Jean de Brebeuf Hymnal availability in Europe?
  • probe
    Posts: 62
    I searched for it on Amazon UK and it could not deliver to an address in Ireland because it is supplied by Amazon US. Does anyone on our side of the pond know if it is available in the UK or Ireland or nearby?
  • a_f_hawkins
    Posts: 3,627
    Same result for Isle of Man.
  • DL
    Posts: 85
    Seems to be possible in GB (England at any rate).
  • chonakchonak
    Posts: 9,090
    Have you tried the publisher?
    https://sophiainstitute.com/product-category/books/bibles-and-missals/
  • PaxMelodious
    Posts: 469
    Can you just order from Amazon.com? It's telling me that it will deliver to Ireland.
    Thanked by 2probe Chrism
  • probe
    Posts: 62
    Thank you @PaxMelodius, I had just automatically tried .co.uk.amazon.com offers €39.72 including postage. The publisher total is $122.89, I guess they're not used to exporting!
  • RichardGress
    Posts: 2
    I did research on that hymnal for Yale. Warning before you invest: It's useless for the pews, but a great study hymnal for the shelf at home.
    Thanked by 2wspinnen Verbum_Gloriae
  • MatthewRoth
    Posts: 3,211
    What prompted that conclusion if I may ask?
  • AbbysmumAbbysmum
    Posts: 105
    What prompted that conclusion if I may ask?


    I have the same conclusion. It's a resource, but not friendly for a parish. Why? Repeats too much (why do we need 14 different versions of the same hymn?), the format is not friendly (too many words without music), lots of extraneous material in the middle. As a pew hymnal, we need something curated, but it sometimes feels like the Brebeuf is like a study project, presenting too many options. The paradox of choice.

    The whole songs-without-music thing was a dealbreaker for us, and we went with St. Michael's hymnal instead. It also lacks service music, which some parishes/individuals need.

    Things it does well: it has some beautiful and interesting harmonizations. It's a great resource when looking for more rare material or alternate translations. The illustrations etc are lovely.
    Thanked by 6probe tomjaw OMagnumMysterium davido wspinnen Verbum_Gloriae
  • smvanroodesmvanroode
    Posts: 1,089
    I do have it, but I can’t recall how it got delivered to the Netherlands…

    I share the same criticism. It has some beautiful hymn melodies, new or unknown. I love those. But its presentation doesn’t really fit with an intended use in the pews. The cover looks thumbed quite quickly. There are so many additional texts and hymns without music.

    Also, from an editorial point of view (sorry, that’s my job), a lot of odd choices have been made. Why is the index in the middle? Why the divide between hymns in the front (with so many repetitions of the same texts) and in the back? Why are the acknowledgements of sources rendered inconsistently? It just doesn’t follow normal standards.

    Putting together a hymnal is an art in itself. I recommend reading these two articles/documents about the genesis of the Liedboek (Dutch) and Gotteslob (German), and see how much work goes into just developing a plan and a vision:

    Nienke van Andel, Martin J. M. Hoondert and Marcel Barnard, ‘Images of a Hymnal: Criteria for selecting songs derived from constructed meaning of a hymnal’. Jahrbuch für Liturgik und Hymnologie 53 (2014), pp. 143-158
    Winfried Vogel, Redaktionsbericht zum Katholischen Gebet- und Gesangbuch Gotteslob. Deutsches Liturgisches Institut, Trier, 2025
    Thanked by 5probe tomjaw davido Verbum_Gloriae Abbysmum
  • wspinnenwspinnen
    Posts: 32
    It's a resource, but not friendly for a parish.

    I've been skeptical of this hymnal since it came out. It's consoling to know I'm not the only one.
    Thanked by 1AgnusDei1989
  • TCJ
    Posts: 1,034
    I have a copy which is nice as a reference. It's not something I would put in the pews for pretty much the same reasons listed above.
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