Church musicians are prompt to assert that the musical practices of communal Christian worship shape us: What we sing and how we sing together forms us powerfully. Given the wealth of resources available on the topics of congregational worship and the music heard in our churches today, it is easy to be overwhelmed with new trends, new technologies, and new innovations.
If your favorite band were suddenly erased from the memory of the world, could you recall their lyrics accurately enough to do them justice on the world stage—and more importantly, would you dare?
The church’s musical imagination is limited by the vocabulary we use: traditional, contemporary, praise and worship, hymns, old, new.
What is it about some of the Christmas golden oldies that evoke such warm feelings of home and holiday?
John MacInnis offers some historical perspective and practical ideas for how the power of music can foster cultural inclusivity in our church communities while keeping all our eyes where they belong—forever on Jesus.
Our “estate planning” would do well to include equipping ourselves with songs that have nurtured the Church for decades and centuries.
