Peeking Behind the Curtain: How a Hymnal Gets Made

Oct 5, 2022

Indian Hill Church was graced with the presence of Dr. Mary Louise Bringle, a singularly gifted, charming, and dedicated hymn writer and professor who also served as the Chair for the Presbyterian Committee on Congregational Song. Dr. Bringle, who was with us over the first weekend of October, collaborated with local composer Howard Helvey to create a hymn celebrating our church’s 75th anniversary. During this visit, Dr. Bringle let us “peek behind the curtain” and dove into a fascinating lecture on her experience with hymn writing, hymnal compilation, and the controversy involved with making a songbook for worship.

In addition to thanking Dr. Bringle for her presence with us and her skillful hymn writing, many thanks also to Phil Clary, our Director of Music. It was his vision that prompted the process of a custom hymn to even begin in the first place– and now our church will be able to sing our joyful, hopeful, heartfelt hymn, “We are People on a Journey,” for ages to come.