Since the church hymn is lyrical poetry, it should be beautiful. But the beauty of the church hymn consists in what? It must be emphasized that this beauty is not something applied to the church hymn from without, but this beauty grows up naturally and spontaneously out of the subject which is to be celebrated in song. This beauty is nothing else than the faithful reflection, the telling concrete revelation of its inner harmony, nobility and sublimity. The communion of the congregation with God through Jesus Christ, which seeks concrete expression in the church hymn, is in itself the highest, the most noble, and the most harmonious of all the realities of human life. When this divine communion seeks expression in the church hymn, then the poetical art to be employed must be such as will adequately express and convey the emotions and experiences peculiar to this communion. The inner harmony of the matter should reveal itself in the poetical form of presentation as outer harmony, as beauty. The entire tone of the church hymn will then become, by an inner necessity, graceful, elevated, sublime. It is to be noted that this hymnic beauty is modified according to the specific character of the hymn. In the church hymn proper, like “Ein’ feste Burg,” this hymnic beauty is more elevated, majestic, sublime. In the didactic or doctrinal hymn, it is characterized by the purity, positiveness, and sonorousness of the faithful testimony of truth. In the lyrical church hymn in a restricted sense, it is more colored by subjective qualities such as fervor, sincerity, and affection. The lyrical beauty of the church hymn is free from ostentation; it is distinguished by simplicity and naturalness. This simplicity of expression is a poetical as well as a congregational requirement. Also, the entire presentation of the subject must bear the impress of spontaneity, of freshness. The church hymn should not present abstract ideas, reflective thought, conceptions, and definitions; but, instead, it should present to the eyes of the heart living pictures, concrete realities; just as the Biblical presentation, which the church hymn must follow, and Christianity itself, which the church hymn must reflect, pre-eminently possess this character of concrete and vital reality.