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Introduction to Church Hymnbooks

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Introduction to Church Hymnbooks

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Introduction to Church Hymnbooks
Between 1835 and 1841, three official hymnbooks carried the title A Collection of Sacred Hymns, for the Church. compiled two of the books, one in , Ohio, and the other in , Illinois, while , , and produced one in , England. Each contributed to the expansion of and worship in the institutional .
The concept of a church hymnal arose shortly after the organization of in , , and , New York, between April and July 1830. Following ’s in Colesville, JS dictated a revelation for her in , Pennsylvania. She was instructed to “make a selection of Sacred Hymns as it shall be given thee which is pleasing unto me to be had in the Church for my Soul delighteth in the song of the heart yea the song of the righteous is a prayer unto me & it shall be answered with a blessing upon their heads.” This revelation let to the preparation of the three hymnbooks.
Publication of hymns and hymnbooks initially coincided with the publishing of scripture, including the Book of Commandments and the Doctrine and Covenants. To get the written word dispersed to members of the church in different areas before book publication, several revelations and hymn texts were printed in newspapers, including The Evening and the Morning Star and the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate. Hymn texts were also included in the Times and Seasons and Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star before their inclusion in the 1840 and 1841 hymnbooks.
At a 30 April 1832 meeting of the , the church’s publishing arm, in , Missouri, the attending council ordered “that the Hymns selected by be corrected by br. .” Following those instructions, in June 1832, Phelps started to publish hymn texts in The Evening and the Morning Star. These texts included Protestant hymn texts, sometimes with doctrinal revisions, as well as hymns he had written.
Following the destruction of the church’s in in July 1833, a new press was founded in by December 1833. In 1835, the Messenger and Advocate replaced The Evening and the Morning Star as the church’s newspaper. It also published revelations and hymn texts. Most of these hymns were included in the three hymnbooks.
Each of the three hymnbooks begins with a title page and a preface followed by the hymns divided into topical sections. The hymn texts are given without title or author attribution. Each hymn is designated by a number and hymn meter. As in other hymnals of the time, the musical score is not included with the hymn text. Meter indicates the number of syllables in each line and is given either as numbers or standard abbreviations. Common meter (C. M.) has four-line verses in the pattern 8686—eight syllables in the first and third lines and six syllables in the second and fourth lines. Long meter (L. M.) has the pattern 8888 and short meter (S. M.) has the pattern 6686. Many hymn texts are identified “P. M.” for particular or peculiar meter, meaning the poetry is in a nonstandard meter. P. M. may also stand for psalm meter, which uses a mix of eight- and seven-syllable lines. Following the hymn texts for each book, there is an index of first lines, divided into alphabetical sections listing the hymns in page-number order.
 
A Collection of Sacred Hymns for the Church of the Latter-day Saints (1835)
By September 1835, and were again making efforts to produce a hymnbook. On 11 September 1835, Phelps wrote to his wife, , “I am now revising hymns for a hymn book.” Three days later the met and “decided that Sister Emma Smith proceed to make a selection of sacred hymns, according to the revilation, and that President W W. Phelps be appointed to revise and arrange them for printing,” using the press owned by . A loan of six hundred dollars helped Williams publish the hymnal, along with the first edition of the Doctrine and Covenants and the Messenger and Advocate.
Although it bears a publication date of 1835, A Collection of Sacred Hymns for the Church of the Latter Day Saints was not available until early 1836. The title page notes that the hymns were “Selected by ” and the preface included language from the 1830 revelation to Emma, but also played a major role in all aspects of preparing the volume. The hymnal contains the text of ninety hymns, divided into sections titled Sacred Hymns, Morning Hymns, Evening Hymns, Farewell Hymns, On Baptism, On Sacrament, On Marriage, and Miscellaneous. More than half the hymns were written by church members, including Phelps (at least 27 hymns), , , , , and . The included protestant hymns were authored by Isaac Watts, John Newton, Charles Wesley, Anna Barbauld, Elizabeth Scott, Anne Steele, and others. The selection of hymns emphasized community, building a literal , and preparing for an imminent Second Coming.
It is not known how many copies of the Kirtland hymnal were printed. Shortly after the in was dedicated on 27 March 1836, the Literary Firm reconvened and agreed that , , and take five hundred copies of the hymnbook to , Missouri. Presumably, at least an equal number of copies remained in Kirtland. Within a few years, it became difficult for church members to purchase copies of the hymnbook, which led to discussions about publishing a new edition.
When the general membership of the church moved to , Illinois, in 1839, JS met with the to select hymns for a new hymnbook shortly before many of the quorum left for a mission to the British Isles. This instruction, as well as the time required for overseas communication, led to a bifurcation of hymnal publications, one led by in  in 1840, and the other led by in in 1841.
 
