GS 1986 art 189 – Office Bearers

GS 1986 ARTICLE 189

Committee 4 presents:

– Agenda, VIII, B, 4 Letter from the Church at Coaldale re alternate melody for Hymn 1.
B, 5 Letter from sr. D. Jansen re melody of Hymn 1.

1. Both the Church at Coaldale and sr. D. Jansen propose an alternate melody, composed by D. Zwart, Jr., for Hymn 1.
2. The Church at Coaldale states that “both the Standing Committee for the Book of Praise and General Synod of Cloverdale of 1983 failed to reckon with a previous Synodical decision of the General Synod of Smithville of 1980, Acts, Art . 122.”
3. The wording given along with the submitted melody is the ” previous text” of the Apostles’ Creed.
4. Synod has decided (Acts, Art. 101) to “instruct the Standing Committee for the Book of Praise to insert the word ‘Christian’ in Hymn 1A if this is possible.”
5. The present Hymn 1A is the “previous text” of the Apostles’ Creed.

1. Hymn 1B is evidence that the General Synod of 1983 took the consideration of the General Synod of 1980 into account. namely, that “an alternate melody for Hymn 1 is desirable, since there still are complaints about the existing one as being too ‘gregorian’ ” (Art. 122, C, I, 4, a, p. 85). However, Hymn 1B is un suitable as a replacement of the previous Hymn 1.
2. The 1980 General Synod adopted a revised text for the Apostles’ Creed (Acts, Art . 107) which was amended by the 1983 General Synod (Acts, Art. 70) and this “new text” should be used.
3. The “new text” of the Apostles’ Creed does not appear to fit the melody composed by D. Zwart, Jr.

Synod decides.

1. to pass on this melody (cl. Observation 1) to the Standing Committee for the Book of Praise so that they may consider if it can be adapted to the ” new text” or whether a new melody can be found for this “new text;”
2. to instruct the committee to report back to the next general synod.

The recommendations are ADOPTED.