Hymns on Sunday

The season of Advent begins today – a time of waiting and expectation leading up to Christmas. Sing along to favourite Advent hymns including O come, Emmanuel and Come, thou long-expected Jesus. Read more Audio

Christ the King Sunday is a 20th century addition to the church calendar, introduced by Pope Pius XI in the 1920s. We're marking it today with hymns including Rejoice! the Lord is King and Lord,… Read more Audio

Marking World Day of the Poor in Hymns on Sunday this week. Pope Francis established this day in the Catholic liturgical calendar in 2017 - a Sunday set aside to reflect on how poverty is at the very… Read more Audio

We're featuring evening hymns this week, there's a setting of Psalm 23 (probably the most frequently set of all the psalm), and a hymn that nearly ended up in little pieces in the rubbish bin. Read more Audio

Marking the Feast of All Saints today with William Walsham How's great hymn For All the Saints. Read more Audio

Hymns by Charles Wesley feature in this week's programme. Nicknamed 'the Bard of Methodism', he wrote thousands of hymns throughout his life. Read more Audio

Marking World Mission Sunday this week with hymns including We have a gospel to proclaim, and Who’ll be a witness for my Lord. Read more Audio

An atmospheric recording of Psalm 23 this week, along with some hymns given 'the Vaughan Williams touch'. The English composer (born on 12 October 1872 in the village of Down Ampney) was music editor… Read more Audio

Marking the end of the Season of Creation in this week's programme, along with the Feast Day of St Francis of Assisi (patron saint of ecology). Read more Audio

“Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee”, writes Reginald Heber in his well-loved hymn, Holy, holy, holy. Sing along in this week’s programme. Read more Audio

New Zealand hymn writer Shirley Erena Murray’s life and work is celebrated in a new biography by Anne Manchester: Peace is Her Song. You can hear hymns by Shirley Murray in this week’s programme. Read more Audio

Celebrate Te Wiki o te Reo Māori this week with a selection of hymns from Hīmene Māori - a project to document, record, and publish Māori hymns and waiata. Read more Audio