It's kinda weird being back there. Lots of old, familiar faces and LOTS of new ones. One thing that has struck me in the few times having gone here since coming back to this part of the world is the music. It got me thinking of a conversation I had with a guy a few months back regarding music in Church throughout history.
The early Church's music was the Psalms. Singing the Psalms was a part of the worship service in the Church. Gradually the Psalms were replaced by Hymns. No longer was Scripture sang. It was replaced by songs that were still very good, but not the Word of God. In my time, Hymns have been replaced by Choruses. However, a Hymn or two can still be heard in a Church service depending on how many of the older generation attend or not. It seems that Choruses are the stuff of younger people, my generation so to speak. We've moved from singing the exact Word of God to something now that, if it were not for being inside a Church when it's sung, could easily be mistook for some quirky love song one would hear on some "Light" station on the radio.
Now I have to admit that I do not know of many Psalms that have been put to music. There are many Hymns that I love! Some Choruses are not too bad, in my opinion, however the majority of them tend towards the mushy, touchy-feely kinda stuff that turns me off. This trend though, towards man and away from God, is something that is not limited to just music but our/my whole life.
So what is better? Singing Scripture that doesn't have a good beat to it or singing a song written by man with good guitars and drums and such behind it? Sometimes something that sounds good may not be the best. I've a lot to think about...
3 comments:
Hey Curt,
Some interesting thoughts! I would revise one thing - the early Church used hymns as well. You could think of hymns as Psalms written with the new knowledge of Jesus the Messiah (though of course not inspired as the Psalms were).
There are many hymns and choruses based on Psalms, of course, which further blurs the distinction!
Hymns (and many choruses) are rich with the Word of God, so I wouldn't say that hymns replaced the singing of Scripture, as if it were entirely a bad thing.
I have to agree with you, though, that a lot of music today is "Light" - not a lot of meaning of any kind. Singing "bless God" 100 times - what do you mean, "bless"? Who is "God"? What does this add to worship exactly?
And this goes for "choruses" and "hymns" both. Some hymns we sing are abysmal when compared with the Bible.
I was recently preparing to lead worship with a group mostly made up of Americans, so I checked to see what songs were popular in the US and Canada these days (being outside the country I don't have a clue). I admit, I didn't find as much depth as I had been hoping for. :(
I think hymns have grown a lot in popularity in the last few years. The generations after Generation X seem to be looking for more depth in worship.
There are lots of new songs coming out of the modern experience of the Church and written in the light of God's Word. Together with a rich heritage of 2000 years of godly believers writing for the Church, we do have a lot to draw from!
So... why don't we?
Hey bud. Thanks for the comment and the thoughts. Definitely a lot to chew on.
Stacey and I talked about it yesterday and were really amazed at how contentious music in the Church is. Not knowing lots about Church history I really appreciate what you've said here.
Thanks again, bud.
Contention? Really? I haven't heard any! ;)
I tend to think there is a positive and a negative side to the "discussions" over church music.
Negative, in that a lot of it is just because we're selfish and grumpy.
Positive, because music is a very powerful teaching and worship tool in the church, and so it's worth fighting for.
So can we discuss it without being selfish? *sigh* maybe not....
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