A Collection of Sacred Hymns, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in Europe (1840)
On 22 November 1839, wrote to JS from : “there is a great call for Hymn Books.” He continued, “I wish , would add to the old collection such New ones as is best and republish them immediately.” He offered to have the book printed in New York City, where access to publishers and paper was easier than in . Because JS was in , wrote to Pratt, requesting that the hymnal, as well as the Doctrine and Covenants, be published in Nauvoo. He authorized the apostles to print only the Book of Mormon in .
When arrived in , he discovered that British members, having no access to the 1835 collection, wanted a Latter-day Saint hymnal. Young learned that it cost more to bring books into the British Isles with duties than it would to publish their own. The British members held a in on 15 April 1840. Under the motion of and seconded by Young, the conference voted to publish a hymnbook under the direction of the Twelve.
Meanwhile, apostles and wrote to JS from , Ohio, with similar questions. “Should we deem it necessary to publish an edition of Hymn Books in any Country; are we at liberty to do it? The fact is we need such works.” They sought direction for publication of church materials away from church headquarters. “As for the Church abroad; and as co-workers with yourself in spreading this Kingdom to the remotest corners of the Earth; are we at liberty to translate and publish any work, that we may think it necessary, or that the circumstances in which we are placed seem to require whether original or works published by the Church?”
Two weeks later, JS responded to and . He agreed that the scriptures could be printed in other locations, “with the exception of the Hymn book, as a new edition, containing a greater variety of Hymns” was in production. JS also wanted all publications to have copyrights in his name.
Delayed communication continued between and . agreed with to publish three thousand copies of the new hymnal, hoping to contribute one hundred hymns of his own writing. Apostle wrote to about the process of preparing a hymnbook from several different locations, proposing that they meet together in person. Young then wrote to JS in Nauvoo seeking instructions for the quorum.
Having not received instructions from JS, the apostles in Britain proceeded with their publication, having prayed about their plans in May 1840 and having received a promise of donations from and others. went immediately to to get bids from several printers. On 26 May 1840, he wrote to his wife, Mary Ann Angell Young, that had joined him and in Manchester and the three of them were preparing a hymnbook to be ready for publication by July.
By the end of May 1840, , , and worked with to compile hymns. In June, Young wrote again to his wife with a report of their work to print three thousand copies of the new hymnbook. On 3 July, watched the hymnbooks being printed by W. R. Thomas, the printer who also produced the Millennial Star. Three days later, a conference was held in introducing the new hymnbook. “The president asked the conference if they were satisfied with the labours of those who had made the selection, and if they received the book. The unanimous approbation of the meeting was immediately manifested.”
Without the immediate knowledge of what was happening in , JS wrote a response from to ’s 7 May 1840 letter, granting permission to publish the hymnbook. In September, the printed a letter to “Saints scattered abroad” in the Times and Seasons, acknowledging the “printing and circulation of the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, Hymn book and the new translation of the Scriptures.” Before receiving JS’s response, Young still wondered if they had acted appropriately and he and wrote to the First Presidency, “Have we done right in Printing a hymn book?”
By 4 October 1840, the First Presidency had received news of the hymnbook in Great Britain. At the church conference in , the presidency acknowledged that “the Twelve have already printed a new edition of the Hymn book” and they expressed gratitude for the “steady flow of souls into the church—branches have been organized in many large and populous cities and the whole land appears to be thirsting for the pure streams of knowledge and salvation.” The flow of communication, however, continued to trouble apostles in . wrote his wife in November 1840, asserting that he had not received clear communication from JS. “All I have to say about the matter as to my self is I have done all that I could to doo good and promote the cause that we are in, I have don the verry best that I knew how.” A month later, JS wrote directly to the Quorum of the Twelve in England commending the apostles’ work in publishing the hymnal: “I have been favored by receiving a Hymn Book from you and as far as I have examined it I highly approve of it and think it to be a very valuable collection.” he continued, “I have been perfectly satisfied that [your movements] have been in wisdom, and I have no doubt but the spirit of the Lord has directed you.”
The 1840 Manchester hymnbook had the same title as the 1835 hymnbook, except that the name of the church was updated to “Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints” and an addition was made that it was for the saints “in Europe.” A new preface was written over the signatures of , , and , who were also listed on the title page as those who selected the hymns. The hymnal contains 271 hymn texts, divided into sections titled Public Worship, Dismission—Doxologies, Sacramental Hymns, Baptismal Hymns, Funeral Hymns, On Priesthood, Second Coming of Christ, Gathering of Israel, Morning Hymns, Evening Hymns, Farewell Hymns, and Miscellaneous. All but a handful of hymns in the 1835 hymnbook were included in the 1840 hymnal. Of the almost 200 new hymns added, more than 50 were written by church members, including Parley P. Pratt (at least 36 additional hymns), John Taylor, , , , and . Additional protestant hymns were authored by Charles Wesley (almost 60 hymns), Isaac Watts (more than 30 hymns), John Newton, William Cowper, Anne Steele, John Fawcett, and others. The selection of hymns emphasized the doctrine of the Latter-day Saints, including , , the of Israel, and the second coming of Christ.
The 1840 Manchester hymnal became the basis of all official Latter-day Saint hymnals during the second half of the nineteenth century, with numerous editions printed in , and an 1871 edition printed in Salt Lake City, continuing publication through 1912.
 
