The Monday Morning Quarterback
Yesterday I preached on the topic of music: "Where Is God in Music?" I enjoyed doing the research on this topic and borrowed primarily from two sources: Mark Noll, professor of history at Notre Dame University and Jeremie Begbie, honorary professor of history at the University of St. Andrews; associate principal of Ridley Hall, Cambridge; and an affiliated lecturer in the faculty of divinity at University of Cambridge.
In my sermon I noted that how important music is to people. There is no one, I think, that would say he or she does not like music. There are people who say they can't sing and don't like singing, but they do not deny the pleasure they take in listening to music.
Furthermore, music is important to worship. I have a difficult time imagining a worship service with no music. Frankly, I wouldn't want to attend regular worship without music. Music provides an excellent medium to both thank and praise God, and it is a powerful force for binding people together. Think of those involved in the Civil Rights movement and "We Shall Overcome."
However, music has the power to divide as well. Think of the current worship wars where contemporary praise music is set against more traditional sacred music. Organ vs. drums. On a broader scale, it is hard to sing songs and like them when the songs are from a very different culture. The hymns of Christians from other cultures can sound jarring to our ears, and our hymns can sound jarring to theirs.
In the "in between times" between Christ's first coming and his second coming, what theologians refer to as the "already and not yet," we need to display at least three characteristics in our attempt to bridge the cultural divides in general and with music in particular. We need 1) humility; 2) openness to broaden our perspectives and experiment with unfamiliar music; and 3) love. Colossians 3:14 reads, "Above all, clothe yourselves with love which binds everything together in perfect harmony." Note that the verse itself includes a musical metaphor.
I ended my sermon with a quotation from church historian Mark Noll in his article, "Praise the Lord," in the November/December issue of Books & Culture. He recontextualizes Psalm 150:3-6:
In my sermon I noted that how important music is to people. There is no one, I think, that would say he or she does not like music. There are people who say they can't sing and don't like singing, but they do not deny the pleasure they take in listening to music.
Furthermore, music is important to worship. I have a difficult time imagining a worship service with no music. Frankly, I wouldn't want to attend regular worship without music. Music provides an excellent medium to both thank and praise God, and it is a powerful force for binding people together. Think of those involved in the Civil Rights movement and "We Shall Overcome."
However, music has the power to divide as well. Think of the current worship wars where contemporary praise music is set against more traditional sacred music. Organ vs. drums. On a broader scale, it is hard to sing songs and like them when the songs are from a very different culture. The hymns of Christians from other cultures can sound jarring to our ears, and our hymns can sound jarring to theirs.
In the "in between times" between Christ's first coming and his second coming, what theologians refer to as the "already and not yet," we need to display at least three characteristics in our attempt to bridge the cultural divides in general and with music in particular. We need 1) humility; 2) openness to broaden our perspectives and experiment with unfamiliar music; and 3) love. Colossians 3:14 reads, "Above all, clothe yourselves with love which binds everything together in perfect harmony." Note that the verse itself includes a musical metaphor.
I ended my sermon with a quotation from church historian Mark Noll in his article, "Praise the Lord," in the November/December issue of Books & Culture. He recontextualizes Psalm 150:3-6:
“Praise him with syncopation and on the beat. Praise him with 5-tone (the Thai xylophone), 12-tone (most Western music), 24-tones (Arab music), and all scales in between. Praise him a cappella, with orchestra, and with drum set. Praise him with works of supernal intelligence and greatest simplification. Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Together” (17).
posted by UCC Medfield at 9:53 AM
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