623. Sevenfold Amen
First appeared in A Choir-book for the Office of Holy Communion, 1873, edited by Stainer.
For comments on John Stainer see [Hymn 111].
NOTE ON THE USE OF “AMEN”
In the Jewish and early Christian Church, the people said “Amen” after prayers were offered. Cf. I Cor. 14:16. In so doing, they gave a deliberate endorsement to what had been said or sung. The “Amen,” meaning “so be it,” should be sung with conviction, not thoughtlessly or half-heartedly, as if what went before is of doubtful importance.
The settings given here are principally for use by the choir after the pastoral prayer or at the close of a service, in churches where such musical elaboration is practiced.
The use of “Amen” after a hymn is optional. If sung well, it serves as a satisfying concluding formula. Its use is entirely appropriate only with those hymns which are prayer, praise, or otherwise addressed to God.
The first instance of its use at the end of a hymn is in a curious hymn book entitled, Seven Sobs of a Sorrowful Soul for Sinne, published in England in 1583. During the last century most editors of hymnals have adopted the custom of adding the “Amen” to all hymns. The Songs of Praise, published in England in 1933, is a notable exception.