The Presbyterian Publishing Corporation is pleased to announce that the Rev. Mary Margaret “Meg” Flannagan will join their staff June 1 as hymnal marketing manager. In this new position, Meg will oversee all marketing, promotion, and communication related to the forthcoming denominational book of song, slated for a fall 2013 release.

“We are thrilled that Meg will be joining our staff to assist with the important work on this new collection of congregational song,” said David Eicher, editor for the hymnal project. “Her passion for congregational singing will help us focus our marketing plans. In addition to her many skills, Meg brings a passion and energy that will help enliven our song across the denomination.”

“I am excited to work with the people I love (the Presbyterian Church) on a project I love: our shared worship and music,” Meg said. “This is an invitation to celebrate our past and look toward our future.”

Meg comes to PPC from First Presbyterian Church in Clarksville, Tenn., where she has served as associate pastor since 2008. A native of Bristol, TN, Meg graduated from Furman University with a degree in music and received her Master’s in Divinity from Columbia Theological Seminary. Meg was awarded the Emma Gaillard Boyce Fellowship at Columbia for music and worship.  

Following seminary, Meg’s first ordained call was at First Presbyterian Church in Dunedin, Florida. She has served as a Young Adult Volunteer with the PC(USA) in Belfast, Northern Ireland, as a campus minister, church organist, music director, and counselor.

Among her first assignments will be traveling to the Montreat summer worship and music conferences in June, and the PC(USA) Big Tent event in Indianapolis June 30-July 2. A sampler of music under consideration for the next hymnal will be used in worship at both events.

The 217th General Assembly (2006) granted authorization for the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation to research, develop and produce a new hymnal. The Presbyterian Committee on Congregational Song (PCOCS) has been working since 2008 to develop the new song book. They have been relying on extensive conversation with various constituencies in the denomination, surveys, focused consultations, and other methods of gathering input and feedback. The PCOCS consists of 15 appointed voting members (two of whom were under the age of 25 when the project began), the editor, and three ex officio members appointed by the three denominational entities that are charged with responsibility for the hymnal: the Presbyterian Association of Musicians, the Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, and the Office of Theology and Worship. The Presbyterian Publishing Corporation is assuming all costs for the development and production of the hymnal, including the expenses of the PCOCS. No church offerings or funds will be used to create or produce the hymnal. The final list of hymns and songs will be presented to the General Assembly in 2012, with the hymnal on schedule to be published in fall of 2013.

For more information on the project visit the Presbyterian Hymnal Project website or join us on Facebook or Twitter.