• Singing The Faith (uk 2011)music For Your Church Services Online
• Singing The Faith (uk 2011)music For Your Church Services Catholic

Singing the Faith Plus worship planning hub. Give us your feedback. The Methodist Church Registered Charity no.

See also General Advent Suggestions.

• Songs of Faith and Praise - MP3 files only This product will provide you with a midi file, created off the music, of a one-time play through of. $49.99 Ex Tax: $49.99.
• Castle Street Methodist Church, Cambridge, UK, hosted an event called 'Singing OUR Faith, where Christians from all over East Anglia, came together to sing.
• For most Christians, communal singing—or singing with others in the congregation—is an important part of a worship service. Recognizing this, many churches have tried to.

• Online Resource Dry (Paul Somerville) An excellent song seeking refreshment from the living water and grace of Christ. It will need a little time for teaching, or ask your musicians to sing it. CCLI link to sound sample and sheet music.
• Online ResourceChristmas come close (Shirley Murray) Excellent words, sung to a simple hymnlike tune with some really beautiful images about difficult things and the hope that Christmas brings. Sheet music and lyrics.
• Online ResourceDrawing Nearer (Christopher Grundy) An excellent contemporary song about the lack of peace within the world and within our souls, and the desire for God to 'steal our hearts - like a baby'. It's great. Free sheet music. Sound sample (youtube). I would use this first by a soloist, and invite the congregation to join in as they get the hang of it.
• TiS 693 / AoV1-031 / GA212 Come as you are that's how I want you (Deidre Browne) This song is beautiful, gentle, simple, and very well known. Lyrics and sound sample. A good song to start the service.
  
• Unknown SourceAfter the ride / He was born (Robin Mann) Not easily accessible, but this has been sung at Brunswick by a soloist at our Blue Christmas service and it's really beautiful. Lyrics.
• ATW 475 / NCYC'01 / SP&P008 Come to the banquet there’s a place for you (Fay White) An excellent song by Melbourne singer and songwriter Fay White. 'Though you maybe have no money, though you maybe feel unworthy, in your strength and in your weakness you are welcome, come.' If you are celebrating communion, this might be an appropriate choice - sung in a more meditative way. Lyrics.
• AoV1-192 / NCH092 / VU433 / GA540 / PH544 / GtG676 / GC758 / GC(II)751 / G(3)858 / CP020 / URW191 / Lau676 Day is done but love unfailing (James Quinn) This is specific for evening services; I think the words for this are really beautiful, the tune very familiar (AR HYD NOS) and the image of unending Light in the midst of death and darkness is full of hope. Lyrics and sound sample.New words to old tunes
• AoV2-043 / ATFG520 / CoC40 / NCH538 / SFFS 2095 / GC(II)355 / SP&P174 / W&R223 / ZSS63 / VF035 Star-Child (Shirley Murray) A lovely lovely carol. Very easy to sing. A big favourite. This might work well to end the service. Lyrics and sample sheet music.
• ATAR606 / StS121 / FFS50 Nothing is lost on the breath of God (Colin Gibson) A beautiful song and very easy to sing even if new. 'Nothing is lost on the breath of God, nothing is lost for ever; God's breath is love, and that love will remain, holding the world for ever. No feather too light, no hair too fine, no flower too brief in its glory; no drop in the ocean, no dust in the air, but is counted and told in God's story.' Lyrics and full sheet music. Sound sample.
• Tune In / Online ResourceGod's Mercy (Sheree Anderson) A beautiful ballad of healing: 'Like the sun upon my skin, I can smile and take it in, and my wounds begin to heal, that's God's mercy'. Free downloadable song book, sound samples & lyrics.
• Taizé / CH276 / VU22 / GtG090 / ELW262 / GA283 / A&M053 / G(II)256 / GC332 / GC(II)340 / G(3)406 / CP094 / W&R166 / PfAS037B / SP28 / URW396 / Lau088 Wait for the Lord (Jacques Berthier) Wait for the Lord whose day is near, wait for the lord, keep watch, take heart. A lovely simple Taize chant. Sheet music, translations and sound samples.
• CoC28 I didn't hear the angels sing (Iris McCoy) Lovely statement of faith despite not having witnessed the Christmas events. Simple tune.
• TiS 647 / AoV2-012 / ATN 25 Comfort, comfort all my people (Robin Mann) Easy to sing, beautiful lyrics; largely a paraphrase of this passage. Chorus is “Comfort, comfort all my people, with the comfort of my word. Speak ye tender to my people, all your sins are taken away”. Lyrics, mp3 sample.
• Online Resource Creator God (Margaret Rizza) Lovely words, and a very simple tune - though I think it would be best for a soloist. Thanks for the suggestion Jo Rand. Sound sample (track 5) Lyrics.
• AoV2-024 / URW407 Holy Darkness (Dan Schutte) Beautiful words. Might want to use a cantor if this is not familiar to your congregation. Not specifically about Christmas - it's really more Advent-ish. Lyrics and sound samples.
  
