hymnal contains over 700 hymns from a wide variety of traditions and backgrounds, and to the Catholic Church, particularly in the United States, it has the potential to offer access to much of the music of American Protestantism. Most of America’s Christian music and hymnody has been written in the context of both mainline and evangelical Protestantism, and the UMH offers a means to access it. I highly doubt any Methodist congregation that might be tempted to join the Ordinariate would easily forsake the Hymnal.

The UMH also offers one other music possibility to the Ordinariate and the Catholic Church in America. This hymnal is unique for its almost exclusive inclusion of a song called “Come Sunday,” which was written by Duke Ellington. Duke Ellington composed and performed several concerts of sacred music at Episcopal cathedrals, and even at Westminster Abbey in London. While this music is not suited for Mass or perhaps even Evensong, Ordinariate parishes that might be in areas gifted with jazz musicians might consider hosting a concert of Ellington’s sacred music followed by Compline and refreshments as community outreach. “Come Sunday” is included in the Hymnal because it is perhaps the most suited to being a hymn and could fit well into an Evensong service as a genuine reflection and contribution of African-American, and indeed even simply American, music (it’s hard to be more American in music composition than Duke Ellington!).

The Ordinariate in its Anglican Patrimony has benefited greatly from the gift of English hymnody and the English Hymnal. It can benefit too from American hymnody and America’s hymnal, the United Methodist Hymnal, and from Methodism’s music resources for different cultures and languages.
 

Paul Caleb Roland is an Ordinariate Catholic who writes from Oklahoma.

Related articles by this author:
What Methodist Patrimony Brings to the Ordinariate Mission

Wesley’s Method Part I: Frequent Reception of Communion and the Love Feast

Wesley’s Method Part II: Frequent Prayer and the Daily Office

Wesley’s Method Part III: Form a Bible Study, Go Make Disciples

Wesley’s Method Part IV: Fasting Wednesdays, Fridays & Other Times for Sanctification

Wesley’s Method Part V: Forming Small Groups for Discipleship

Wesley’s Method Part VI: Following Christ by Works of Mercy

Wesley’s Method Part VII: Singing and a Hymnal in Every Home

Wesley’s Method Part VIII: How Field Preaching Equips the Laity to Proclaim Jesus Christ

Wesley’s Method Part IX: Holy Conferencing, Revivals, and their Ordinariate Potential

Wesley’s Method Part X: How Lay Servant Ministry Can Grow the Catholic Church

Hymnal Resources:
United Methodist Hymnal
Worship & Song
The Faith We Sing
The Africana Hymnal
Hymns from the Four Winds
Songs of Zion
Zion Still Sings:
The Cokesbury Hymnal
Come, Let Us Worship
Mil Voces Para Celebrar

More Resources:
Duke Ellington’s Concert of Sacred Music at Grace Cathedral
“Come Sunday” by Duke Ellington (Here or here)