Starting around six months ago, there began a flurry of exchanges among worship leader Facebook groups, email groups, and online forums. “What is your church doing for Christmas Day this year?” The subtext of the dialogue was largely, “Are you going to have a worship service or not?” There was at least a small amount of panic about how this could all possibly work. People aren’t used to going to church on Christmas Day. But many are very used to their tried and true family traditions. (“We always open presents on Christmas morning.” “We always have Christmas brunch together witht the family.”)
Great Hymns Albums Released in the Last Few Months
I swear, I’m having to write these kinds of posts more often. The hymns/rehymn movement continues to strengthen and expand. Here are some great new albums that I’ve been enjoying and appreciating. Sojourn Music, A Child is Born Some very creative rock tunes, great guitar work, unconventional and delightful production choices. Some traditional tunes reworked, some originals. Sojourn is always on the upper side of the art spectrum. A Child Is Born by Sojourn High Street Hymns, On Winter’s … Read More
Worship and the Physical Body: The Earthen Vessels Symposium – Part 2
This is Part 2 of a blog symposium with Matt Anderson on his book Earthen Vessels.
[GO TO PART 1]
How We Analyze Disembodied Forms of Worship
This section puts Anderson at odds with much of the cutting edge thinking about online church, video feeds of preachers, and disembodied Christian “communities.” I agree with his analysis (ultimately, that the aforementioned realities are inadequate, even wrong, and betray an inadequate biblical anthropology) and will only add a few things. Anderson pokes at something very significant at the get-go when he talks about the “altar call” and the dominance of the act of evangelism in shaping evangelical worship.13 We can burrow down deeper, here. Evangelical worship today has been shaped by the realities of the American frontier.
Worship and the Physical Body: The Earthen Vessels Symposium – Part 1
I have the privilege of contributing to a blog symposium, along with several other authors and bloggers, on Matt Anderson’s terrific book, Earthen Vessels: Why Our Bodies Matter to Our Faith.1 Matt is a fellow Biola-grad, lover of Christ’s Church, and blogaholic over at Mere Orthodoxy and Evangel. Even as I interact with the book, be sure to check Mere-O in a few days from this post to see Matt’s interaction with me.
The final chapter of the book, “The Body and the Church,” instead of focusing on ecclesiology (the study of the church), in general, zeroes in on doxology (the study of worship) in particular. To structure the dialogue, let me first attempt to summarize the chapter in a thesis statement, along with his subsequent supporting arguments. Anderson’s chief point is that the physical body matters to corporate worship.
Is the Lord’s Supper a Funeral or a Feast? (Injecting Communion Repertoire with an Upbeat Song)
I’m not trying to sound crass, here, but Communion often feels like a memorial service for a deceased loved one. I remember growing up in my (wonderful, life-giving, Christ-shaping, God-exalting) church back at home in Hawaii. The Lord’s Supper came once a quarter, and up front would be a table covered with a large cloth. When it came time to receive Communion, the church leaders would come forward. I remember a lot of them wearing black suits. Two gentlemen would ceremonially lift and fold the table’s cloth, revealing the elements beneath. The suited men stood reverently in a line, hands folded in front, as the pastor would talk seriously and somberly about what we were about to do.
An Important Interjection into the “Feminization of Worship Songs” Debate
When I first heard Vicky Beeching’s music, I knew she was different from your average modern worship songwriter. Her songs have substance, reflection, and biblical insight. One of my favorites is her “Great is Your Glory,” which is very gospel-centered and nearly creedal in tone. It’s marvelous. Beeching is an equally formidable thinker in the area of worship, church, theology, and culture…something you cannot say about many, if not most, modern worship songwriters. I respect and appreciate her insights. If … Read More
Great New Denver Worship Artist – John Gooch
The tide continues to turn in modern worship. Faux-hawks are increasingly being covered with thinking caps. I met John Gooch a few years ago when he moved to Denver from out of the state. He’s finishing up a degree at Denver Seminary, and one of the primary goals of his studies is to be the best worship leader he can be. I praise God that we’re seeing more up-and-coming worship leaders hungering for deep theology and wide biblical reflection. Would to … Read More
Hearts, Mammon, and a Cross Made of Dollar Bills
“God Gave,” by Michael WintersThe image is powerful. Of course, there are many liabilities to image-based communication, not the least of which is its openness to a variety of interpretations and a subsequent muddying of its message. Nevertheless, visual statements can be powerful. My church, along with seemingly every other, is experiencing its share of financial hardship. Every time the pressure is on (and even when it’s not), we leaders start evaluating and addressing how our congregations are responding … Read More
A Rock & Roll Curriculum that Seminaries and Christian Colleges Should Pay Attention To
David Brooks, in a 2007 piece in the New York Times, discusses the movement from integration to fragmentation in American rock music. The 1970s saw bands like the Rolling Stones and Springsteen drawing from country, soul, and blues to converge in fresh, integrative rock styles. Groups such as these mark the era of “super-bands” that could sell out stadiums, some of which still do today. But since that era, we’ve seen a splintering of music into thousands of ghettos. The result is that music-making in the modern era, at least among rock musicians, is very disconnected with the past, lacking any sense of creative continuity and integration with the musical building-blocks that have come before.
The Difference Between Worshiping God and Worshiping Worship
“Idolatry happens when we take good things and make them ultimate things.” ~Tim Keller “One mark of Christian maturity is being easily blessed.” ~Unknown “Search me, O God, and know my heart. Test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” ~Psalm 139:23-24 The following comparisons are convicting. These observations have risen to the surface of the boiling pot of my own ministry, and I’ve probably … Read More