Saturday, May 30, 2009

Singing the Living Tradition:
Songs from the Unitarian Universalist Hymnbook





I’ve spent the whole weekend writing a sermon about the Unitarian Universalist hymnbook for this weekend’s lay service at our church. Now I’ve got hymnal on the brain, and the thought of switching over to folk music makes my head hurt.

Which would be a problem, if it were not for the fact that the modern Unitarian Universalist hymnal is about as folk-oriented as a hymnbook gets.

It wasn’t always that way. The UU hymnal has gone through several incarnations since the first one was published in 1937. In that time, it has evolved from a compilation of older, mostly traditional hymns and psalms to a populist collection of both original and borrowed songs which reflect the humanist and feminist nature of modern UU practice and the extreme diversity of sources and viewpoints from which Unitarian Universalists find truth and wisdom.

UU theology, if we can call it that, revolves around pillars of truth, and the diversity of sources we use to come to them. We don’t get our creed from a single book; we seek out wisdom, adapt it as needed, and share it. “Faith where we find it” is a wonderful chaotic thing, a rich tapestry of truthkernels and wisdom from seekers and worldchangers of all types. As the world changes and evolves, so do the sources we bring in.


As is the practice, so is its text. The current UU hymnal Singing the Living Tradition, first published in 1993, is a hodgepodge of folk songs and gospel spirituals, poetry set to old English and shapenote tunes, and biblical texts set to classical melodies. A few psalms remain from earlier ages, and composers such as Bach and Hayden have a presence, but they nestle among songs from sixties folk singers Holly Near and Richard Farina, and modern settings of lyrics from Confucious and Rumi, Emily Dickinson and Sara Teasdale. Martin Luther is there, but so is Duke Ellington.

As I will be discussing in my sermon, the current hymnal has some major flaws, mostly stemming from the way in which its songs were selected for their lyrical content rather than any sense of singability. The relative inaccessibility of the songs is coupled by the inherent tension between an everchanging religion which reflects the world-as-it-is and the very commodification of the canon which results from publishing a definitive hymnal in the first place. Just fifteen years past its original publication date, the hymnal is already seen by many practitioners and seekers as far out of date, and desperately in need of renewal.

But as a source for congregational song, its very diversity makes it an apt collection, allowing each congregation to find their favorites. And as a reflection of folk culture and spirituality, Singing the Living Tradition is a powerful marker of how songs survive through community practice. Here, to prove it, are some folk versions of just a few hymns from the UU hymnal. No matter what you believe or practice, the odds are good you’ll recognize most of ‘em.



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7 Responses to “Singing the Living Tradition:
Songs from the Unitarian Universalist Hymnbook”

  1. heather
    May 31st, 2009 at 6:42 pm

    Oh, how I love this post. Thanks.
  2. chad
    June 1st, 2009 at 7:18 pm

    Yes, what Heather said.

    I attend a UU church as well, by the way!
  3. Alan Stillman
    June 2nd, 2009 at 10:00 pm

    I am also a UU and really appreciate this offering.
  4. Steve C
    June 3rd, 2009 at 7:09 am

    I was raised Roman Catholic and yet a good study of the Bible and Church history turned me off that for good. Since then have studied many religions and often thought I’d be a good priest or monk, only I never could find any faith I could profess whole-hearted belief in, above all others.

    Then one day I was searching for a quote from Benjamin Franklin about religion and happened to find this site:

    http://www.allsoulsuuindy.org/sermons2005.html

    It’s a collection of sermons from a UU church. I’d never really heard of UU before, and I was just blown away by the integrity, intelligence, and compassion of these sermons. No bending history or misquoting people to fit their agenda (as on other religious sites), but just saying how it is.

    (See the one on Mark Twain:
    http://www.allsoulsuuindy.org/ser20051002.htm

    Or this great introduction to Hinduism: http://www.allsoulsuuindy.org/ser20090322.htm)

    So yeah, glad to see this music here and see it reflect the UU ideals of openness and goodwill to all.
  5. Steve C
    June 3rd, 2009 at 9:36 pm

    P.S. Didn’t mean to knock any religions with the above comment - it’s just one person’s search for meaning and purpose, and I hope you’ve found your own, in whatever way it comes.
  6. mike ryko
    June 5th, 2009 at 5:07 pm

    wow, that sufjan track really sucks!
  7. Merlin Snider
    March 4th, 2010 at 3:09 am

    Thank you for this post. The core of my musical life is writing and singing folk under my own name. But also for the last few years the band Soulstice and I help consume the musical space at the Conejo Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in Thousand Oaks, CA with our folkish, soulful and sometimes rocking sounds. We’re always looking for new tunes that lift the spirit without sideswiping the intellect. I don’t recall hearing “How Can I Keep from Singing” (aka “My Life Flows On in Endless Song”) before. It just may find its way into the service this Sunday, since you posted the mp3 of it here. Thanks!

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