Can I Use a Projector and Keep My Hymnal, Too?

Kyle,

We use projected text and hymnal as well for the same reasons. I have experienced first hand the benefits you detailed.

Mike Harding

Irritation at drop down screens … often noisy on the roll-up

But I like the hymns projected. Easier on the eyes (as the article noted)

Some people enjoy having reading access to hymnals.

We use both, but we simply leave the screen down all the time - it’s offset, so the pulpit is front and center and the screen is off to the right.

Does anyone else actually roll the screen up? There’s also machines that will do it very quietly, but I don’t know about cost…some churches I’ve seen had them and you could hardly tell that they were being wound back into place.

The delight that thrilled my soul this past Sunday as my 6 year old who is just learning to read stood next to me on the front row of the church building (I sit there with my sons during the music before I go up to preach) eyes lifted upwards to the wall where the hymn was being displayed…and he was singing the words. He was reading them and singing loudly. He cannot read the hymnbook because of the difference between stanzas and texts, he gets lost from line to line. I know that he will grow out of this and be able to use a hymnbook. But tears began to run down my cheeks and I silently prayed as we sang that God would implant the words of that hymn deep into the heart of my son. I am thankful we project the lyrics on the wall.

We also keep the hymnal and have the numbers on the wall. I can attest to some things being said in this article. One of them being the comment from the seniors in our church. They have said that as they got older it was harder to focus on the stanzas in the hymnbooks.

Another quick thought. If we are commanded to sing to one another songs, hymns and spiritual songs. And the idea of congregational singing is everyone singing. Can there not be a great benefit to everyone looking at the same screen with the same words in the same timing? Could projected words increase congregational participation and unity rather than everyone doing his own personal devotions in the hymnbook (I don’t mean that in a snarky way). But if you want unity, doesn’t it make sense to use the same “book”?

I really like using both. I want to encourage musical literacy by having the notation there, but also help people look up and look around them while singing.

I really like one thing I heard Matt Chandler (A29 pastor) said, I believe in a 9Marks interview. He said that when he began to pastor his church he got rid of hymnals, but found it was a mistake. He said that for many in the congregation every Christ exalting, congregational singing, worship experience that person had been called into question because he took their hymnal away. It was insulting to the older folks. Do both.

I lead the congregational singing in our church. We had revival last week and it was great to let the “team” lead the singing as well….I liked getting a break for a few services! When I am leading the congregation, I will sing the melody for the sake of actually leading everyone. However, as I sat among the congregation last week, I wanted to sing a part. I found that I was concentrating more on the part than I was the words! Unless I know the part well enough (I know this is just natural to some people), I could not take my focus off of the notes enough to understand the text. It was an eye opener to me. I once again began to sing the melody so I could concentrate more on what I was singing and Who I was singing to! Even though I love the harmony, I don’t care at all about having the song (including the notes) in hard copy form if some are only going to concentrate on singing a part. Perhaps I am too musically illiterate to do both at the same time (the musical version of chewing gum and walking?!) but I would think this would be the same with many other people as well. For me, I love the idea of having the text on the screen only but am not opposed to the hard copy form as well.

Ricky

Screens get their heads and voices out of a book and into a communal worship experience. I love that transitions can be more seamless and natural.