Fifty Years of Song

By Forrest M. McCann

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     An unusual anniversary is being celebrated this year. It is the "golden anniversary" of a hymn book--a book which has become standard among the Churches of Christ. The hymnal is Great Songs of the Church.

     How unusual it is for any hymnal to last even five years. If it survives ten or twenty years, it must possess some intrinsic excellence and universal appeal. But for a book to last fifty years and still retain a vigor puts it into a class by itself. Such is Great Songs of the Church, which celebrated fifty years of service on May 16, 1971.

     Among the hymnals of the Restoration Movement, only Alexander Campbell's Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs (otherwise known as The Christian Hymn Book) in its various editions, had a longer life. Great Songs of the Church bids fair in this twentieth century to outlast even the Campbell book.

     Why has Great Songs had such longevity and why does it now have such appeal? One reason may be found in the stated purpose of the compiler in the original 1921 Foreword.

     A conscientious effort has been made to render a lasting service to the Church

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of God, rather than to build a book which, no matter how popular for a season, would soon wear out, and call for another. Accordingly, songs of transient interest have been omitted. Hymns of strength, clearness, poetic beauty, lyrical quality, and, above all, scripturalness, joined with suitable music to wing the words, highgrade of its kind but not too difficult (for the greatest things are simple)--such are the songs of this collection; here are the classics of hymnology.

     Again in the 1937 Foreword, when the present edition. Great Songs No. 2, appeared, the compiler stated:

     Excellence alone has been the principle of inclusion.

     Furthermore the book is an all-round hymnal containing choice selections which appeal to all ages and classes in the churches as well as to the levels of musical talent and training. We quote once more from the 1937 Foreword.

     It may seem strange to some to find in this volume both simple tunes and the classics of hymnology...Yet this combination is by deliberate design...In this hymnal we have sought to provide for all ages and classes, for the entire range of Christian living and experience, and for the popular "gospel meeting" as well as for the more elevated "worship hour" of the Church. It is believed that all may find herein suitable means for the expression of the sacred emotions, and that every church, large and small, learned or unlearned, may find abundance of material for a helpful service of song.

     And such has proved to be true--north, south, east, and west, in Canada, and beyond the seas; in rural churches and urban churches; this book has found a welcome and a place. The latest printing declares in the Foreword,

     Transcending all sectarian lines and sectional prejudices, the book increased consistently from year to year. Nearly three million souls, in some 10,000 churches now sing the Savior's praises from its pages.

     Since 1958 Abilene Christian College has owned and published the shape note edition of the hymnal. The book appears to be continuing its growth in popularity and will undoubtedly continue for years to come. It is truly a collection of great songs--Great Songs of the Church. We salute this noble hymnal on its attaining the half century mark-- the Golden Anniversary of Great Songs.

     Some might be interested in some of the historical facts behind this remarkable book. Briefly they are these.

     In the latter years of the 19th century there lived in the little nation of Denmark a soldier and a seamstress. The soldier was a member of the King's Guard and the seamstress was seamstress to the Queen. As all such stories go, they fell in love and were married. Six children were born to this union, and two were buried in Danish soil. In 1884 the family migrated to America and settled near the little town of Albion, Nebraska. Here two other children were born, and here also, through the good Christian influence of some New Testament disciples, the entire family became Christians only.

     One of the children born in Nebraska in 1886 was the compiler of Great Songs of the Church. His name was Elmer Leon Jorgenson. His father died when he was fifteen, and even though much of the responsibility for the family fell on the shoulders of the young man, he took advantage of every opportunity for schooling. Early in life he showed an interest in and love for music, and led the singing in evangelistic meetings.

     In 1907 E. L. Jorgenson became head of the singing department of Western Bible and Literary College in Odessa, Missouri. There he met and married Irene Doty in 1909. The young couple moved immediately after their wedding to Louisville, Kentucky, and there made their home for fifty-nine years of marriage. One child, Martha Jane, was born to them in 1919. The little girl died when she was in her eighth year, and the tune "Martha" (Great Songs, No. 392) is named in honor of her memory.

     During the early years in Louisville Brother Jorgenson took special Bible classes, studied Greek at the Theological

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Seminary there, and enrolled in various music courses at the University of Louisville. He also studied voice under one of the best teachers in the city. For years he was a member of the original "Louisville Chorus" or concert choir and for a time was its president. Upon publication of the revised Great Songs in 1937, Jorgenson was elected to the Eugene Field Society as an honorary member and was listed in Who's Who in America. Always before his eyes was the hope of elevating the worship service of the church in song.

     Brother Jorgenson began collecting material for our hymnal about 1910. He had supposed that it would be an easy task to build such a book as he had planned. Such was not the case, however, and a decade would pass by before his labors could come to fruition. Copyright materials were in a tangle. Permission to use certain songs was exorbitantly high. The intended alphabetical arrangement was pronounced impossible by experienced compilers. But at last, in God's good providence, the copyright obstacles were cleared away and every lovely song was obtained. On May 16, 1921 the world's first and only alphabetical hymnal with music was published.

     The original Great Songs contained standard notation (round notes) only, was bound in green art cloth, printed by the presses of the famous hymn publisher, E. O. Excell, and contained 400 songs. In 1922 a second edition was published which added fifty songs--

     In order to foster greater use throughout the states of the more classical hymns, particularly for the Lord's day morning worship, and to meet completely the need of those churches throughout the British Empire in which such selections are most often used.

     In 1925 this Supplement was included within the alphabetical arrangement of the entire book, and the hymnal began to be published in both round and shaped notes. It continued with increasing popularity until, in September, 1937, the new No. 2 came from the presses.

     Since 1937 few changes or additions have altered in any way Great Songs of the Church. In the mid-1950's the round note book was sold to the Standard Publishing Company of Cincinnati, Ohio. The shaped note plates were purchased by the Christian Chronicle Company, then of Abilene, Texas. Afterwards the shape note plates passed into the hands of Frank Riggs of Odessa, Texas, and finally in 1958 became the property of Abilene Christian College. The only variations between the Abilene and Cincinnati editions are in the end-sheet songs, added over the years since 1937, and in the wording and notation of two of the hymns (Nos. 396 and 494).

     In August, 1958, E. L. Jorgenson suffered a severe coronary from which he never completely recovered. He lived ten years however with much physical pain, and was at last called before the Author and Object of all our praise on December 14, 1968. The hymnal Great Songs of the Church, "dedicated to the praise of Christ and to the Churches of Christ in America," is the greatest monument to his life and work.