Music and Worship
By George “Chip” Hammond
Church historian Bruce Shelley has noted that one of the things that made Christianity spread so successfully from the period of the apostles into the early medieval period is that the Christian faith carried with it no culture, but adapted itself to the cultures to which it came. Judaism was (and is) open to converts, but to convert one must adopt the Hebrew language and other social customs even beyond those required by the law of Moses. Islam likewise carries a culture with it, the Arabic language being one of its many requirements. It is for this reason that the early spread of Islam succeeded only through violence and conquest.
But while Christianity has an essential message and moral ethic, it carried no culture with it. It was not necessary, for example, to adopt the Greek language or any other language to become a Christian. Consequently, early expressions of Christian communities in their worship came to look very different in India and north Africa than they did in the areas around Greece, which in turn looked different from the forms of expression found in the Christian communities of Palestine.
The principle that Christianity would carry a message and a moral ethic but not a distinct culture was established at the Jerusalem Council (Acts 15). The outworking of this was immediate. Jesus had instituted the ordinance we call the Lord’s Supper at a Passover. The bread he used was unleavened bread (Greek: azumos). As we would expect, the Jewish followers of Jesus observed the Lord’s Supper with azumos, unleavened bread. But the gentiles, not observant of the law of Moses, and celebrating the Supper without first adopting the Passover, observed the Supper with artos, leavened bread (1 Corinthians 10 and 11). Although Paul undoubtedly knew that Jesus instituted the Supper with azumos, when engaging with gentile Christians he referred to it as artos (1 Corinthians 11:23) because that’s what the church in Corinth was familiar with and what they used. The “accident” (to use a theological term) of the bread didn’t matter, the “essence” of it being bread and what it represented and conveyed is what mattered.
Today you will find congregations in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church using either azumos or artos. Sometimes the bread itself becomes “theologized.” The pastor might talk about the unleavened bread symbolizing the sinlessness of Christ; or conversely about the leavened bread representing Christ who bore our sin for us. This is no problem if the “theologizing” is understood as using the given practice of a church as a convenient metaphor. It would become a problem if a church were to begin to confuse its customary practice with principle and use its particular “theologizing” about the bread to claim that its practice was the “right” one, and using any other kind of bread was “wrong.” To do so would be to sin by bringing schism and division.
The “Accident” of Music
Music is an interesting component of worship. In his book Taking Note of Music, musician and seminary professor William Edgar points out that the creation of music as it is presented in the Bible is unique when compared to the Ancient Near Eastern and Greek origin-of-music myths. In those stories, music is the creation of the gods given to human beings. In the Bible, however, music has its origin with human beings (Genesis 4:21).
Significant to note is that music finds its source not merely with humans but specifically with Jubal, who is a son of Cain, who in turn is among the “seed of the serpent” (Genesis 3:14-15). This fact caused the early church fathers to be highly suspicious of music. Some believed that there should be no music at all in the church because of its origins. Others conceded that music should be a part of worship but were uniform in forbidding the use of instruments (since Jubal was “the father of those who play lyre and pipe”).
The point of the Bible’s statement regarding the origin of music, however, is surely not that it is “godless,” but that it is something shared by all humanity, whatever their spiritual condition. The negative views of the early fathers regarding music in worship are contradicted by the Bible’s own prescriptions for worship, which include singing (as indicated by the direction to use certain tunes, Psalm 9, 22, 45, 56. 57, 58, 59, 60, 69, 75, 80) as well as direction for musical instruments (Psalm 33, 57, 71, 81, 92, 108, 144, 150). Nor is music limited to the Old Testament. Music for New Testament worship is alluded to in the Bible (1 Corinthians 14:15, Ephesians 5:19, Colossians 3:16, James 5:13). Furthermore, music is a part of the worship of heaven (Revelation 5:9, 14:3, 15:3), including instrumental music (Revelation 5:8, 14:2, 15:2). In fact, the book of Revelation speaks of a coming day when music will be heard in the New Jerusalem but will disappear from “Babylon” (Revelation 18:22).
It is noteworthy that while the words of the Psalms are preserved which show that these are unquestionably musical compositions, the music itself is not preserved. There is musical allusion, but no musical notation. This is because while the words are God’s Word, the music is a purely human expression. This in turn tells us something about our worship: while God’s Word guides us in our worship and circumscribes its boundaries, it is not God worshiping himself through human automatons. It is rather the people’s worship and adoration of God expressed through means that are meaningful to them in using the gifts that they bring.
