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The profound simplicity of “Away in a Manger”
Written on 17 Dec, 2009 at 10:35 in Articles on Hymnody, Featured | viewed 113 times and users have made 1 comment so far
Christmas: the one time of the year that most churches actually sing good hymns! Some of our traditional Christmas hymns really are quite profound, the queen of them all being “Hark! the Herald Angels Sing.” Yet some Christmas hymns are far... (Continue reading)
The Watts Controversy
Written on 25 Sep, 2009 at 7:58 in Articles on Hymnody, Articles on Worship, Featured | viewed 592 times and users have made 4 comments so far
On the wall in my study I have three portraits. All three are portraits of theologians who were also heavily involved with music. They are Martin Luther, J.S. Bach, and Isaac Watts. All three men fought their battles in defense of... (Continue reading)
Does Music Matter?
Written on 21 Sep, 2009 at 8:00 in Articles on Music, Editor's Picks, Featured | viewed 573 times and users have made 8 comments so far
Does music matter to God? Should it matter to us? We are living in a day when people — even Christians — see music as unimportant. Enjoyable, yes; but necessary or important? No. We see this kind of thinking all around us.... (Continue reading)
A potential danger in writing hymns in an age of mass media
Written on 4 Sep, 2009 at 8:00 in Articles on Hymnody, Featured | viewed 378 times and users have made 8 comments so far
There seem to be a lot of hymns being written today, and a lot of them are really pretty good. One of the reasons for that seems to be that pastors are beginning again to write hymn texts instead of... (Continue reading)
Accessible vs. Immediate
Written on 3 Sep, 2009 at 11:00 in Articles on Hymnody, Featured | viewed 171 times and users have made 0 comments so far
I’ve heard a lot of teaching recently on what makes a good sacred congregational song, and among qualities listed, “accessibility” is inevitably among them. I wholeheartedly agree with this point: for a hymn to be congregational, it has to be, well,... (Continue reading)
A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols
Written on 31 Aug, 2009 at 13:32 in Featured, Service Planning | viewed 339 times and users have made 0 comments so far
Conservative churches that want to do a special service around Christmas time often have a hard time finding quality “pre-packaged” programs. So what are other alternatives? One of the best and most flexible options, in my opinion, is “A Festival of... (Continue reading)
“Ebenezer” – biblical literacy and singing hymns
Written on 26 Aug, 2009 at 9:49 in Articles on Hymnody, Featured | viewed 267 times and users have made 4 comments so far
Before pastors discredit lines of hymns because they are “archaic” or “don’t make any sense today,” perhaps they should make sure that what they are complaining about isn’t a direct biblical allusion. I’ve recently heard several pastors — with theology degrees,... (Continue reading)
Choose your own price for tracks from God Himself Is With Us.
Written on 11 Aug, 2009 at 8:00 in Featured, God Himself Is With Us | viewed 86 times and users have made 0 comments so far
God Himself is With Us: the Gospel Proclaimed Through Hymns is now on BandCamp.com. Some of the nice features of BandCamp include the following: You can listen to every full track for free. You can choose your price for individual tracks or the... (Continue reading)
What music should be used when planting indigenous churches in . . . the United States of America?
Written on 10 Aug, 2009 at 8:00 in Articles on Culture, Articles on Hymnody, Articles on Music, Articles on Worship, Featured | viewed 295 times and users have made 11 comments so far
It seems as if several themes have been reoccurring on this site, Paleoevangelical, and a few other places over the last few weeks. These themes have to do with musical associations, indigenous church planting, and musical universals. Here are the... (Continue reading)
Your turn: What have you done to teach children how to worship?
Written on 28 Jul, 2009 at 8:00 in Featured | viewed 96 times and users have made 3 comments so far
We’ve been discussing the topic of teaching children to worship here for some time, and now I’d like to get your feedback. I’ve offered suggestions and examples of things I’ve done both at home and in our church to encourage God-centered... (Continue reading)
