Why Hymnology?
-Blog by Sarah Voorhees
As a Bible college student, I recently had the opportunity to take a class on hymnology. I remember a chapter in my textbook that focused on how hymns can be taught to children. Honestly, I found it ridiculous, at first. I thought to myself about how kids raised in church already knew these songs. So, why would they need to be formally introduced to hymns?
But I soon found out I was very wrong. I was teaching a children's choir class at the time, and one of the songs I taught the children in the class was “Amazing Grace”. I thought it would be easy because most of the kids in my class came from good churches and would already know it.
I was surprised to find that this was not the case. No one in my class knew any of the words or even the tune of "Amazing Grace." Children from good churches didn't know about one of the most basic hymns of Christianity.
It was at that point that I realized there was an issue. In looking into it, I heard the suggestion that maybe some of the kids in my class had been in children's programs and had not participated much in congregational singing. Even though this works as a reason, that doesn’t make it less of an issue.
Children need to know these hymns, and so do adults. Hymnology deserves much more attention than we give it. So today, I want to share some thoughts on why it is important to study hymnology, the purpose of hymns, and some possible solutions to the problems I have seen.
(Much of this information and many of the suggestions come from my school textbook on the subject cited at the end of this blog.)
Why is hymnology important?
First, let’s cover why you should study the hymns you only sing three times a week.
One reason to study hymns is because they teach Christians about the Bible. Every good hymn has a lot of biblical allusions and references, and many are nearly verbatim verses. So, in studying hymns, Christians learn more about the Bible and gain powerful associations when they know to look for them.
One great example of this is “Amazing Grace.” In my class, I was surprised to learn it was largely based on 1 Chronicles 17. There God promised David that he would establish His kingdom. The parallels are not obvious at first, but with careful study, their connections become clear. Rather than me getting into all the details of this particular hymn now, you might consider this a springboard for you to study scriptural connection in hymns.
There are many other benefits to studying hymns and hymnology, but this is the one that sticks out to me as the most important.
One great resource for studying hymns is hymnary.org. It gives the full hymn text, some info about the author, and scripture references that you can look up in your Bible.
The purpose of hymns - children included
Now let’s discuss the purpose/benefit of hymns.
Praise to God
The primary purpose of hymns is praise to God. It is not about entertainment; it is about worship. More specifically, it is about the church praising God together. The hymn's purpose also tells us that every song that churches sing should point to God. But for now, let’s operate on the understanding that a hymn is for praise to God.
Teaching doctrine
One benefit to hymns is that they teach and establish doctrine in our minds. It is well documented that what we accept is what we sing. This fact has been understood throughout history
. In the early days of the church, when there were disputes on the doctrine of the Trinity, hymns were made in support of the Trinity.
This was done to establish that as the church's position and to teach Christians about that doctrine. This fact is why we should take care to observe what we sing and teach children hymns too.
Unity of congregation
The next purpose/benefit of hymns is that they unify. There is rarely a better thing for a congregation than to worship God together, especially in song. During hymns, singing is the point at which many feel connected. People are unified in Christ as a church when they sing together.
This all brings us back to why children should know and sing hymns.
There is nothing better than a child singing in praise to God. Children also learn much about scripture and doctrine when singing hymns. They also become more unified with the church when they sing hymns.
If hymns are something that only adults know, that builds the idea that hymns are only for adults. Having factions of who sings hymns and who doesn’t can harm a church’s unity, especially as children grow older.
Solutions
The nice thing is this problem has quite a few easy solutions. These are just some possible solutions that I have learned and found. I am only speaking from my experience as a Sunday school teacher and a music teacher. Take what you want and leave what you don't. But hopefully, these will be a help for someone.
Sing hymns in Sunday school
This first suggestion is for all the Sunday school teachers and children’s program coordinators.
Make sure to use basic hymns in your class time music. One great way to do this is by starting a hymn of the month and possibly including a hymn history or something. It does not have to be a long-winded explanation—more like a quick storytelling about the hymn and then teaching them the song. No matter how you do it, make sure to integrate hymns into your classes and programs.
Sing hymns at home
Solution number two is for all the moms out there. Sing hymns at home. If this is new for you, it may seem a bit awkward at first. But one thing to try is making it a bedtime lullaby. “Be Thou My Vision,” “Abide With Me,” and “Amazing Grace” are great songs to start with.
Make hymns part of a school project
Another solution for teachers and homeschool moms is to have older children research a hymn's history or its author. It can be a quick paragraph or paper. Or if you have younger kids, do some quick research and tell them about it. Charles Wesley is a great one to start with.
Thanks for making it through my many thoughts on this. I hope you can see why hymns are so important for both adults and children. I enjoyed learning all that I did, and I hope you enjoyed my small summary.
Eskew, H., & McElrath, H. T. (2016). Sing With Understanding, An Introduction to Christian Hymnology (2nd ed.). GIA Publications.