Consequently, musical expression in the church’s worship changes by location and throughout time. The music of Christian communities that developed in places such as India and Africa prior to European missions does not sound at all like the music of 18th century European hymnody. Western music too has changed over time. The organ, which was once a banned instrument in worship due to its association with gladiatorial games, eventually became (for a time) the favored church instrument.
The Introduction of Modern Musical Forms
Early on, the church practiced “plain song,” the exercise of all voices singing in unison (though sometimes at different octaves) in flowing, free-form meter. As harmony and rhythm (in the West) were developed in the late medieval period, Martin Luther and the German reformers became early adopters of the new style for use in worship.
The chorale originated when Luther translated sacred songs from Latin into vernacular German, and to the horror of the Roman traditionalists wrote four parts (soprano-alto-tenor-bass) for it, along with rhythmic notation. Luther did this because he thought the new form was beautiful and better reflected the beauty of God than the traditional plain song. He also noted that singing in parts made it easier for some members of the congregation. The introduction of this musical novelty was vindicated in that there was more vigorous participation in singing on the part of the congregation. As time progressed other new hymns were written. Melodies and musical forms were borrowed partly from sacred music and partly from the non-church music that was popular at the time.
The English Reformation also adopted this new style of music and singing, to the chagrin of Roman traditionalists who called the new hymns “Genevan jigs” (an odd moniker since Calvin himself did not embrace the new form of the chorale and singing in parts. Wesley likewise originally forbade it, fearing that those who sang the melody would “have the preeminence over others”). Like their Lutheran counterparts, many of the English reformers believed that the new musical expression added to the beauty of the music and made it easier for everyone to participate in worship vigorously.
We sometimes forget that since music is a human creation, it does not bear the attributes of being infinite, eternal, or unchangeable. Isaac Watts caused a stir when he introduced completely new hymns into the church’s worship at the turn of the 18th century. Watts, who had prodigious musical gifts, grew concerned as he watched people sing the old hymns with detached boredom. A gifted musician and writer, Watts knew that musical styles, like all human styles, become dated and old. What had at one time stimulated God’s people to joyful adoration when it was new was now a source of tedium reflected in their unenthusiastic participation.
Watts objected not only to the music, however. He was particularly bothered by the words of the old Psalter. In the first place, he believed, the whole Word of God should be sung, not merely a small portion of the Old Testament. His further complaint about the Psalms they were singing was that they were precise paraphrases of the translations of the day, and as such they not only made for poor English verse (he once referred to them as “doggerel”), but they never explicitly mentioned Christ. It struck Watts as strange that Christ should never be mentioned in songs of Christian worship.
His new hymns met with opposition by traditionalists at first, including his own father. It was not long, though, before his church, and even churches outside of his own congregation embraced them because they breathed new life into the expression of worship made by the people, a new life which was reflected in their enthusiastic participation in singing.
The chorale became such a traditional part of church music that to many it seemed intrinsic to it. Early editions of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church’s Book of Church Order noted in its Directory for Public Worship that “the stately rhythms of the chorale are particularly suitable for worship.” Cultural practices, however, change. Singing in parts as a community recreation, common after the Renaissance, was replaced by other forms of community recreation. Increasingly from the end of the nineteenth century people in the U.S. were less and less comfortable singing in parts. By the end of the twentieth century many Orthodox Presbyterian Churches were using music other than the chorales of the Trinity Hymnal. The wording of the Directory for Public Worship which showed preference for the chorale style of music was challenged and was determined by the General Assembly to be beyond what could be supported by the Bible. The sentence was deleted in the 2011 and subsequent editions of the Book of Church Order.
Just Take Them Old Records Off the Shelf
In 1978 Bob Seger released his tenth album which included the song “Old Time Rock and Roll” written by George Jackson and Thomas Earl Jones. It would go on to make the Billboard Top 100. The opening lyrics are, “Just take them old records off the shelf, I’ll sit and listen to them by myself. Today’s music ain’t got the same soul, not like that old time rock and roll.”
In the song, Seger assumes the persona of an “oldster” whom time has passed by, who now likes music that no one else cares for and which he must listen to alone. The music today, he opines, is not the old-time rock and roll which “soothes the soul.”
