Here may be sung a hymn or anthem

The Office Hymn (or Anthem) is an important part of Daily Prayer. Even though I should know better, I often skip it, if I am pressed for time.

There are a lot of hymnals in my office.

Over the past few months, I have put these two facts together. When I am home, I no longer use the Hymnal 1982, the official hymnal of our denomination. Instead, I am dipping my toe into some of the more interesting volumes from my shelves. Currently, I am singing from a German-language Lutheran hymnal published in the nineteenth century. It is a little pocket-sized book of the sort that hymnals used to be, with small print covering every inch of the page. It was a joy to work my way through Advent and Christmas with the great chorales and church songs of the season: Nun komm der Heiden Heiland, Wachet auf, Es ist ein Ros', Vom Himmel hoch.

I will stay with this a bit longer, but there are two more that are standing in line: a little book called “Hymns of Eternal Truth,” lovingly produced in the 1970's by an English Methodist congregation. It is a collection of 120 hymns by Charles and John Wesley, with all of the stanzas. The preface says: “Throughout the land hearts cry out for the realities herein set forth. . . wherever souls long for language of the Spirit these hymns will be sung by all so blessed to know them.” I have a notion to sing from this book during Lent and perhaps on into Easter.

And then there is a little songbook that I picked up some years ago: “Golden Years of Gospel Singing.” It is a good selection of the old-time Southern Gospel songs that I encountered this summer in Tennessee, mixed with old photographs and engravings, short biographies of key figures in the movement, some pages of photos of the old-time Gospel Quartets from the early twentieth century, and even a few pages of back-country recipes from the all-day singings and camp meetings.

There are more hymns, more good and precious hymns, than anyone can sing in a lifetime. This is a good thing.