In honor of the 40th anniversary of the Mennonite Heritage Center in 2015, and inspired by a recent marathon hymn sing at Goshen College, the MHC will host a sing-through of the 1969 Mennonite Hymnal in twelve sessions over the course of 2015. This book represents the era of the Mennonite Heritage Center’s founding in 1975, and it was a groundbreaking hymnal for Mennonites, bringing together classical, folk and international hymns, and drawing from both the Mennonite Church (MC) and General Conference Mennonite Church (GC) musical traditions to create a unified worship repertoire for the late 20th century.
The singings will be held the second Sunday of each month at 4:00 p.m. in the meeting room at the Heritage Center.
Singing at Salford Menn. Church, 1976
Each session will include 30 or more hymns from the section specified in the schedule below and will last approximately two hours, with a five minute break halfway through. Please feel free to come late or leave early as needed. Books will be provided, but bring your own copy if you wish. The book is available for purchase from MennoMedia.
No offering basket will be passed, but there will be a place to leave donations to support the ongoing work of the Mennonite Heritage Center. Your support is greatly appreciated!
Hopefully you can join us for one, several, or all of these times of worship, celebration, and the opportunity to sing beautiful songs that are often passed over.
The hymns will be sung in order as follows:
January 11 – Mennonite Hymnal #1-48
Adoration and praise; God’s majesty and holiness
February 8 – Mennonite Hymnal #49-88
God as creator of heaven and earth; God’s love and mercy, providence and care, laws and judgments
March 8 – Mennonite Hymnal #154-204
Songs for the Easter season: Christ’s triumphal entry, passion, resurrection, ascension, second coming, reign and kingdom
April 12 – Mennonite Hymnal #89-110, #205-224 and #527-538
Praise and glory of Jesus Christ; the Holy Spirit and Holy Scriptures; Gospel songs
May 10 (Mother’s Day) – Mennonite Hymnal #225-277
Life in Christ: call, repentance and forgiveness, faith and assurance, love and gratitude, joy and peace
June 14 – Mennonite Hymnal #278-332
Life in Christ: purity and holiness, hope and aspiration, communion with Christ, pilgrimage and guidance, conflict and victory
July 12 – Mennonite Hymnal #539-594
Gospel songs
August 9 – Mennonite Hymnal #333-387
Life in Christ: courage and comfort, obedience and consecration, stewardship, life eternal; the church’s foundation and nature; fellowship of believers
September 13 – Mennonite Hymnal #388-441
Ministry and mission of the church: pastors and teachers; the Lord’s house; communion of saints; baptism; the Lord’s supper; foot washing; marriage; consecration of children and parents; burial of the dead; evangelism; service and witness
October 11 – Mennonite Hymnal #442-476 and #607-619
Ministry and mission of the church: education, Christian citizenship; peace and nonresistance; social justice; the Christian home; hymns for children; choral hymns
November 8 – Mennonite Hymnal #477-526
Times and seasons: morning, evening, the Lord’s day, close of worship, old and new year, seasons, harvest and thanksgiving
December 13 – Mennonite Hymnal #111-153 and #595-606
Songs for the Christmas season: Christ’s advent, birth, epiphany, life and ministry; choral hymns
A few numbers from the “Musical Aids to Worship” section (#620-653) will be included in each session.