In a chapter entitled “How Music Means,” William Edgar points out that music is not, strictly speaking, a language. Music itself carries no content. Its meaning comes through association. Music that seems specifically meaningful to a western hearer may have no meaning or an entirely different meaning to those of different cultural backgrounds in which music has developed differently. Music historian and scholar Ted Gioia, for example, points out that certain kinds of songs in Indonesia, which are performed at fast tempos with strong percussive rhythms, and are experienced by most Westerners as joyful and exuberant, are in fact funeral dirges and laments.
The reason why Bob Seger favors the “old-time rock and roll” (and why most of us like the music we do, e.g. my parents Benny Goodman, my older sisters the Beatles) is because a new musical form experienced as “wonderful” was coupled with meaningful experiences (in one’s teenage years as maturity burgeons people have numerous meaningful experiences). The association of these experiences causes a sense of pleasure when one hears the same music again.
Particularly when engaging musical forms are coupled with meaningful words a powerful linkage takes place. E.Y. Harburg observed, “Words make you think a thought. Music makes you feel a feeling. A song makes you feel a thought.” The phenomenon can be observed with Fanny Crosby hymns. When I first entered the ministry thirty years ago, Fanny Crosby hymns were popular with the mature saints. Younger saints (those my age at the time) didn’t like them very much but would sing them on occasion out of deference and love. By western standards, the musical forms of them are not very sophisticated, and they are “campy” (in fact, many of them were written to be sung in camp meetings. Few people who sang them there ever imagined they’d be sung in church). Lyrically, they are subjective, having more do with a personal experience with Jesus than with objective doctrine. These then-new songs, sung by people in their youth at the time they were having their first real spiritual experiences, became a powerful psycho/spiritual touchstone for them. They became songs that “soothed the soul.” Their children however, hearing the music as dated, and not having the associations with it that their parents did (their spiritual awakenings being accompanied by different “sound tracks”) were not thrilled with them. Today you will seldom hear Fanny Crosby hymns sung in OP churches, despite their persistent presence in the Trinity Hymnal.
In the history of the church, times of revival almost always coincided with new hymnody. Their associations with renewed spiritual awakening caused the new hymns to become favored, traditional “old-time hymns” that “soothe the soul.” But because generations rise and pass away, it is also the reason why very few of the hymns we regard as “traditional” are sung with the music that was originally written for them. A quick perusal of the bottom of the pages of any hymnal will show that the music they are sung to is significantly newer – sometimes centuries newer – than the words of the hymn itself, and even the words of most hymns have likewise undergone substantial change.
I am old enough to remember when the old (blue) Trinity Hymnal was replaced by the new (red) Trinity Hymnal. Among those who grew up with the old blue hymnal the changes that were made were met with distress. These changes fell into four broad categories: 1) The keys were generally lowered across the board because all but children and sopranos found it difficult to sing in the registers of the old hymnal. 2) New hymns which had come into usage in the churches were added, while old little-used ones were deleted. 3) Lyrics were adjusted or replaced to be more theologically accurate, or to update archaic language. 4) New tunes were paired with old hymns that had particularly good theology, but which had fallen into disuse because the music was sorely dated and disliked by most.
An example of this last change can be seen with the Augustus Toplady hymn “Rock of Ages.” Written in 1776, the original tune was replaced within fifty years of its composition by the tune that became traditional. By the late twentieth century that tune itself had come to seem “dirge-ish” to most, and the song fell into disuse. The red Trinity Hymnal employed an alternate tune by James Ward that he originally wrote for use in his own church. When Bethel had the blue hymnal Rock of Ages was not sung very often, but when we adopted the red hymnal and Sue.Baker introduced the church to the new tune we never went back to the old. For about a decade #500 became a favorite, sung so frequently that someone might have plausibly suspected payola.
Interestingly, my kids like a fair amount of the “old time rock and roll,” just as they like many of the old-time hymns. Because music is of human and not divine origin it is ephemeral and not transcendent, though some music has more lasting power. Regarding hymns, anthems that speak truth meaningfully and are accompanied by musical forms that are pleasant to and possible for most of the rising generation to sing are powerful when they are coupled with profound spiritual experiences.
The Body as God has Arranged It
In the internet age we can watch the movies we want on demand. We can order any material goods we can imagine and have Amazon deliver them to us the next day. And we can listen to whatever music we want on demand.