• God Comes Tomorrow (Iona) Give us this year (Iona) Beautiful words seeking a more mature response to Christmas, sung to an old hymn tune (NEUMARK). The tune is not familiar to me, but is not difficult to sing, and if you have a choir, sounds particularly lovely. New words to old tunes. Lyrics.
• Online ResourceKindle a flame within our hearts (Philip Garside) A beautiful gentle song, with lyrics that can be altered for each week of Advent. Sheet music and lyrics.
• Music by Heart 59 Come light of lights (Ruth Cunningham) A lovely two-part meditative chant: 'Come light of lights into my heart. Come wisdom of spirit into my heart'. It can be sung quite slowly and meditatively, or more energetically and joyfully, depending on your context; it can also be split into a round! Two videos: A quick version and a slow version. Sound sample. Good for kids.
• Iona (Enemy of Apathy)Sing my soul when hope is sleeping (John Bell and Graham Maule) 'Sing, my soul, when hope is sleeping. Sing when faith gives way to fears; Sing to melt the ice of sadness Making way for joy through tears.' Simple to sing. Lyrics (downloads a pdf).
• Unusual SourceThis quiet night (Monique Lisbon) A beautiful gentle song, best sung by a soloist for reflection, the words pick up Mary's contemplation on her sleeping child. BUC people, there is a copy of this book in our Liturgy Library.
• AA141 / CoC44 The wind blew keen (Colin Gibson) A beautiful carol, with simple straightforward Celtic type tune. I hope this becomes popular, because it's really lovely, but also acknowledges pain and discomfort. Lyrics.
• Online Resource Come now O God when our love is forsaken (David Bjorlin) Powerful words of lament to the Finnish folk tune Lost in the Night. Lyrics. New words to old tunes.
• Taizé/ GtG814 / CP563 / PfAS062D In God alone my soul can find rest and peace / Mon Ame Se Repose (Jacques Berthier) A very beautiful chant from Taize. Music and sound samples for practice. Good for kids.
• NCH476 / CH565 / VU716 / WoV781 / LBW294 / ELW596 / GA454 / SFFS 2212 / GtG821 / HPP395 / G(II)427 / GC603 / GC(II)598 / G(3)685 / CP401 / W&R424 / Cha619 / SP296 / URW170 My life flows on in endless song / How can I keep from singing (Robert Lowry) A wonderful hymn. Lots of great recordings of this are available too. It's not so great if it is not familiar to your congregation, but once known, it is worth hanging on to. This is not known so well in Australia... Might be good to end the service on a note of hope. Lyrics & sheet music.Oldy-but-a-goody.
• Recorded musicLike Mary and Joseph (John Coleman) A song about a man whose family is broken in a Summer Christmas. Worth a look, particularly if there has been a recent break-up in your congregation. Sound sample and lyrics.
• Unusual ResourceIt is love (Scott Kearns) This beautiful song is straightforward to sing, and fits well with this service - a song of hope. Youtube and lyrics.
• Online Resource Lullaby (Christopher Grundy) Oh, this is so beautiful; this song has been used in services at hospices at longest night services, but could also be used at a Blue Christmas service. And I just wanted to list it so you could listen to it too. Youtube.
• Online Resource May you find a light (The Brilliance) Great song about searching with integrity. Thanks Jon Humphries! Youtube. Could also be used at Epiphany.

Sometimes it's good to sing a standard carol, just slowly and quietly.Some good ones:

• TiS 321 / AHB 245 Coldly the night winds winging (Morris Martin) I think this is one of the most beautiful carols in existence. Lyrics (and a very slow recording).
  
