To think all schools should teach children the old traditional hymns

[Staringintothevoid616]

Just switching between channels and Songs of Praise came on. It was a run down of the most popular school hymns.complete with recorders It brought back many memories and how important communal singing is. It doesn’t matter what your religion is, everyone should know the most popular hymns as a way of uniting society.

You won’t always get to decide that for him. Just saying.

Hmm not sure I agree with this given some of the lyrics!

Havent RTFT but my daughter attends a culturally diverse grammar school and at the school Christmas concert the audience (parents) are invited to join in and sing carols. More than 60% of those in attendance practice other religions - they understandably look baffled to be asked to sing carols and mostly dont join in. I find it embarrassing - it’s borderline offensive. Every year I dread it and hope they don’t do it.
Singing hymns in schools in 2025 Britain is completely inappropriate and divisive. If people want to sing religious songs and pass on that legacy to their kids, they should attend the appropriate place of worship with them and sing them there.
(I say this as someone confirmed in a CofE church with 2 kids who have been choristers!)

I've gone looking for, and have found, some posts of that nature, and I wouldnt necessarily read them as being insincere.

Was the service full of people desperately shuffling from foot to foot and looking at the floor mumbling "shite, if only I'd learned the words to these in school", or was there some sort of song sheet thing with the lyrics on?

😂It was all right there in a hymn book so even the poor, school-hymn-deprived-divided-society wretches could sing along with ease. Stirring stuff. Very moving.

Some are, some aren’t. However you don’t tend to find them respected in the same way as other religions are. In a society where everyone should be equal, unfortunately certain things are not.

Calling something a banger is a positive. If a hymn is a banger, it means it is engaging, great to sing and has a great tune. Not mocking at all, just the way language has changed.

'Belting out a song' is also considered a positive - it suggests that singing the song is a powerful and enjoyable experience.

I don't think liking Nightwish or other metal music is 'dreadful'. I'm partial to Nightwish myself. Also Linkin Park, Bring me the Horizon. And Bach, Sibelius, Brahms. And Kate Bush. Many of us don't walk narrow straits in terms of musical taste.

But compulsory hymn singing in schools - still a fat hell, no.

I vaguely know the former but not the latter, so gave it a google, and it was interesting to see that it seems to be subject of some controversy among Christians (concerns that it represents a Nationalist co-option of faith).

There were a lot of military personnel at the service, sea cadets, RNLI and police officers. Perhaps that influenced the choice of hymn.

I can just picture all the children singing smack my bitch up during assembly instead of onward Christian soldiers. 😆 🤣 😂

The one we attend is outdoors and well attended by people of all ages even though it is usually raining and howling with wind in these parts. There is a strong youth contingent. I am always touched by those veterans and ex-service people with their medals - fewer each time- and the emergency services which send representatives, the local brass band and choir. The community stops, quiet and reflective for 30 minutes and remembers.

For DD, who has been to Auschwitz, it is an annual reminder that she can be a vessel for peace and supporting those whose voices are stifled. A mark of respect for those she has come from and those they were with defending our right to freedom.

Of course it isn’t only in-person attendance that matters. I meant for us it is vital, and even with that, we aren’t singing the hymns or saying the prayers.

Incidentally @NiftyBird Charles and Diana had that hymn at their wedding.

I nearly suggested Firestarter earlier!

Understandly. It seems to be one-part Hymn, one part nationist military anthem (and I can understand why that would make some church leaders uncomfortable).

FWIW, in the context of WW1, a nationalist military anthem is really quite understandable and may have afforded a lot of comfort to people very much in need of it.

😆 🤣 😂 that would be a good one too! 🤣🤣🤣

We had Abide with Me (at about 12bpm) and I can’t even recall the second one.

Welsh anthem was its usual rousing joy though.

We struggled with the latter, at least in secondary. A lot of mumbling, a full-throated Gwlad x 2, then back to mumbling.

Unless its Islam...

Yes, atheists famously deny the existence of Gods, unless it's whatever Muslims believe in and then they change their minds.

When people take the piss out of religion, they invariably mean ALL religion, Islam included. It's no less ridiculous than any of the others.

They didn’t say they were entertained.

I have no eyeroll big enough for the stupidity of this statement.

As for the rainbow - that would be physics.

I haven't mentioned a rainbow. I have a physics degree

In theory yes. This was in a mocking context. It was also a very small comment amongst the ones I have seen and the first one that came to
mind. Most were very negative.