A Collection of Sacred Hymns, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (1841)
In the October 1839 general conference in , announced a resolution that “a new edition of Hymn Books be printed immediately.” This pronouncement followed the surreptitious publication of a hymnbook by in . By the end of October, news that Young was seeking to produce a hymnbook reached Nauvoo. On 27 October 1839, the Nauvoo high council voted “that be the person to select hymns— compile & publish a hymn book for the use of the Church, and that a letter be written to at New York i[n]forming him of the same and for him to not publish the hymns taken by him from Commerce.” In December, the First Presidency and high council resolved to have ten thousand copies of a new hymnbook published in Nauvoo, which would allow the First Presidency to directly supervise the publication of this book.
Publication efforts took much longer in the than in . In July 1840, the Times and Seasons announced the appointment of agents and “to make contracts and receive monies &c.” for the publication of the hymnbook and Book of Mormon. At the October 1840 general conference in , announced the intention to publish the Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants, and hymnbook. Robinson posted in the Times and Seasons in November his intent to begin publication immediately. He requested that “all those who have been endowed with poetical genius, whose muse has not been altogether idle, will feel enough interest in a work of this kind, to immediately forward all choice, newly composed, or revised hymns” to .
The new hymnbook was printed by mid-March 1841, with copies apparently bound by the April church conference. The title and preface reflect those used in the 1835 hymnbook, except that the name of the church was updated on the title page. The hymnal contains 302 hymn texts, divided into sections titled Public Worship, Spread of the Gospel, Second Coming of Christ, Gathering of Israel, Baptismal, Sacramental, Morning, Evening, Funeral, Resurrection, Farewell, Miscellaneous, and Doxologies. Seventy-seven hymns from the original 1835 hymnal were included. Seventy-seven other hymns appear in both the 1840 hymnal and this one. Of the hymns unique to the 1841 hymnal, twenty-four were written by church members, including , , , , , , , and Mary J. Page. Additional protestant hymns were authored by Isaac Watts, Charles Wesley, Philip Doddridge, Joseph Addison, Thomas Kelly, Anne Steele, John Logan, James Montgomery, and others. This hymnal presented a definitive shift in theme from the 1840 hymnal, featuring songs of grace and individual redemption through Jesus Christ.
The 1841 Nauvoo hymnbook became the basis for hymnals in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (now Community of Christ).
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Editorial Title
Introduction to Church Hymnbooks
ID #
21811
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
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    Footnotes

    1. [1]

      Revelation, July 1830–C [D&C 25].

    2. [2]

      Minutes, 30 Apr. 1832.

