During the summer our congregation will make the transition from the green LBW Hymnal to the new cranberry ELW hymnal. Evangelical Lutheran Worship has many new, wonderful hymns and, of course, many old favorites. This new hymnal will replace the green and the blue hymnals currently in the pews. You can read more about our new worship book below. The information is provided by the ELCA.
A Brief History
of our new worship resource
In response to a growing need for a new generation of worship resources, a new primary worship book for the ELCA and ELCIC has been developed, called Evangelical Lutheran Worship. With help from thousands of people through the Renewing Worship project, this new family of resources focuses on supporting all congregations and worshiping communities. The motivation was, and continues to be, the mission of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Renewing Worship project, begun in the year 2000, was built around a series of provisional resources that congregations everywhere were encouraged to use and evaluate. Feedback from thousands of Lutheran congregations has guided every aspect of Evangelical Lutheran Worship. On this solid foundation, the 2005 ELCA and ELCIC national gatherings strongly affirmed moving forward with Evangelical Lutheran Worship as a faithful next step for worship in our church.
Evangelical Lutheran Worship will serve as the centerpiece of an unfolding family of new worship resources grounding us in a living tradition. But why is it published as a book, in this day and age? There are many reasons that a book is still valuable today:
* Believers have access to a single, complete resource for themselves—a hallmark of our church since the time of Luther
* Everyone can explore an entire treasury in one place—prayers, services, psalms, and songs, even the catechism
* This common treasury of diverse expressions reminds us that in Jesus Christ we are held together when we worship
* Evangelical Lutheran Worship is designed to promote the unity we share rather than emphasizing uniformity
* Used over and over again, books reflect good stewardship of creation
A worship book is still a valuable and cherished companion, allowing us to explore on our own and to be aware of the full riches of our church.