• TiS 317 / AHB 243 / NCH165 / CH316 / UMH242 / HPP95 / CP131 / CP(E) 59 / W&R210 / 82Hml-084 / StF201 / MP451 Love came down at Christmas (Christina Rossetti) Needs one small change in AHB to make it gender inclusive for people. NCH does this by replacing 'all men' with 'neighbour' in the last verse. I prefer the tune in TiS / AHB. Lyrics and odd-looking angels.Oldy-but-a-goody.
• TiS 265 / AHB 193 / AoV1-174 / NCH116 / CH273 / UMH211 / VU001 / LBW034 / ELW283 / GA285 / HPP92 / PH009 / GC317 / GC(II)323 / G(3)395 / CP089 / CP(E) 32 / W&R154 / Cha119 / 82Hml-056 / Lau112 / StF180 / MP493 O come O come Emmanuel (Psaleroilum Cantionum Catholicarum) A very well known ancient Advent carol. Most versions are pretty inclusive. Lyrics and sound sample. There are also two alternate versions (one by Sue Wickham and one by John Henson), set to the same tune, but with more modern lyrics and ideas. See the Facebook Group for lyrics. Oldy-but-a-goody.There are also some lyrics written specifically for a Blue Christmas service.
• Recorded musicBe Still (The Fray) Not specifically Christmassy, but could be very helpful. Thanks to Claire for this suggestion. Youtube. Lyrics.
• NCH131 / CH303 / UMH218 / VU44 / LBW054 / ELW282 / HPP128 / PH038 / GtG123 / GC367 / GC(II)379 / G(3)433 / CP140/1 CP(E) 56 / W&R191 / Cha153 / Srce2-289 / 82Hml-089 / Lau135 / StF205 It came upon the midnight clear (Edmund Sears) You may not have thought of this (I hadn't!), but look at verse 3, listed in the comments below (though check your hymnal as they vary a bit). Sung slowly and carefully, this could be really beautiful in the setting of this service. Thanks Adrianne for this idea. Lyrics & Sheet music.

You may also like to include a Kyrie.
Longest Night / Winter songs

• Recorded musicLongest Night (Peter Mayer) This is a lovely and very appropriate song, which you might like to play. Lyrics and source. Sound sample.
• NCH128 / CH305 / UMH221 / VU055 / ELW294 / HPP115 / PH036 / GtG144 / CP122 / CP(E) 55 / W&R196 / Srce2-275 / 82Hml-112 / Lau144 / StF204 / MP337 In the bleak midwinter (Christina Rossetti) Beautiful. Very Northern-hemispherific though. Oldy-but-a-goody.Lyrics
• TiS 321 / AHB 245 Coldly the night winds winging (Morris Martin) I think this is one of the most beautiful carols in existence. Oldy-but-a-goody.
• HiOS139 Through winter cold (Shirley Murray) Lilting Celtic tune and lyrics of hope in the depths of Winter.
• NCH434 / VU530 / HPP275 / PH292 / CP427 All beautiful the march of days (Frances Wile)
• URW418 God comes to us (Dirk Damonte) Very lovely simple song. Could be used as a chant, or at various points during the service.
• Online ResourceBehold the night (Richard Bruxvoort-Colligan) This is a simple chant 'Behold the night, there are gifts here in the dark, soon the sun returns'. Youtube.
  
• Taizé/ A&M847 / GtG294 / G(II)456 / GC644 / PfAS088A / SP330 Within Our Darkest Night (Jacques Berthier) A lovely chant of continuing hope in the face of despair. Lyrics and sound samples. Good for kids.
• NCH151 / Iona (SBL) / UMH244 / VU071 / LBW072 / ELW284 / HPP119 / PH061 / GtG142 / G(II)272 / GC361 / CP146 / W&R213 / Cha166 / 82Hml-114 / Lau132 'Twas in the moon of wintertime / Huron Carol (Jean de Brebeuf) I love this one, and it does a good job of adapting the Christmas story to a Native American context. Lyrics and history.
• NCH432 / CH234 Tis winter now; the fallen snow (Samuel Longfellow) Simple words based on Psalm 74, sung to O WALY WALY. The words are beautiful, though not completely inclusive in CH234. New words to old tunes
• VU278 / URW221 In the quiet curve of evening (Juliana Howards) Beautiful words about God's presence in the spaces of our lives. Simple tune. Lyrics
• MV071 / GC(II)339 / G(3)417 / Online ResourceWhen the wind of Winter blows (Ruth Duck) This is very beautiful, and can be used either as a choral work (online version) or as a congregational song (hymnals). Best if you can teach the two-part refrain to the congregation; you could also use a soloist for the verses. Sheet music and sound samples.