    3. [3]

      In the June 1832 issue, Phelps published a self-penned hymn, “What Fair One Is This,” and a John Newton hymn, “Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken.” Phelps also included a new hymn titled “Redeemer of Israel,” which was heavily influenced by Joseph Swain’s hymn “O Thou in Whose Presence My Soul Takes Delight.” What had been a hymn about an individual’s joy in the Savior became a communal praise song about the redemption of Zion. In later issues of The Evening and the Morning Star, Phelps also made smaller revisions to Protestant hymn texts. One example is Isaac Watts’s hymn “O Happy Souls Who Pray,” where Phelps changed “men” to “saints” to reflect the Latter-day Saint audience and then changed the perspective from third-person plural (“they”) to first-person plural (“we”) to show that the saints were singing about themselves. Another example is Watts’s “Joy to the World,” where Phelps altered the lyrics to reflect a millennialist vision: “Joy to the world! the Lord is come . . . And heaven and nature sing” became “Joy to the world! the Lord will come . . . And saints and angels sing.” All of these hymns were published in the 1835, 1840, and 1841 hymnals. (The Evening and the Morning Star, June 1832, [8]; Aug. 1832, [8]; Dec. 1832, [8].)

      The Evening and the Morning Star. Independence, MO, June 1832–July 1833; Kirtland, OH, Dec. 1833–Sept. 1834.

    4. [4]

      Author attributions given below come from Hymnary.org.

    5. [5]

      William W. Phelps, Kirtland, OH, to Sally Waterman Phelps, 11 Sept. 1835, William W. Phelps, Papers, BYU.

      Phelps, William W. Papers, 1835–1865. BYU.

    6. [6]

      Minutes, 14 Sept. 1835.

    7. [7]

      JS, Journal, 6 Oct. 1835.

    8. [8]

      In January 1836, Phelps wrote and published “Hosanna to God and the Lamb,” known by its first line, “The Spirit of God like a fire is burning,” in The Messenger and Advocate, using the same typeface printed as the last hymn of A Collection of Sacred Hymns.

    9. [9]

      Minutes, 2 Apr. 1836.

    10. [10]

      Hicks, “Emma Smith’s 1841 Hymnbook,” 14–15.

      Hicks, Michael. “Emma Smith’s 1841 Hymnbook.” Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 21, no. 1 (2012): 12–27.

    11. [11]

      JS, Journal, 8–20 July 1839.

    12. [12]

      Letter from Parley P. Pratt, 22 Nov. 1839.

    13. [13]

      Hyrum Smith, Nauvoo, IL, to Parley P. Pratt, New York City, NY, 22 Dec. 1839, in JS Letterbook 2, pp. 80–81.

    14. [14]

      “From England,” Times and Seasons, June 1840, 1:122.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    15. [15]

      “From England,” Times and Seasons, June 1840, 1:120–121. See also Allen and Alexander, Manchester Mormons, 140n124.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

      Allen, James B., and Thomas G. Alexander, eds. Manchester Mormons: The Journal of William Clayton, 1840 to 1842. Santa Barbara, CA: Peregrine Smith, 1974.

    16. [16]

      Letter from Orson Hyde and John E. Page, 1 May 1840.

    17. [17]

      Letter to Orson Hyde and John E. Page, 14 May 1840.

    18. [18]

      Parley P. Pratt, Manchester, England, to Brigham Young, Ledbury, England, 4 May 1840, Brigham Young Office Files, CHL. Pratt ultimately contributed at least 36 of his own hymns to the 1840 hymnbook. (Hicks, “Emma Smith’s 1841 Hymnbook,” 20.)

      Brigham Young Office Files, 1832–1878. CHL. CR 1234 1.

      Hicks, Michael. “Emma Smith’s 1841 Hymnbook.” Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 21, no. 1 (2012): 12–27.

    19. [19]

      John Taylor, Liverpool, England, to Willard Richards, Ledbury, England, 4 May 1840, Willard Richards, Journals and Papers, CHL.

      Richards, Willard. Journals and Papers, 1821–1854. CHL.

    20. [20]

      Letter from Brigham Young, 7 May 1840.

    21. [21]

      JS History, vol. C-1, 1059–1060; see also Woodruff, Journal, 20 May 1840.

      Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

    22. [22]

      Historian’s Office, “History of Brigham Young,” 49.

