Service Book and Hymnal
Encyclopedia
The Service Book and Hymnal, or SBH was used by most of the Lutheran church bodies in the United States that today comprise the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
(ELCA) prior to the publishing of the Lutheran Book of Worship
(LBW) of 1978. In ELCA circles, historically, the Service Book and Hymnal has been called the "red book" while the Lutheran Book of Worship
has been called the "green book." The newest ELCA hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship
(ELW) is also red in color, and has apparently been dubbed "the cranberry book".
Prior to the merger of 1987 which created the ELCA, there were several smaller Lutheran church bodies. The ones involved in the Service Book and Hymnal include: The American Evangelical Lutheran Church
, American Lutheran Church
, The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
, The Evangelical Lutheran Church
, The Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, The Lutheran Free Church
, The United Evangelical Lutheran Church
, and The United Lutheran Church in America
. Prior to 1958 these churches (most of whom are now in the ELCA) had many different hymnals until 1958 when Service Book and Hymnal came out. In contrast, church bodies of the (former) Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America
(Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
, and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod
) had been using a different red hymnal: The Lutheran Hymnal
(TLH) since 1941.
Service Book and Hymnal contains 602 hymns, the first 148 of them organized to correspond with the Church Year. The liturgies and psalms precede the hymns, with indexes in the back. Three settings of The Service were available whereas only the first two (p.15 & p.41) were included in the pew editions of the hymnal. Chant, chorale and plainsong styles were used. The cover of SBH features a gold cross on a circle logo symbolizing Christ in the world.
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches. As of December 31, 2009, it had 4,543,037 baptized members, with 2,527,941 of them...
(ELCA) prior to the publishing of the Lutheran Book of Worship
Lutheran Book of Worship
Lutheran Book of Worship is a worship book and hymnal used by several Lutheran denominations in North America. It is often referred to by its initials as the LBW, and in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America the LBW is sometimes called the "green book" as opposed to With One Voice, a...
(LBW) of 1978. In ELCA circles, historically, the Service Book and Hymnal has been called the "red book" while the Lutheran Book of Worship
Lutheran Book of Worship
Lutheran Book of Worship is a worship book and hymnal used by several Lutheran denominations in North America. It is often referred to by its initials as the LBW, and in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America the LBW is sometimes called the "green book" as opposed to With One Voice, a...
has been called the "green book." The newest ELCA hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship
Evangelical Lutheran Worship
Evangelical Lutheran Worship or ELW is the current, primary liturgical and worship guidebook and hymnal for use in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, replacing its three predecessors, the Lutheran Book of Worship , the Hymnal Supplemental , and...
(ELW) is also red in color, and has apparently been dubbed "the cranberry book".
Prior to the merger of 1987 which created the ELCA, there were several smaller Lutheran church bodies. The ones involved in the Service Book and Hymnal include: The American Evangelical Lutheran Church
American Evangelical Lutheran Church
The American Evangelical Lutheran Church was one of the many denominations formed when Lutherans immigrated to America. Originally known as the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America , the predominantly Danish-American church was informally known as "the Danish Church."In 1872 Grundtvigian...
, American Lutheran Church
American Lutheran Church
The American Lutheran Church was a Christian Protestant denomination in the United States that existed from 1960 to 1987. Its headquarters was in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its formation in 1960, the ALC designated Augsburg Publishing House , also located in Minneapolis, as the church publisher...
, The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church
The Augustana Evangelical Lutheran Church was a Lutheran church body in the United States that was one of the churches that merged into the Lutheran Church in America in 1962...
, The Evangelical Lutheran Church
Evangelical Lutheran Church (United States)
The Evangelical Lutheran Church or ELC was formed in 1917 as the Norwegian Lutheran Church of America .-Background:The Norwegian Lutheran Church of America was formed by merger of the Hauge Synod , the Norwegian Synod , and the United Norwegian Lutheran Church of America...
, The Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, The Lutheran Free Church
Lutheran Free Church
The Lutheran Free Church was a Lutheran denomination that existed in the United States from 1897 to 1963 mainly in Minnesota and North Dakota...
, The United Evangelical Lutheran Church
United Evangelical Lutheran Church
The United Evangelical Lutheran Church was one of the many denominations formed when Lutherans came to the United States from Europe...
, and The United Lutheran Church in America
United Lutheran Church in America
The United Lutheran Church in America was established in 1918 with the merger of three independent German-language synods: the General Synod , the General Council and the United Synod of the South . The Slovak Zion Synod joined the United Lutheran Church in America in 1920...
. Prior to 1958 these churches (most of whom are now in the ELCA) had many different hymnals until 1958 when Service Book and Hymnal came out. In contrast, church bodies of the (former) Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America
Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America
The Evangelical Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America was a Lutheran joint fellowship organization between the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod , the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod...
(Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
The Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod is a North American Confessional Lutheran denomination of Christianity. Characterized as theologically conservative, it was founded in 1850 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As of 2008, it had a baptized membership of over 389,364 in more than 1,290 congregations,...
, and the Evangelical Lutheran Synod
Evangelical Lutheran Synod
The Evangelical Lutheran Synod or ELS is a US-based Protestant Christian denomination based in Mankato, Minnesota, USA. It describes itself as a conservative, Confessional Lutheran body.-Membership:...
) had been using a different red hymnal: The Lutheran Hymnal
The Lutheran Hymnal
The Lutheran Hymnal is one of the official hymnals of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. Published in 1941 by Concordia Publishing House in St. Louis, Missouri, it was the LCMS' second official English-language hymnal, succeeding the 1912 Evangelical Lutheran Hymn-Book...
(TLH) since 1941.
Service Book and Hymnal contains 602 hymns, the first 148 of them organized to correspond with the Church Year. The liturgies and psalms precede the hymns, with indexes in the back. Three settings of The Service were available whereas only the first two (p.15 & p.41) were included in the pew editions of the hymnal. Chant, chorale and plainsong styles were used. The cover of SBH features a gold cross on a circle logo symbolizing Christ in the world.