Hymn

A hymn is a musical prayer or means of praising a deity. Hymns are generally meant to be sung by a group during a worship service. Most have stanzas and choruses, a tradition that has influenced the format of most modern music. Hymns may be original compositions or may use melodies or text from other sources, such as scripture. They include many varieties of songs, including psalms, gospel music, and spirituals.

Though most modern hymns are associated with Christianity, hymns predate Jesus Christ. Ancient Greeks, Indians, and other cultures sang hymns of praise to the gods.

Earliest Known Examples

Ancient Greeks worshipped a number of gods, and religious festivals were central to Greek life. These events often featured athletic events, theater, poetry recitation, and singing of hymns.

Vedas are hymns and texts written from about 1500 B.C.E. to 1000 B.C.E. in India. Vedas are sacred to the Vedic religion. The oldest known, the Rig-Veda, includes the first recorded reference to the god Shiva/Rudra and includes 1,028 hymns. Many praise Indra, the storm god; Agni, the god of fire; and Soma, personification of a sacred plant. These hymns and writings were shared through an oral tradition for centuries.

Jewish Hymns

Ancient Jewish worship services included the singing of psalms. The Old Testament of the Bible refers to praising God through song. Traditionally these services include chanting; over the centuries, however, hymns became part of some Jewish services.

During the nineteenth century, individuals who wrote Jewish hymns used some of the tunes of Protestant hymns. Around that time, a number of composers including Salomon Sulzer (1804–1890) and Louis Lewandowski (1821–1894) began creating original works using the organ. Some modern reform synagogues in the United States include hymns and choirs in services.

Christian Hymns

Christianity developed as a sect of Judaism, so early Christian worship also included the singing of psalms. Because Christianity was outlawed by the Romans, however, worshippers had to meet in secret. They likely sang psalms as a group in homes when they gathered.

In the sixth century, Saint Benedict (480–547) created Gregorian chants. Though chanting was a part of daily life in religious orders and in worship services, it was a difficult skill to master. Furthermore, services were largely conducted in Latin, which few ordinary people understood.

During the sixteenth century, the Protestant Reformation brought many changes to Christian worship. People longed to participate more fully in services. As the Protestant Church grew, congregations wished to sing in the languages of their people. Many composers, including Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), developed arrangements meant to be sung by large choral groups. In time, hymns that the whole congregation could sing together had been written.

English theologian Dr. Isaac Watts (1674–1748) wrote more than seven hundred hymns, including "O God Our Help in Ages Past," "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," and the Christmas carol "Joy to the World." His works and those of many of his contemporaries are regarded as classic Christian hymns.

One of the most famous hymns in the world is "Amazing Grace." John Newton (1725–1807), a young sailor and atheist in the British Royal Navy, wrote this hymn. During his seafaring career, he willingly served on slave ships. When a 1748 storm at sea nearly took his life, he experienced a religious awakening. He became vicar of a church in London. Newton wrote about 280 hymns, which were published in 1779. One of these, "Faith's Review and Expectation," became popular in America but was sung to a different melody. When this new pairing was published in 1855, it was widely accepted as "Amazing Grace." The hymn received another boost in 1972 when the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards performed it on bagpipes. It has since become a standard on the instrument and is a traditional choice at funerals for law enforcement officers, political figures, and members of the military.

During the middle of the nineteenth century, two men created a new type of hymn that came to be known as Gospel music. Evangelist Dwight L. Moody (1837–1899) sought to make the words of hymns more relatable to common people. He believed that hymns should be easy to sing and that their melodies should be memorable. Moody was not a composer, but when he heard singer Ira D. Sankey (1840–1908), he believed he had found the right person to work with. Sankey got people moving with his compositions. Worshippers who attended Moody's revivals clapped their hands and stomped their feet as they sang. Many of his Gospel hymns included repetition of phrases that singers easily remembered and sang with enthusiasm, because the songs and topics reached them on an emotional level.

Many slave songs found wider audiences through performances as well. The hymn "Steal Away," a traditional slave song, became widely known among white audiences when traveling groups sang it. The song, like others of the era, includes a secret message to slaves. It tells them to escape the South by following the secret network of abolitionists known as the Underground Railroad.

Some hymns in American history capture a specific time and place yet have endured as classics. Abolitionist Julie Ward Howe (1819–1910) was inspired by a visit to Union Army camps outside Washington, DC, in 1861. As she and her companions visited the soldiers, they began to sing popular songs, including one using the tune of the Methodist hymn "Say, Brothers, Will You Meet Us?" When Howe awoke the following morning, the words for a hymn using that melody were running through her mind. She wrote them down immediately. Her song, "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," was published in 1862. Although written for a nation newly embroiled in the Civil War (1861–1865), it remains a popular choice for American patriotic occasions.

Bibliography

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