Should Our Hymns Be Focused More On Our Peoplehood Or Our Individual Personhood?

I value spending some time each morning
in our new hymnal, Voices Together.

Our beliefs are likely influenced as much (or more) by our hymns than by our sermons, or even by our reading of scripture, whether in private or in public worship. 

This has made our denomination's selection of new hymnals in 1927, 1966, 1992 and 2020 at least as impactful as the adoption of our most recent (1995) Confession of Faith. 

Both kinds of publications, while potentially unifying, are also sure to create some controversy, as in some of the 2020 Voices Together hymn texts that have been modified to use more gender neutral and even feminine pronouns for God.

But I'm especially interested in seeing more hymns using  plural pronouns and focusing more on God's people as we gather for communal worship. The Bible, after all, is about one God (singular!) calling together, redeeming and commissioning a holy nation, a royal priesthood, a community of Jesus followers (plural!) who bear God's name and seek to live out God's will here on earth as in heaven. 

There are of course numerous accounts of personal encounters and conversations between God and individuals in the Bible. Stories of Abraham and Sarah, Moses and Aaron, and scores of  other prophets, judges and kings come to mind. Fully half the psalms, especially those of king David, describe a very personal relationship with God, and in the New Testament there are many personal encounters with God as experienced by Mary, Elizabeth, Peter, Paul, and by John the Revelator, to mention a few. But those personal experiences are never for the sake of furthering their private spirituality alone, but for the sake of their blessing, inspiring and nurturing God's people.

Thus our hymns, in my opinion, should reflect more of our corporate, versus just our personal, experiences with God.

I for one am glad that all 35 of the opening hymns in the "GATHERING: Welcome" section in Voices Together employ plural terms like us, we, and our  instead of me, I, my and mine. This is true for all but five of the next 30 hymns on the theme "GATHERING: God's Presence With Us."

I'm not suggesting we do away with all hymns that use personal pronouns. I appreciate personal testimony gospel songs like "Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine," I'm Pressing On the Upward Way," "Lord I am Fondly Earnestly Longing," and many others. But in future editions, even many of these could (and should?) be modified for use in corporate worship, as in "We're Pressing on the Upward Way," or "O Lord our God, when we in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds your hands have made," etc. That may seem jarring at first, but wouldn't it be equally jarring to sing "I'm Marching to Zion"?

Another hymn, "How Firm a Foundation," based on Jesus's declaration "On this rock I will build my church," starts out with an appropriate reference to "ye saints of the Lord," but curiously switches to the use of an individual versus a plural you (or ye), and in its final verse states, "The soul that on Jesus still leans for repose, I will not, I will not, desert to its foes. That soul, though all hell shall endeavor to shake, I'll never, no never, no never forsake!"

In my opinion that fifth stanza, in order to be true to the Matthew 16 text, should read something like, "The church built on Jesus, the Rock and the Word, is defended by Christ our Redeemer and Lord. The church, though all hell should endeavor to shake, God will never, no never, no never forsake."

This kind of language supports the idea we are all in this together, a divinely created peoplehood whose sum is far greater than its individual parts. And that we are not primarily solo performers, but members of a grand multi-orchestrated choir inviting people of all nations to join in one great harmony of shalom.

Here's verse one of an updated hymn I'd love to belt out with other believers:

Come, blest fount of every blessing, tune our hearts to sing your grace.

Streams of mercy, never ceasing, call for songs of loudest praise.

Teach us some melodious sonnets sung by flaming tongues above.

Praise the mount, we're fixed upon it, mount of God's unchanging love!

I welcome your feedback.