Dr Uwe Steinmetz. Photo: LWF/Albin Hillert
Churches encouraged to test prototype collection of 80 songs from all LWF regions
(LWI) – To mark the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s first hymnal, The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) has published a prototype of the upcoming Global Lutheran Songbook, with a selection of 80 hymns and songs from all LWF regions.
They are available online until Easter 2025 in a pilot phase. Churches are invited to sign up and test and adapt the hymns to enrich the final resource that will be published with a collection of around 300 songs.
German church musician and jazz performer Dr Uwe Steinmetz, Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria, coordinated the songbook project, collaborating with musicians from all LWF regions to curate the songs and music now being shared with churches in the communion.
“We have received requests from 15 countries so far, and I was very excited to participate in a symposium in the Netherlands and heard glowing reports from presentations at the Nordic Church music symposium in Copenhagen, for the Nordic churches recently,” he said.
“To see people having it in their hands, and ready to try songs and music from other churches was a very positive experience. Usually people will say, ‘oh, that’s difficult for our congregation’ and I feel we are at a place in the LWF communion where we can begin to ask: ‘And what does this song, hymn, mean for our cultures today?” Steinmetz said.
‘A singing communion: Pilgrimage, Freedom, Belonging,’ the songbook’s sub-title captures the parallels between historical and contemporary worship, stressing that hymns are meant to be living expressions of faith rather than static texts. Each hymn is seen as a pilgrimage, inviting believers to explore new horizons while remaining rooted in tradition.
In the songbook’s preface, LWF General Secretary Rev. Dr Anne Burghardt emphasizes that singing shapes the witness of the Lutheran communion today just as the original eight songs shaped the faith and worship practices of the early Reformation parishes. “The songs gathered here witness to the creativity and depth of the proclamation of the gospel within the LWF,” she notes.
Bridging musical and religious cultures
The end product is a collection that bridges musical and religious cultures, highlights the diversity of worship, while serving as a platform for dialogue and understanding among different practices in the Lutheran tradition. “We get to celebrate not only the legacy of Luther’s Achtliederbuch but also respond to the need for contemporary expressions of faith that resonate with today’s global Christian community,” Uwe explained.
I believe the songbook can create a global church of sound rather than a church of stone
Dr Uwe Steinmetz, project coordinator, Global Lutheran Songbook
During the pilot phase, churches that sign up for the prototype songbook are encouraged to test the songs in their respective and offer feedback, including translations of these songs. The copyright requirements must be respected to protect the authors and their respective publishers.
“I believe the songbook can create a global church of sound rather than a church of stone,” concluded Steinmetz, who was a member of the International Worship Group for LWF’s Assemblies in 2017 and 2023.
The publication is a joint collaboration between the LWF and the Institute of Liturgical Studies of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church of Germany (VELKD) at Leipzig University, where Steinmetz was conducting research on transcultural liturgies and contemporary sacred music from 2019-2024.
Join the Global Lutheran Songbook community at: www.globallutheransongbook.org
