A Vast Improvement

Now that we are have been using the new "Lutheran Service Book" since July 15, it's time for a brief progress report. It is a vast improvement over the 1982 "Lutheran Worship" book.

So far, we have used Divine Services 1, 3, and Matins.

Divine Service 1 is straight out of the 1982 book. No need for further elaboration.

I've been most happy with Divine Service 3, which is the old "Common Service" found in the venerable 1941 Lutheran Hymnalon page 15. It has options for non communion services that make it like TLH page 5. On the plus side, they have retained the Jacobean (Old English) language in the chants. Excellent! But LSB has made some noticable changes to that service. The congregation no longer chants the pre-confession versicles. They are now spoken. The creeds and other spoken parts have been put into modern English to bring it into conformity with the rest of the hymnal. While these changes are minimal to be sure, they are a vast improvement over what passed for the "common service" in the previous hymnal.

The Te-Deum Laudamus in Matins has had the full text restored. That's good. I know, I know.... liturgical scholars rightly point out that the shorter form is more ancient. But in western civilization, the longer text of the Te Deum has been the one that the great composers have set to magnificent music. Joseph Haydn's is the best. I also like Arthur Sullivan's Te Deum, composed in 1900, just months before his untimely death. Because it was commissioned in advance of England's expected victory in the Boer War, Sullivan made frequent use of his popular hymn tune "Onward Christian Soldiers" in the piece But I degress.

I am most pleased with the restoration of familiar and beloved hymn tunes in LSB. I hated the harmonizations in the 1982 hymnal. Personally, I believe the now deceased music professor who re-harmonized such a large number of popular hymns did the church a major disservice.

I really like this picture of an audience's negative reaction to a piece of music by Igor Stravinsky. (That's Stravinsky on the piano). The picture immediately reminded me of my initial shock at first hearing re-harmonized hymns in Lutheran Worship. They were terrible! All I can say about those poor tunes is "good riddance!"

So far, after only a few weeks, I've been choosing mostly familiar hymns. LSB has a lot of newly written material. I haven't had time to look that new stuff over yet.

Overall, we are off to a good start with the Lutheran Service Book, and I am very thankful Hope Lutheran has made the switch. My thanks again to the generous members who made it possible to get them.