Over to you... Do you have some ideas that you might be using in a similar service this year?

• Chris BolingerCrosswalk.com Contributing Writer
• 202011 Jun

For most Christians, communal singing—or singing with others in the congregation—is an important part of a worship service.

Recognizing this, many churches have tried to include hymns or worship songs in their online services. As these churches transition back to in-person services, however, they are reluctant to include congregational singing in those services.

The reason is simple: congregational singing spreads coronavirus.

Or does it? And, if so, how much?

March: Outbreaks in Choirs

Several high-profile coronavirus outbreaks occurred at choir practices and performances in March.

After a rehearsal on February 25, the 130-member Amsterdam Mixed Choir recorded the first official COVID-19 infection in The Netherlands. At the March 3 rehearsal, several sick members sat out. A March 7 dress rehearsal for a concert saw 15 singers sick, with many hoping to feel better in time for the concert. That concert, a performance of Bach’s St. John’s Passion for an audience of 1,000 in the Concertgebouw, went well, but 30 members sat out. In the ensuing month, 102 choir members contracted COVID-19. One died, as did three partners of choir members.

In Germany, five days after the March 9 rehearsal of the Berlin Cathedral Choir, one of the ensemble's 80 singers contacted the choir director to say that she had tested positive for COVID-19. Within two weeks, about 30 members had tested positive, and another 30, plus the director, were showing symptoms.

On March 10, half of the 122 members of the Skagit Valley Chorale attended a two-and-a-half hour choir practice at a Presbyterian church building in Mount Vernon, Washington. A greeter offered hand sanitizer at the door. Singers refrained from the usual hugs and handshakes, but according to a CDC report, they sat close to each other during the rehearsal, which was held in a room roughly the size of a volleyball court. Some shared snacks, such as mandarin oranges, and others stacked chairs at the end of practice. Unbeknownst to anyone, one person at the practice was infected and symptomatic. Of those who attended practice, 53 became infected (33 confirmed and 20 probable). Three were hospitalized, and two died.

No one is sure how much of the coronavirus spread at these choir practices was due to infected choir members singing. Would social distancing, or having the singers at least six feet apart, have helped slow or even stifle the spread? That depends on how the virus is spread.

How Coronavirus Spreads

After several months of intensive research worldwide, scientists are beginning to understand how the so-called “novel coronavirus” (2019-nCoV, or SARS-COV-2) and the disease that it causes (COVID-19) spread. That spread is greatest where there is close contact and crowding in closed spaces, says Muge Cevik, a virologist at the University of St. Andrews in the United Kingdom, who has been collecting and reviewing research papers, primarily from China, Singapore, and Taiwan.

The average infected individual transmits the virus to between two and three others. But that’s an average. In the real world, most infected people transmit the disease to one or no others, while a minority infect many others in so-called super-spreading events. In fact, 9 percent of infected people are responsible for 80 percent of the transmissions.

According to Cevik, the disease apparently is very infectious only for a short window, and perhaps only in some cases. Infected people are most infectious right around the onset of symptoms, as well as a couple of days before and after. If someone in that stage spends concentrated time with others in a confined space, many of those people probably will get sick.

Length of exposure matters as much as distance from other people. People passing by you in a supermarket are unlikely to infect you. Outdoor environments appear much safer as well. In one study, which followed hundreds of cases, all but one transmission occurred indoors.

Guidance on the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) website reflects these research findings. “COVID-19 is thought to spread mainly through close contact from person-to-person,” it says. Transmission is believed to be when “respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks…land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly [are] inhaled into the lungs.”

The modifier “possibly” reflects on ongoing debate about whether or not coronavirus is transmitted through the air and inhaled.

Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/Design Pics

The Potential Role of Aerosols

A person who is infected with a respiratory virus expels two types of droplets that may contain the virus. Larger droplets, called respiratory droplets, are greater than five micrometers (5 μm) in diameter and are not thought to be inhaled by others. Smaller droplets (less than 5 μm), called droplet nuclei or aerosols, travel further, stay airborne longer, and can be inhaled by others.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) website, coronavirus transmission through respiratory droplets occurs when:

• A healthy person is within a few feet of an infected person
• The infected person emits infective respiratory droplets
• Those droplets enter the mouth, nose, or eyes of the healthy person

Can someone get coronavirus via airborne transmission, or by inhaling aerosols from an infected person? The WHO maintains that, outside of a few hospital procedures (such as endotracheal intubation, bronchoscopy, and open suctioning), coronavirus is not transmitted through aerosols. In an analysis of 75,465 COVID-19 cases in China, no airborne transmission was reported.