The church in her worship stands in opposition and as an antidote to this “on demand” value system. In the church we learn to submit ourselves to others for the common good, and to mortify our preferences. In the ministry now for thirty years and a Christian for over forty, I have learned to sing with joy hymns I have not particularly liked (the Fanny Crosby hymns of my early ministerial days come to mind) because they fed and spoke to others in the church and allowed God’s people to express their heartfelt worship to Him.
An important principle often overlooked (at best, denigrated at worst) is that “God has arranged the members of the body, each one, just as He wanted them to be” (1 Corinthians 12:18). Several years ago an acquaintance was part of the musical ensemble providing his church with accompaniment for worship. One night the pastor came to their rehearsal and thanked them all for their service but told them that the coming Sunday would be their last. “We’ve decided to go in a different musical direction and hire musicians.” These faithful servants were not “adequate for the task” and were summarily dismissed. I don’t know if the direction they were going in was more contemporary or more classical. It hardly matters. The point is that a preference in worship was allowed to trample the principle that God had arranged the members of their local body. God had brought those musicians to that church.
Contrast that heart-breaking account to a God-honoring one. One Sunday when I was on vacation, I went to visit a friend at his new church plant. The message was spiritually uplifting and nourishing, but I judged the music harshly. It was simplistic, lacking in sophistication, even “jangley.” After church during the fellowship time when I heard the story of the church plant, I was ashamed of my judgmentalism. As plans were laid for the launch of the new church, it became evident that there was not a musician in the group. They quickly assessed their options: should they have no singing? Sing a cappella? Hire musicians for accompaniment? Sing to pre-recorded music? All these options were rejected for principial or practical reasons. With nothing else left to do, a small number from within the group volunteered to – within four months’ time – learn how to play musical instruments to accompany and lead the church in her musical worship. They discussed which instruments each of them would learn, and then set out to learn them. The music they played was the music they could play. When I heard this my conscience stung. They played the only music they could as best as they could play it, unto the Lord. Verily, verily, I say unto you that not even Mozart in all his glory played as these.
Many years ago Bethel had a sizable ensemble made largely of musicians with classical training. In addition to the piano, we had instruments such as trumpet, trombone, saxophone, oboe, clarinet, flute, cello, violin, etc. which made for an accomplished chamber orchestra. The instrumentation, abilities, inclinations, and the training of these musicians led naturally to a particular kind of music. During these years we had a family briefly attend the church who complained to me that we “forbade guitars.” I asked him why (in the world) he thought we forbade guitars, and he said, “Well, I don’t see anyone playing a guitar.” At the time there was no one in the church who played guitar. We certainly did not “forbid” guitars. But nor were we going to “fire” the musicians God had brought to us and hire a guitar player to suit his worship preferences. To do so would be to despise the church of God and complain that we didn’t like the way He had chosen to arrange the members of His body.
Musical Trajectories
For more than forty years Sue Baker provided leadership in the musical accompaniment for worship at Bethel. At times she was the sole accompanist and was always “on point” even when there were others. Through the years Mrs. Baker kept her pastors, elders, and the church abreast of worthy contemporary hymns. She and her husband at one time provided song books at their own expense for the whole church to supplement our hymnal.
Many of the hymns that Mrs. Baker introduced us to can be found in Hymns Modern & Ancient (ie, the black hymnal), a copy of which was obtained for each pew about ten years ago. While we are not limited to either of these collections (the black or red hymnals) most of our songs come from one of them or the other. The hymns are chosen and sometimes modified to fit the message (the songs serve the living word, the living word does not serve static songs).
All of this, of course, must fit in the envelope of the abilities of the musicians we have. There were times when I asked Mrs. Baker if we could have a certain piece of music and she told me candidly, “I can’t play that.” A theater company faced with such a statement would fire the musicians and hire ones that could. A church (if it is acting biblically) accepts that God has arranged the members of the body, each one, just as He has desired, and rejoices in the music that He has provided for.