      Historian’s Office. “History of Brigham Young.” In Manuscript History of Brigham Young, ca. 1856–1860, vol. 1, pp. 1–104. CHL. CR 100 150, box 1, fd. 1.

    23. [23]

      Brigham Young, Manchester, England, to Mary Ann Angell Young, Commerce, IL, 26 May 1840, George W. Thatcher Blair, Collection, CHL.

      Blair, George W. Thatcher. Collection, 1837–1988. CHL.

    24. [24]

      JS History, vol. C-1, 1060. See also Clayton, Diary, 29 May 1840.

      Clayton, William. Diary, Vol. 1, 1840–1842. BYU.

    25. [25]

      Brigham Young, Manchester, England, to Mary Ann Angell Young, Commerce, IL, 12, 20, and 24 June 1840, Philip T. Blair Family Papers, Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

      Young, Brigham. Letter, Manchester, England, to Mary Ann Angell Young, Commerce, IL, 12, 20, and 24 June 1840. Philip T. Blair Family Papers. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

    26. [26]

      Woodruff, Journal, 3 July 1840. Woodruff soon after wrote his wife, Phebe Carter Woodruff, about the “good selection” contained in the book. (Wilford Woodruff, “Good News from England,” Times and Seasons, Sept. 1840, 1:169.)

      Woodruff, Wilford. Journals, 1833–1898. Wilford Woodruff, Journals and Papers, 1828–1898. CHL. MS 1352.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    27. [27]

      Parley P. Pratt and William Clayton, “Minutes of the General Conference,” LDS Millennial Star, July 1840, 1:69.

      Latter-day Saints’ Millennial Star. Manchester, England, 1840–1842; Liverpool, 1842–1932; London, 1932–1970.

    28. [28]

      See Note, in JS Letterbook 2, 153. The original letter is not extant.

    29. [29]

      Letter to Saints Scattered Abroad, Sept. 1840.

    30. [30]

      Letter from Brigham Young and Willard Richards, 5 Sept. 1840.

    31. [31]

      Report of the First Presidency, 4 Oct. 1840.

    32. [32]

      Brigham Young, Manchester, England, to Mary Ann Angell Young, Nauvoo, IL, 12 Nov. 1840, Philip T. Blair family papers, J. Willard Marriot Library, University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

      Young, Brigham. Letter, Manchester, England, to Mary Ann Angell Young, Nauvoo, IL, 12 Nov. 1840. Philip T. Blair Family Papers. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, University of Utah, Salt Lake City.

    33. [33]

      Letter to Quorum of the Twelve, 15 Dec. 1840.

    34. [34]

      Sacred Hymns and Spiritual Songs [1871], 4; Karen Lynn Davidson, “Hymns and Hymnody,” in Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 2:667.

      Sacred Hymns and Spiritual Songs, for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 14th ed. Salt Lake City: George Q. Cannon, 1871.

      Encyclopedia of Mormonism. Edited by Daniel H. Ludlow. 5 vols. New York: Macmillan, 1992.

    35. [35]

      Minutes and Discourses, 5–7 Oct. 1839.

    36. [36]

      Minutes, 27 Oct. 1839.

    37. [37]

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, draft, 29 Dec. 1839. This resolution was also published in the December 1839 issue of the Times and Seasons. (Editorial, Times and Seasons, Dec. 1839, 1:25.

      Nauvoo High Council Minutes, 1839–1845. Draft. CHL.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    38. [38]

      “Books!!!,” Times and Seasons, July 1840, 1:140.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    39. [39]

      Minutes and Discourse, 3–5 Oct. 1840.

    40. [40]

      “Hymns!! Hymns!!,” Times and Seasons, 1 Nov. 1840, 2:204, italics in original.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    41. [41]

      “Books,” Times and Seasons, 15 March 1841, 2:355.

      Times and Seasons. Commerce/Nauvoo, IL. Nov. 1839–Feb. 1846.

    42. [42]

      The hymnal includes numbers through 304, but two hymn texts were repeated.

    43. [43]

      Hicks, “Emma Smith’s 1841 Hymnbook,” 13.

      Hicks, Michael. “Emma Smith’s 1841 Hymnbook.” Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 21, no. 1 (2012): 12–27.