Dr. Benedetta Allegranzi, WHO technical lead of infection prevention and control, wrote in a May 31 email that, despite theories based on lab simulations, “there is no evidence of transmission of the virus as an airborne pathogen.” A group of experts that reviews evidence with WHO weekly has “not judged the existing evidence sufficiently convincing to consider airborne transmission as having an important role in COVID-19 spread.”

Lidia Morawska, an aerosol researcher in Australia, disagrees. She says that WHO’s conclusions stem from a belief that aerosols travel only an arm’s length in the air. The CDC report on the Skagit Valley Chorale states that the “act of singing, itself, might have contributed to transmission through emission of aerosols, which is affected by loudness of vocalization.”

A Lack of Research on Singing

The CDC report refers to a 2019 scientific study that examined aerosol emissions not from singing but from talking. In addition to finding that the rate of aerosol emission is positively correlated with the loudness (amplitude) of vocalization, researchers found that a small fraction of individuals are “speech superemitters,” consistently releasing an order of magnitude more particles than their peers and potentially acting as disease superspreaders.

Does singing act like speech? Few studies have been done. A commonly cited one investigated the potential role of singing in spreading tuberculosis. That study found that singing produced 39% as many droplets as talking and 10% as many droplets as coughing. After 30 minutes, more singing droplets than talking droplets were still airborne (in a confined space, a box).

That study was conducted in 1968. Fortunately, the current pandemic has spurred more studies into singing and its role in spreading viruses.

In early May, two researchers at the Bundeswehr University in Munich published a paper entitled “Singing in choirs and making music with wind instruments ‒ Is that safe during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic?” Their study showed that singing disturbs air flow only up to 1.6 feet in front of the person. The researchers even made a video to present their findings.

Singing The Faith (uk 2011)music For Your Church Services Online

After conducting a similar study with similar results, Freiburg University's Institute for Performing Arts Medicine published guidelines for singing, including limiting the number of people in the room, limiting the length of rehearsals, staying two meters apart, keeping rooms ventilated, screening choir members, and wearing masks. Institute head Bernhard Richter gave one caveat: the researchers did not make any aerosol measurements.

'This is a work in progress,' he said. 'Of course singers want clear statements, black and white, but then you have to say, maybe we don't know yet.'

Singing in Church: Germany vs. The U.S.

When Germany locked down in mid-March, religious services were banned. As restrictions began to ease in late April, Angela Merkel met with leaders of the country’s 16 states to coordinate a nationwide set of rules, including rules to govern worship services.

Communal singing proved to be a sticking point in the discussions, with leaders initially proposing a nationwide ban. “If the distance rules are abided by, there is no reason why singing should be refrained from altogether,” the German Bishops Conference said in its own position paper. A spokesman added, “We believe quiet singing and praying should be possible.”

Singing The Faith (uk 2011)music For Your Church Services Catholic

In the end, the German federal government did not impose a nationwide ban but stated that singing should be avoided 'because of the increased production of potentially infectious droplets, which can be spread over greater distances'. Several German states have banned all singing from services.

In the U.S., the CDC’s “Interim Guidance for Communities of Faith” initially included this recommendation: “Consider suspending or at least decreasing use of a choir/musical ensembles and congregant singing, chanting, or reciting during services or other programming, if appropriate within the faith tradition. The act of singing may contribute to transmission of COVID-19, possibly through emission of aerosols.”

That recommendation was removed on the current guidance page, as were recommendations on eliminating lines without six feet between attendees, encouraging the use of cloth face coverings, adding additional services, using video streaming or drive-in options for services and other gatherings, and having clergy hold virtual visits instead of in-home and in-hospital visits.

So, for now, the debate about the safety of worship singing will continue, in the U.S. and around the world.

Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/Prostock-Studio

Chris Bolinger is the author of Daily Strength for Men, a 365-day daily devotional from BroadStreet Publishing. The book is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Christian Book Distributors, DailyStrengthForMen.com, and on the Inspirational Reading rack at many supermarkets, drug stores, gas stations, and gift shops.