New Hymnal Committee

Present: Dolores Broberg, Barbara Merrill, Shirley Curry, Elaine Brownell, Bruce Lockwood, Evie Strom, and Barbara Powers. (Thanks for your note, John!)

Next Meeting: Thursday, May 8, 5:30
1. Delores reported on Westbrook Warren. She reiterated highlights of the minutes that she already submitted. The director she spoke with reported the three views of the pastor, herself, and her daughter, who is stepping in as director. Their congregation has a lot of older people in it, who appreciated the older Pilgrim Hymnal. Ray Cornils really influenced the discussion in terms of the music and their move to New Century, but they do miss the traditional wording and DON’T like to deal with two hymnals so no supplement has been added. They are happy with the decision to go with the New Century Hymnal 90% of the time. The proposal was brought to their congregational meeting where they listened to two consultants and then voted.
2. Barbara M. reported on her discussion with the conference office. She corrected one aspect of her report, which is that the Maine Conference will not make recommendations. Anne Hodgeman is the correct spelling for the woman she spoke with in the resource center. They suggested the Worship and Rejoice as an option we should consider and offered to mail us a copy, but we already had two so it was declined. A couple of us expressed curiosity over their unwillingness to be more helpful!
3. Evie heard from Saco. They chose Hymns of Truth and Light but she missed the phone call with the explanation we’re seeking.
4. Elaine and Shirley reported on their congregational questionnaire draft. Elaine explained that they looked at one from another congregation John had given them. They made corrections, wrote five questions, and added some demographic information requests. The survey would appear as follows…As an introduction, information about the current Pilgrim Hymnal was first explained with reasons why it was time for a replacement. The request for survey participation was then made.
Shirley reviewed the questions she and Elaine elected to keep or modify:
1) What are your three favorite hymns?
2) As we choose our new hymnal, what types of music would you like to see included in it?
3) Many new hymnals use inclusive and updated language. As we consider purchasing updated hymnals, how important is this to you?
4) Is music an important part of the worship service for you?
5) In what ways is your participation in the music during worship important to you?
6) How many hymns and choral responses should be sung by the congregation during the worship service? Note: Bruce suggested an open ended question or two, like, What do you particularly like about the hymns and choral responses that the congregation sings? What would you change?
7) Do you regularly sing the hymns? Yes, why? No, why not?
8) How familiar are you with the hymns included in the Pilgrim Hymnal or in the Songs of the Spirit?
9) As we consider a new hymnal, what features would you like to see included? Options: Useful indexes, variety of hymns old and new, updated texts, hymns from other cultures, responsive readings, liturgies, creeds, other, additional comments.
10) Your age category.
11) How often do you attend church?
12) The committee added this one: Would you be willing to donate a hymnal with a memorial or celebration bookplate if the cost is moderate -- $20 to $30?
The group was comfortable charging Bruce with 2nd draft wordsmithing and getting it ready to go. He will send it to everyone on the committee for a last look before finalizing it. It was proposed that the survey be placed in a May 5th BEACON as well as introduced during the announcements portion of the worship service on May 11, or some other convenient time, to insure in-depth feedback and on-the-spot completion. The chapel service should be included as well. Barbara will ask John how this might work best.
5. FAQs – We discussed some of the frequently asked questions we should anticipate and came up with the following: Why do we need new hymnals now? The Pilgrim Hymnal was last published in the 1980s, etc., and are getting well worn. See the BEACON article for more details. Who will be deciding on the choice? The Hymnal Committee will make the decision following input via surveys and congregational discussions, as well as an opportunity for all interested to view the hymnals being considered. What will be the total cost? At $20 per hymnal, the total cost to the church will be $10,000 if 500 are ordered.What are the main features of each of the options being considered? See the summaries begun below. Timing wise, it was suggested that the Davison Lounge informational discussions happen just AFTER the surveys are completed and tallied so that the congregation’s response can be included in discussion. It was also suggested that the committee develop a decision matrix to help zero in on the best choice.
HYMNS OF TRUTH AND LIGHT: This hymnal stands between the conventional and the more progressive New Century in terms of language. Some of us really like the hymns that are included. It reflects more diverse denominations, since several congregations took part in its development. (GUILFORD is the cover of the example hymnal that was supplemented by that congregation’s hymnal committee.) There are many good Advent hymns, which Shirley described as a goal for the ministers and her. Thought: Add responsive readings to the Songs of the Spirit-type bound supplement instead of more expensive supplemental binding. There are some creeds, etc., throughout the book, however. Guilford’s hymnal lists the “supplements.” It also has a wonderful description of the process used to make their selections, the language of which we may wish to include in our own work.
CHALICE HYMNAL: Lots of good responsive readings are included. Delores thought it seemed heavier with gospel music. Psalms sung responses are in the back; Shirley said our congregation hasn’t been interested in that option. Affirmations of faith, prayers, reflections are appropriately mixed within the book. The daily devotion cycle is also in the back. Lots of communion hymns are included.
NEW CENTURY: It will be the most controversial, but has a lot to offer. The language is inclusive, there are interesting orders of worship, there are several hymns from other cultures. Bruce noted that this hymnal’s Advent and Christmas hymns are NOT well received in other congregations given the inclusive language manipulation. Sometimes it has been found that the language improves comprehension, Delores noted, even while the poetry of the music is disrupted.
WORSHIP AND REJOICE: Do we want strictly hymns or do we want responsive readings? There is no inclusive language, or internationally diverse music. It’s a great collection of traditional hymns, however, and also includes a good number of advent hymns. It’s just lacking responsive readings or any liturgical information at the end or contemporary selections, and doesn’t appear to be an improvement to our current collection.Barbara M. found a short list of “what to look for” when selecting a hymnal:Needs to be music that glorifies God and reflects the church communities’ values.Are songs musically satisfying? Playable? Readable?Are there a variety of themes to coordinate with the liturgical year?Is the style of music that which is desired by the congregation?Is denomination important?Make a list of hymns you are now using. What else is desired?King James or inclusive?Best to choose with hymn books in hand and not just reading the promotional material.We concluded that our committee is on the right track!Next meeting: Thursday, May 8, 5:30 – Let’s choose the congregational discussion dates and plan backwards from the order dates.
NOTE: Dana, we’d like to know from the publishers by WHAT DATE 500 hymnals would need to be ordered so that they are available for processing and Homecoming Sunday so we can set up our timeline. If you’d like help making some calls before the next meeting, please send out an email plea! We’ll then choose a date later in May to review the congregational survey data prior to the first discussions we’ll host, hopefully in early June.Respectfully submitted by: Barbara Powers (who was asked to simply include the minutes as the body of an email as some are having difficulty downloading documents

Barbara Powers