Standing Committee for the Publication of the Book of Praise (SCBP)

General Synod Aldergrove 2025 gave the Standing Committee for the Publication of the Book of Praise (SCBP) the following mandates:

Article 157

To maintain good contact with the Standing Committee for the Australian Book of Praise;
To continue maintaining its archives (at CRTS) and website: www.bookofpraise.ca;
To maintain its corporate status for the purpose of protecting the interests of the Canadian Reformed Churches in matters concerning the Book of Praise;
To appoint one of its members to validate and submit to the treasurer of the General Fund all expenses being submitted for committee work;
To submit its report to the churches no later than six (6) months prior to the convening of the next general synod.

Article 159

To foster awareness of the Book of Praise among others in the English-speaking world;
To publish as many of the songs in the Book of Praise as possible on the federational websites (www.canrc.org, and www.bookofpraise.ca), noting:
1. This should include all non-copyrighted songs, all songs for which the SCBP holds copyright, and all songs the SCBP can gain permission to publish freely and broadly;
2. This may require negotiations with and financial compensation for the publisher, Premier Printing
To investigate the possibility of adding the Book of Praise to www.hymnary.org and return to the next general synod with a recommendation.

Article 160

To publish an authorized augment that includes the melody and text of the approved alternate psalms and additional hymns, along with approved changes to Hymns 1, 55, and 58. Approved alternate psalms or additional hymns that are dependent on four-part harmony should be published in four-part harmony;
To produce digital versions of the Book of Praise and the authorized augment with full notations (including all additions and modifications approved by GS 2025) and make these available to the churches as soon as possible;
To negotiate a fair agreement with the publisher to compensate them for the costs of layout and publication (including existing stock) as soon as possible and make available a digital version of the royalty-free content of our psalms and hymns for anyone to use as an open-souce document, free of charge and also make available a lower-cost digital version of the entire Book of Praise;
To renew copyrights where necessary;
To remind the churches of their obligations with a view to copyright law and provide clear instructions as to how these obligations might be met.

Article 162

To submit as an appendix in their report to the next general synod a full list of corrigenda to the current printed version of the Book of Praise.

Article 182

To publish an authorized augment that includes the melody and text of the approved alternate psalms and additional hymns, along with approved changes to Hymns 1, 55, and 58. Approved alternate psalms or additional hymns that are dependent on four-part harmony should be published in four-part harmony. Any liturgical forms updated by GS 2025 should also be includded;
To review and evaluate the letter given to them by GS 2022 from the Ancaster CanRC regarding Hymn 1;
To evaluate the new wording proposed for Alternate Psalm 149 and make a recommendation to the next general synod. The current text should be included in the authorized augment. If the next general synod approves new wording, it may be included in the next complete version of the Book of Praise;
To review the structure of the Book of Praise, especially the hymn section, and propose a structure (including updated hymn numbering) to the next general synod.

Documents