The start of a renewed musical ensemble began with the addition of the gifts of Hazen Dean. Mrs. Baker spoke with Hazen about playing guitar for worship, not only to accompany her, but so that the church would have music when she was away. During the Covid pandemic Mrs. Baker did not feel comfortable coming to church. This coincided (almost to the day) with our then-new livestreaming. For a time, this became our sole means of worship, and Hazen provided all the music with Marie singing so that people had a human voice to follow and join in with at home. If it were not for the Deans, our worship would have been without music during the crisis. During this time, Charlotte Lane also began playing the violin with this small group. It was also during the Covid crisis that God brought the Green family to us. Mrs. Baker asked Ben Green to play from time to time, and to fill in for her when she was away. Once again, God had arranged the members of his body to provide for music.
After many years of faithful service, Mrs. Baker announced her retirement from regularly playing the piano for worship. Her contribution and blessing to us is inestimable. Mrs. Baker is irreplaceable. But in God’s good providence he has not left us without music. God was arranging his body and bringing new musicians to us.
After Mrs. Baker’s announcement, the session asked Mr. Green if he would head up the music ministry. Mr. Green is an accomplished self-taught musician, and also a seminary trained and ordained former U.S. Army Chaplain and a current Elder candidate. At first Mr. Green was reticent to take the role. Being largely self-taught and unable to read music, Mr. Green said, “I can’t do what Mrs. Baker did, or play the way she does.” But we wouldn’t expect him to. God has arranged the members of the body, each one, just as he desired.
God Has Determined Our Time In History and the Place Where We Live
My old seminary professor, Dr. Timothy Keller, planted Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan in the early 1990s at a time when churches in Manhattan were declining and closing. Redeemer has thrived, for which Dr. Keller gives God the glory (I am still amazed whenever I listen to Dr. Keller’s sermons that he can get away with saying the things he does in Manhattan).
Keller credits God with Redeemer’s success, but he went into the church plant there leaning heavily on the principle expressed by Bruce Shelley: Christianity flourished from the first century because it imposed no culture. It rather adopted and adapted forms from the cultures to which it came in its “accidents” while holding to the essence of the Christian faith – the message and moral ethic the gospel requires.
Asked in an interview about the recent cultural shifts and whether the church can survive in the U.S., Keller said that since the church has the task of preaching the gospel, it presents the only true solution to the moral confusion of our times. He believes that not only can the church survive, but it can thrive unless it gives up its God-given task of preaching the gospel to promote a culture which appeals to an aging and shrinking population, a culture not required by Scripture, and is in addition to the gospel.
A while ago I did a study on Isaac Watts (for a distillation of some of the fruit of that study, see “Joy to the World! The Lord is Come!” in New Horizons of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, December 2010). I say with some confidence that Watts would be surprised that his hymns are still sung in the churches. I am not sure he would be pleased. His motive for writing his then-modern hymns came from his recognition that we worship the eternal God with time-bound forms that get old and must be changed or supplemented. To the degree that Watt’s hymns are meaningful to particularly the rising generation (the church always looks to the future) and causes enthusiastic participation in worship, Watts would be humbly gratified. To the degree that his hymns are mumbled dutifully and with long faces he would be displeased, for that is why he introduced his new hymnody in the first place.
God has arranged the members of the body, each one, just as he has desired (1 Corinthians 12:18) for building up the church and accomplishing its mission in the world. In recent years God has brought into our fellowship gifted and talented musicians who like Mrs. Baker are not here by happenstance but by God’s design.
It has been a joy to hear the exuberant participation on the part of the congregation as they sing new songs, or old songs in new ways. I think back over thirty years of the ministry and the changes I’ve seen in the music over that time: the “old time” (and sometimes campy) hymns sung when Eleanor Kellogg played the organ; the growth of a chamber orchestra that was able to play Bach preludes; the ever faithful presence of Mrs. Baker introducing us to new music throughout the years; the Deans providing the sole music during the Covid lockdown when Mrs. Baker felt she should stay at home; and now the ensemble of the Deans, the Greens, Charlotte and others.
Over thirty years in the ministry I’ve heard the music at Bethel change. In every change God has remained faithful, and by His grace his Word has been faithfully proclaimed and reflected in the changes; And I thank God who has placed us here and now in this, our appointed time in history and the place where we live (Acts 17:26). God has placed His church in this place, here and now, with these people to reach this generation. He has not placed us in the 17th, 18th, or 19th century, but in the 21st. “God has arranged the members of His body, each one, just as He has desired (1 Corinthians 12:18). He has “determined our allotted time in history, and marked out the boundaries of where we dwell” (Acts 17:26). Though the years, Bethel’s music has reflected and continues to reflect both these biblical truths.
