Hymns of the Saints, published in Independence, Missouri

Independence, Missouri

Independence is the fourth largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri, and is contained within the counties of Jackson and Clay. It is part of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area...

 by Herald House

Herald House

Herald House or Herald Publishing House is the publishing division of the Community of Christ in Independence, Missouri. It publishes books, periodicals and other materials at the direction of the First Presidency. Its history dates back to the publication of a church periodical called the True...

 in 1981, is the official English language

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 hymnal

Hymnal

Hymnal or hymnary or hymnbook is a collection of hymns, i.e. religious songs, usually in the form of a book. The earliest hand-written hymnals are known since Middle Ages in the context of European Christianity...

 of the Community of Christ

Community of Christ

The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints , is an American-based international Christian church established in April 1830 that claims as its mission "to proclaim Jesus Christ and promote communities of joy, hope, love, and peace"...

. The hymnal contains 501 Christian hymn

Hymn

A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification...

s representing a variety of musical styles.

Harold Neal served as Chairman of the 1981 Hymnal Committee and production of the Hymns of the Saints was coordinated by Peter Judd of the Worship Office and Roger Revell of the Music Office. In the preface

Preface

A preface is an introduction to a book or other literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a foreword and precedes an author's preface...

 to the work, the committee acknowledges the influence of “changing theological concepts, the searching eye of historical research, shifting modes of expression, and increased sensitivity to the sanctity of personhood” in the preparation of the hymnal and the selection of hymns.

Of the 501 hymns, 209 were not found in The Hymnal, which was published in 1956. The hymns are organized in four major sections: Praise and Thanksgiving (hymns 1–78); Contemplation and Renewal (hymns 79–185); God’s Word for Us (186–368); and Commission and Commitment (hymns 369–501).

In the hymnal, 127 lyrical contributions and 88 musical contributions were made by members of the denomination while the remainder are from earlier Latter Day Saint and Christian hymnists. Aside from six hymn texts drawn directly from the psalms

Psalms

The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...

 (Hymns 15, 66, 110, 125, 258, and 461), the earliest Christian text is attributed to Aurelius Clemens Prudentius, who lived from 348

348

Year 348 was a leap year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Philippus and Salia...

 to 413

413

Year 413 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Herclianus and Lucius...

; he is credited as the original author of the text from which Hymn 220, "Of the Father’s Love Begotten", was translated by John Mason Neale

John Mason Neale

John Mason Neale was an Anglican priest, scholar and hymn-writer.-Life:Neale was born in London, his parents being the Revd Cornelius Neale and Susanna Neale, daughter of John Mason Good...

 and Henry W. Baker.

Among the most prolific contributors to the texts of the hymns in the book are (number of contributions are noted in parentheses) Roy Cheville

Roy Cheville

Roy A. Cheville was a religious leader, theologian and educator in the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, or Community of Christ, as it is known today. Cheville graduated from Graceland University in 1921 with an Associate of Arts degree in liberal arts and religious education...

 (13), Geoffrey F. Spencer (13), Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts

Isaac Watts was an English hymnwriter, theologian and logician. A prolific and popular hymnwriter, he was recognised as the "Father of English Hymnody", credited with some 750 hymns...

 (12), Charles Wesley

Charles Wesley

Charles Wesley was an English leader of the Methodist movement, son of Anglican clergyman and poet Samuel Wesley, the younger brother of Anglican clergyman John Wesley and Anglican clergyman Samuel Wesley , and father of musician Samuel Wesley, and grandfather of musician Samuel Sebastian Wesley...

 (11), Allan Tyree (10), Fred Kaan (9), Evan A. Fry (9), Naomi Russell (7), and Barbara Howard (6).

Hymns of the Saints was cited as a catalyst for inspiration by Community of Christ President Stephen M. Veazey

Stephen M. Veazey

Stephen Mark Veazey is the current Prophet-President of the Community of Christ, headquartered in Independence, Missouri. Veazey's name was presented to the church in March 2005 by a joint council of church leaders led by the Council of Twelve Apostles, as the next Prophet-President...

 in his discussion of Doctrine and Covenants

Doctrine and Covenants

The Doctrine and Covenants is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement...

Section 163.