Christianity Today put together a list of 27 hymns that have been top-sellers since the 1870s. The Inventory surveyed for this essay totals 4,905 hymns, found in successive hymnal editions of the following six mainline Protestant denominations:
* Anglican (Episcopal), four editions, from 1892
* American Baptist, four editions, from 1883
* Congregational (United Church of Christ), five editions, from 1897
* Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, five editions, from 1899
* United Methodist, five editions, from 1878
* Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), five editions, from 1885
The table presents the 13 hymns that have appeared in all 28 hymnals, as well as 9 others that appear in 27 of the 28 hymnals, and 5 more that appear in 26 of the 28 hymnals:
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[…] as was John Wesley to his. At some point all of this changed. When was it ever decided that church music must be two generations old before it can be called any good? When did the church decide to no longer be the driving force of […]