Press release

Church services are set to be revolutionised as leading hymn book Mission Praise becomes the first major hymn book to be made available digitally. Visitors to www.missionpraise.com will be able to browse over 1800 songs from the collection and download the words, the sheet music, and the accompanying audio backing tracks. Users will be able to search for the songs they want within seconds, and create playlists for their order of service which they can save and share with others.

As churches increasingly use videos projection to display hymns on large screens for their congregations, the site will provide an invaluable resource, enabling quick and simple access to material electronically.

Mission Praise was first published to coincide with Billy Graham’s 1984 evangelical crusade, and was the first hymn book to combine traditional hymns with newer worship songs. It is one of the bestselling song and hymn books in the UK and around the world, and has sold over 2 million copies.

Collins is the first publisher in the world to offer a major hymn book in a digital form. Ian Metcalfe, Editorial Director for Collins Bibles, comments:

“Mission Praise was the first hymnbook to combine traditional hymns with newer worship songs and now it is the first hymnbook to go online, making it as easy as possible for churches to use this great collection of old and new hymns.”

Graham Kendrick, author of Shine Jesus Shine says:

 “From its beginnings in Billy Graham's Mission England evangelistic crusade, Mission Praise has become one of the core resources of today's church. I'm excited about missionpraise.com because it combines traditional hymns with modern worship songs in all the electronic formats churches nowadays are after.”

Collins plans to develop the site to create a ‘one-stop’ church resource site, eventually offering bible readings, Sunday School curriculum material, maps and diagrams from bible study books, and liturgical material alongside the hymn book downloads.

The move to offer Mission Praise electronically is the latest in a line of leading digital innovations and continued commitment from HarperCollins to reach consumers by developing tools and providing book content for a variety of platforms.