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The Lutheran Book of Worship (LBW) 21 Years Later

© James Gerhardt Sucha

Guest Author: James Gerhardt Sucha

INTRODUCTION

It has been nearly 21 years since the introduction of the Lutheran Book of Worship (LBW) in 1978. Currently in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), 94% of churches use the green LBW as the current worship book; the other 6% use other sources, or retain the red 1958 Service Book and Hymnal (SBH).

Only 52% of the ELCA congregations have purchased the new With One Voice supplement designed to bring multi-ethnicity into churches of predominately Northern European descendants. However, after 21 years there are still problems with the LBW regarding hymnody and liturgical music that does not sing well.

BACKGROUND OF THE LBW

In the 1960's the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (I.L.C.W.) formed from bodies of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada (ELCIC), American Lutheran Church (ALC), and Lutheran Church in America (LCA) to discuss the future of worship in the Lutheran church. After years of studies and producing contemporary worship books for congregational use and testing, the commission decided to replace The Lutheran Hymnal (TLH) and Service Book and Hymnal (SBH) with one hymnal for both Lutheran bodies. Years of discussion of hymnody in ALC/LCA congregations went on. However, our cousins in the LCMS had very distinct differences in hymnody and liturgies as compared to the ALC/LCA traditions.

Surveys went out to a few churches in the ALC/LCA to see what hymns were the most used. This survey did not include all 100% of the churches out there. Many churches were left out with their own repertoires of what they used individually. Controversy arose between committees with decisions regarding what should be in the new hymnal. There were horror stories of extreme abuse of politics, power, and unethical decisions with the ILCW. As a result, the LCMS backed out of the ILCW, and the committee was dissolved before the LBW went to print to make changes geared toward the ALC/LCA congregations. Even with all the turmoil, the hymnal went to press. Congregations of the ALC/LCA were sold on the hymnal before it was finished, and they did not have a say on what was in the contents. Pastors and worship committees rushed to get the LBW into the pews as fast as they could to have updated English, and carelessly threw out their copies of the Service Book and Hymnal. When introduced, congregations found new material but not much retained from the heritage they once knew and loved to sing.

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