The New English Renaissance

The period of hymnody after about 1970 has been called the "New English Renaissance" by Erik Routley and the "Hymn Explosion" by James Sydnor. By whatever name it may go, mainline hymnody in the English language experienced a sudden surge of activity in the last 3 decades of the 20th century.

There seems to be an intimate connection with the quantity of hymns being written and another phenomenon known as HYMNAL SUPPLEMENTS. This is certainly and example of the proverbial "chicken and the egg" -- that is, which came first? Hymnal supplements seem to have become the norm after about 1970 because with all the new hymnic activity, hymnal editors were afraid to commit to new (and often experimental) material in a full-fledged hymnal. After all, the life of a hymnal is some 20 years and what may seem new and fresh one decade will will seem dated and irrelevant the next (eg., "Pass it on"; "He's everything to me"). Consequently small, relatively inexpensive and short-lived supplements were the answer.

On the other hand, with the proliferation of hymnal supplements and the relative EASE by which new hymn writers could get there material into print, ANYONE who could put a text and a tune together had an opportunity to get their hymns published. It was almost like a feed-back-loop with each fueling the other. Certainly many hymns were introduced which did not stand the test of time of the average life of a supplement (3-5 years). But, many new hymns by important emerging hymn writers first appeared in hymnal supplements. In the early 1970's and have become standard mainline hymnic repertory in current denominational hymnals. A few of these better known, NEW ENGLISH RENAISSANCE hymn writers are included in the list below along with the number of their hymns in the United Methodist Hymnal (UMH):

Fred Pratt Green (18)
Brian Wren (14)
Fred Kaan (8)
Timothy Dudley-Smith (2)
Erik Routley (1)

All four of the above are BRITISH hymn writers. But, Americans started writing new hymns too. Here are a few:

Carl Daw, Jr. (4)
Thomas H. Troeger (3)
Gracia Grindal (4 -- this includes translations)

The 1990's saw the emergence of several new hymnists, including:

Ruth Duck (American) - 1
Shirley Erena Murray (New Zealand) -- see handout

Representative TEXTS together with the number of hymns in the United Methodist Hymnal (UMH)

Fred Pratt Green

Christ is the world's light -- UMH 188
When the church of Jesus shuts its outer door -- UMH 592
By gracious powers -- UMH 517 (translation)
The Church of Christ in Every Age (see handout)

Brian Wren

I come with joy to meet my lord -- UMH 617
Christ is alive! Let Christians sing -- UMH 318

Fred Kaan

For the healing of the nations -- UMH 428
Now let us from this table rise -- UMH 634
Help us accept each other -- UMH 560

Timothy Dudley-Smith

Tell out, my soul -- UMH 200
Behold a broken world -- UMH 426

Erik Routley

All who love and serve your city - UMH 433

Carl Daw, Jr.

Like the murmur of the dove's song - UMH 544

Thomas H. Troeger

Silence, frenzied, unclean spirit - UMH 264

Gracia Grindal

The kingdom of God - UMH 275 (original)
Out of the depths - UMH 515 (translation)

Ruth Duck

Wash, O God, our sons and daughters - UMH 605
Sacred the body - See handout

Shirley Erena Murray

O God, we bear the imprint of your face - See handout
When our lives know sudden shadow - See handout

Representative TUNES together with the number of hymns in the United Methodist Hymnal (UMH)

Peter Cutts (2)

SHILLINGFORD (UMH 260)
BRIDEGROOM (UMH 544)

Erik Routley (3)

AUGUSTINE (UMH 93)
[PRAYER CANTICLE (UMH 406)]
SHARPTHORNE (UMH 441)

David Hurd (2)

JULION (UMH 197)
MIGHTY SAVIOR UMH 684)

Sidney Carter (1)

LORD OF THE DANCE(UMH 261)

Carol Doran (3)

GOD'S NAMES (UMH 113)
AUTHORITY (UMH 264)
FALCONE (UMH 538)

Carlton Young (44 -- hey, he was the editor!)

BEGINNINGS (UMH 383)
STOOKEY (UMH 627)
[also see UMH 433]

Jane Marshall (22)

ANNIVERSARY SONG (UMH 87)
HIGH STREET (UMH 590)

Carl Schalk (3)

ROEDER (UMH 122)
STANLEY BEACH (UMH 257)
NOW (UMH 619)

Richard Dirksen (1)

VINEYARD HAVEN (UMH 161)

Afro-American spirituals (30) - (The United Methodist Hymnal containes more Afro-American spirituals than any other modern main-line hymnal)

134, 251, 288, 291, 316, 333, 345, 352, 375, 402, 404, 416, 418, 448, 464, 494, 520, 521, 527, 533, 548, 585, 618, 655, 703, 704, 719, 722, 738, 741

In addition to new texts and tunes, the New English Renaissance saw the revival of OLD (even ancient) texts and tunes which had fallen out of favor