In Martin Luther’s day, no one sang in church. Correction: no one sitting in the pews sang. Singing and praising God was restricted to the priests. Congregational worship is a Reformational concept that we take for granted today, though perhaps not for much longer. As church worship services become more and more about the mesmerizing lightContinue reading “Give Music Back to the People”
Tag Archives: music
“Do You Hear the People Sing?”
A couple of weeks ago, I sat in our living room with a couple of church members after dinner. As we talked, I asked them, “Why don’t people sing during our church service?” It was an honest question. What ensued was a long discussion about the role of music in the church and a rehashingContinue reading ““Do You Hear the People Sing?””
Since When Did Musicians Become “Recording Artists”?
Music has changed drastically in the last hundred years from a communal experience to an intensely private one. How did this happen? Why did this happen? What does it have to do with our music in the church? It all began in 1877 with Edison’s invention of the phonograph. This machine was the push thatContinue reading “Since When Did Musicians Become “Recording Artists”?”
The Lower Lights: A Hymn Revival, Vol. 2
Perhaps I am guilty of nostalgia, but there’s something about the old tent meetings under the open starry sky, the flickering of lanterns, and the ebbs and flows of a fire and brimstone preacher’s call for sinners to repent that really gets me going. The 42 member group The Lower Lights have put out aContinue reading “The Lower Lights: A Hymn Revival, Vol. 2”