Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod

Growing interest in liturgical renewal and the Christian year in the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod is reflected in the recent publication of a new hymnal and companion volume. These publications follow, with some adaptations, the lectionary and calendar proposed by the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship in 1973. Much has changed in the understanding and practice of the Christian year in the Wisconsin Synod (WELS) since the publication of its Book of Hymns in 1917. That pocket-sized book provided the text (but no music) for two forms of the "Order of Morning Service. " Form I was an outline of the service; Form II printed the text in some detail. Both of these forms provided for only one Scripture lesson. The following year one of the hymnal's editors expressed the belief in the official magazine of the synod that "the average church-goer will thank us for not putting in more than one Scripture lesson. " A survey taken in 1987 in preparation for the publication of a new hymn…