ADA, Okla.- A new application for mobile devices will help preserve a tradition Chickasaw and Choctaw churchgoers have enjoyed for almost two centuries.
Developed by the Chickasaw Nation through the Chickasaw Press, the app will allow people to open songs on a smartphone with their own portable hymnal.
"These beautiful and powerful Choctaw hymns have been a cherished part of church services for generations," said Chickasaw Nation Governor Bill Anoatubby. "This new app will help ensure this vital aspect of our culture and religion will continue to enhance the worship experience for generations to come."
Songs expressing different aspects of spirituality were part of Chickasaw and Choctaw culture long before contact with Europeans. When protestant missionaries arrived in Choctaw lands in 1819, they began to learn the Choctaw language for preaching and composing songs for services. Choctaws who converted to Christianity also began to compose hymns in their language.
"Choctaw hymns have been passed down for generations, many of them sung on the Trail of Tears by our ancestors," Choctaw Chief Gary Batton said. "They provided comfort then and continue to be a source of strength for the Choctaw people. The app is a great way to always have them close. Yakoke to everyone who worked to make them available."
A Choctaw hymnal was first published in 1829 including 55 hymns. Other popular hyms were added to later editions. At first the app offered 18 of those most beloved Choctaw hymns, with approximately 20 new hymns being added every three months until the complete Choctaw Hymnal is available.
The Choctaw Hymnal app is available for both Apple and Android devices through the Apple Store, Google Store and Amazon, tribal officials announced.
Once downloaded, the hymnal will be available to the user even if Internet or phone services are unavailable, which is particularly useful in rural areas. Worshippers will also have the ability to enlarge words for easier reading.
The app will be faithful to the integrity of the Choctaw Hymnal, tribal officials said. And it will give parishioners the ability to sing Choctaw Hymns without carrying the printed hymnal to worship services.
