The Development of English-Language Hymnody and Its Use in Worship; 1960-95 Doctor of Philosophy, 2000
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The Development of English-language Hymnody and its Use in Worship; 1960-1995 The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published in any form, including Electronic and the Internet, without the author's prior written consent. All information derived from this thesis must he acknowledged appropriately. Margaret Anne Leask A thesis submitted to the University of Durham, in the Department of English Studies, in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy 2000 0 Margaret Anne Leask 2000 2 0 MAR 00 Margaret Anne Leask: The Development of English-language Hymnody and its Use in Worship; 1960-95 Doctor of Philosophy, 2000 Abstract Beginning about 1960 a new spirit of religious belief developed amid the burgeoning of secular interests and popular culture in British society. A number of scholarly initiatives, including projects in biblical translation and liturgical reform, indicated that the study of religion was being taken seriously following the years of post- war reconstruction. By 1965 a 'hymn explosion' was underway: the renewal of religious belief was being expressed in new hymns and songs. This dissertation assesses the nature of the new hymn writing and its influence upon congregational worship. The 'hymn explosion' was one of three movements towards the reform of Christian worship in the twentieth century: ecumenism, the renewal of liturgy, and hymn writing converged in the creation of new hymn and worship books published during the closing decades of the century. This study charts the development of English-language hymnody between 1960 and 1995. Its purpose is to identify the main contributors, to note the factors which determined the content of the hymns and songs, and to assess the use of new hymnody in contemporary worship. The thesis concentrates on the turning points in this development; it does not endeavour to provide detailed analysis of the hymns and tunes produced during the 'hymn explosion' (1965-75) and afterwards. It takes stock of the conditions of hymnody around 1960 before examining the work of the Scottish Churches' Music Consultation between 1962 and 1968. Various forms of experimental hymnody and song writing are considered, along with the introduction of contemporary language in hymn writing. The study concludes by noting the influence of the 'hymn explosion' on the contents of the new hymn books. Declaration The research presented in this thesis has been carried out between 1996 and 2000 under the supervision of Professor J. R. Watson at the University of Durham. It is the original work of the author unless stated otherwise. None of this work has been submitted for any other degree. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without prior written consent, and information derived from it should be acknowledged. Contents Introduction Chapter 1 'Whither Hymnody?' 8 Chapter 2 New Principles 43 Chapter 3 Dunblane Initiatives 89 Chapter 4 Lighter Styles and the Use of Contemporary Language 121 Chapter 5 The 'Hymn Explosion': Writing New Materials for Worship 163 Chapter 6 The 'Hymn Explosion': Singing New Hymns and Songs 204 Chapter 7 Changing Congregational Singing Habits 244 Chapter 8 Hymnal Prototypes 307 Conclusion A Brief Conclusion: New Worship Books 360 Bibliography 369 i Introduction In the realm of hymnody, we may well ask ourselves whether some of the hymns that maintain their place in our standard hymnals speak to 'the common people' in a language they can vitally apprehend. ... There is a growing sense of the need for contemporary writers who can express themselves in forms of thought more obviously congenial to our own day. Our hymnody cannot live upon its past. While the attempt is being made to meet this need, there must of necessity be a great deal of experimentation, and we may be thankful if, from time to time, a few experimental hymns vindicate their title to a place in general use. Millar Patrick, Bulletin of the Hymn Society (October 1939)1 Hymns for the Times was small collection of hymn texts published in 1939 by Thomas Tiplady, Methodist chaplain and superintendent of the Lambeth Mission in London. The reviewer, Millar Patrick, editor of the Bulletin, was looking ahead to the development of new hymn writing to meet the needs of a changing world. During the war years Tiplady continued to publish collections of new hymns, including Hymns for the Present Age (1940) and Hymns for the Pocket (1942), to provide suitable hymns for his inner-city mission where he was working with a predominantly secular population. In July 1946, at the Bristol conference of the Hymn Society, he led a discussion about writing new hymns for the modern era. According to Erik Routley's report in the Bulletin: The two main points in his argument were that modern pagans are unmoved by the appeal of our classical hymns, and that the art of hymn- writing is at the present time sadly in decline; this latter symptom he suggested was due to the suffocating effect of the 'Official Hymn-book' on individual and local effort. ... From the discussion that followed, in which many points of view were expressed, the suggestion arose that local hymn-writing should be encouraged. The official hymn-book of a denomination, we felt, need not necessarily suffocate local talent. It is one thing for a book to be produced which a whole community of Christians would want to use and should be encouraged to use; in that book nothing that is not of general value and significance can be included. 