More than half the items in the Holy Spirit section of Singing the Faith (numbers 369 - 400) were not in Hymns and Psalms so there is a lot of new material to explore. Remember too, that as the Holy Spirit is ever-present, hymns in this section are appropriate for any time of the year. Words can sometimes have a greater impact if they are listened to while others sing them. Several of the following hymns can be split effectively between ‘listening’ and ‘singing’ groups.

Valerie Ruddle makes some hymn suggestions.

Breathe on me, Spirit of Jesus (Tina Pownall) - 371
Simple words and a gentle tune with a change of key for verse 4. It also works well to use the music for verse 4 for verse 2, ending with an additional chord (G7) to lead back to key C for verse 3.

Come, Holy Spirit (John Bell) - 374

Use for prayers of intercession, with a few spoken words between each verse as the tune is played or hummed.

Holy Spirit, breath of heaven (Geraldine Latty) - 381

Read the words, emphasizing the final line of each verse.

Holy Spirit, gift bestower (from Church Hymnary, 4th edition) - 383

This lovely Welsh melody stands well on its own, without harmony. There is not much to learn as three of the four phrases are identical!

Holy Spirit, rain down (Russell Fragar) - 384

A brisk pace and the thumping beat of the accompaniment, especially if drums are added, gives a powerful sense of urgency.

Into a world of dark (Ann Phillips) - 387
Paul Wood’s double tune brings new life to these words.

Let every Christian pray (Fred Pratt Green) - 388
Of all Paul Leddington Wright’s tunes in this book, I think CHERRYWOOD is the best.

Like the murmur of the dove’s song (Carl Daw) - 389
A known tune with new words, best sung if half the congregation sings the first two lines, and the other half the next two lines, with everyone joining in the final line.

Spirit of God, unseen as the wind (Margaret Old) - 394
Invite two different groups to sing a verse each, with the refrain by all.

The Spirit lives to set us free (Damian Lundy) - 397
Why stand still when singing ‘walk’? Give this old favourite a bit of movement! Join hands in a circle and walk round during the refrains, turning on the spot for the final phrase ‘Walk in the light of the Lord’. Alternatively, if you are restricted by pews, step to and fro sideways as space allows, then turn on the spot.

There’s a Spirit in the air (Brian Wren) - 398
Ask the women to start the odd verses and the men the even, with everyone singing the alternating refrain.

Wind of God, dynamic Spirit (Michael Saward) - 400
Strong new words by the author of Christ triumphant and a strong tune by Arthur Sullivan – a tune sung in years gone by to Glorious things of thee are spoken (and also set in this book to Timothy Dudley-Smith's We believe in God the Father).

Come, O Lord - 759

Use the Lourdes Gospel Acclamation before the readings.

May the love of the Lord - 771

A gentle benediction for Pentecost - or any Sunday.