The People's Hymnal

The People’s Hymnal: Voice Book (2nd edition) is a historic Roman Catholic hymnal published in 1961 by the World Library of Sacred Music in Cincinnati, Ohio. Released just before the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), this collection reflects the mid-20th-century Liturgical Movement's push to increase congregational singing. It organized traditional hymns specifically to fit the parts of the standard Latin Mass, providing selections for the Entrance, Offertory, Communion, and Closing rites, as well as devotions like Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. As the Catholic Church transitioned into using vernacular English for worship, this 1961 hymnal served as a crucial stepping stone. It laid the structural groundwork for its famous successor, the People’s Mass Book (1964), which became one of the first widely adopted vernacular hymnals in the United States. Today, original copies of the 1961 edition are preserved as rare liturgical artifacts, with full song indexes cataloged on historical music databases like Hymnary.org.

Originally published 1961