E l s t a l – An unusual musical evening was enjoyed by about 40 of the 140 attendees of the Council of the European Baptist Federation (EBF) in Elstal near Berlin: They accepted the invitation of Lina Andronoviene, a lecturer at the International Theological Seminary (IBTS) in Prague, and sang together older and newer songs from the member unions of the EBF – both in the original language and in English. Andronoviene accompanied the singers on the piano. Fifteen songs from twelve different countries were sung, also including some songs that are known in many countries in translation, for example the song “How Great Thou Art”. That song was written in 1886 in Sweden, then translated in 1907 into German by a Baltic German nobleman in Estonia. A Russian translation followed in 1912. And when an English missionary heard the Russian version in the Carpathians, in the former Czechoslovakia, he translated it into English.

Andronoviene shared at the meeting that she will be publishing a new songbook, along with General Secretary Tony Peck (Bristol/Prague). Proposals for the EBF Songbook Project can be submitted to her until March 1, 2013. To qualify, songs must be known and sung in Baptist churches. Songs should be submitted in their original language, with the English translation. The songbook is meant to help in translating these songs into other languages as well, so that they can be made accessible to as many churches as possible. Contact: lina@ibts.eu.