1 Millar Patrick, review of Hymns for the Times by Thomas Tiplady (London: Epworth Press, 1939), Bulletin of the Hymn Society, 9 (October 1939), 10-11 (p. 10). 2 But is it not another thing altogether to encourage local churches to produce their own hymn-supplements of words and tunes, which they do not insist must be used by everybody, but which they can call their own and be proud of? ... Who knows what talent lies buried yet?2 Twenty years later the 'hymn explosion' erupted. This dissertation addresses two central questions: 'What was the "hymn explosion"?' and 'What did it accomplish?' The dissertation is a study of the development of English-language hymnody and its use in worship, beginning with the burst of hymn writing in the 1960s and ending with the publication of new hymn and worship books between 1980 and 1995. Two broad currents run through contemporary hymnody: the first consists of hymns written in modern English on biblical subjects and tenets of Christian belief, new hymns for the sacraments, ordinances and festivals of the church, together with hymns on contemporary issues about faith and doubt, stewardship of the earth and of its people, and ecumenical worship; the second consists of hymns and songs written in lighter vernacular language and in popular musical idioms, generally for use at a particular moment in time. For the purpose of this study, a hymn is a strophic text on a biblical, theological or liturgical subject, written to be sung in worship, usually to a set metre. Although many well-known hymn texts are associated with specific hymn tunes, the words of a hymn are not dependent upon a given tune. However, the hymn tune chosen for a text interprets it in an act of worship.' A religious song is a lighter, often freely-written text, bound in most instances to a tune composed in a popular style. The primary focus of the dissertation is on the development of new hymns, although it also discusses the simultaneous emergence of new forms of popular religious 2 Erik Routley, 'The Bristol Conference, 9th to 12th July 1946', Bulletin of the Hymn Society, 37 (October 1946), 1-6 (p. 3). 3 J. R. Watson begins his study of English hymnody with essays on the hymn as a genre of literature and on the relationship of hymn texts to music through the common element of metre. See 'Discussing Hymns: The State of the Art' and 'The Singing of Hymns, and the Experience of Metre' in The English Hymn: A Critical and Historical Study (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1997), 1-41. 3 songs. It identifies turning points in that development, mapping out the directions taken by hymn writers who created new models of hymnody in the terms of post-war belief (and doubt), language, knowledge, and culture, beginning with the work of writers such as Albert Bayly, James Quinn, S.J., and Sydney Carter. The flood of hymns and religious songs written since 1960 makes it impossible to attempt comprehensive coverage of the collections published during the designated thirty-five year period. Instead, a number of works have been selected to illustrate the essential characteristics of the 'hymn explosion' and its contribution to the renewal of congregational worship. In an age of rapid global communication, British hymn writing has exercised a direct influence upon the development of contemporary hymnody in North America and in Australia and New Zealand. For that reason the discussion occasionally takes into consideration parallel developments outside the United Kingdom, and it also acknowledges a number of reciprocal influences upon British hymnody and worship. This study begins by examining the situation of congregational hymn singing at 1960. The following three chapters trace the emergence of new thinking about hymns in worship and the testing of those ideas through experimental hymn forms and lighter styles of church music during the first half of the 1960s. The study turns next to the 'hymn explosion' itself, from 1965 to 1975, and examines ways in which the new hymns gradually changed congregational worship patterns. Several denominational hymn books published between 1970 and 1980 tested hymn texts and tunes from the 'hymn explosion' along with other new worship materials associated with the renewal of liturgy.