19 September 2015 A.D. Modern Hymn Writers Aim to Take Back Sunday--"Some show no reverence" (Ya' think?)
19 September 2015 A.D. Modern Hymn Writers Aim to Take Back Sunday--"some songs show never reverence" (duh! ya' think?)
Farmer,
Blake. “Modern Hymn Writers Aim to Take Back Sunday.” Aquila Report. 14 Jul 2013. http://theaquilareport.com/modern-hymn-writers-aim-to-take-back-sunday/. Accessed 18 Sept 2015.
Modern Hymn Writers Aim to Take Back Sunday
"Our goal is to write songs that teach the faith, where the congregation is the main thing, and everybody accompanies that.”
“You know, for some
people, singing a simple, seven-word, simple chorus, draws them into the
presence of God,” he says. “And to me, ultimately, what is the goal of worship
music? It’s to exalt God.” In the past few decades, some church leaders have
called the tension between contemporary and traditional styles a “worship war,”
and it hasn’t exactly let up. But the hymn is getting more love from modern
worship leaders, even if it’s just tagging a new praise song with a classic
chorus.
There was a time
when hymns were used primarily to drive home the message that came from the
pulpit. But then came the praise songs.
Matt Redman’s song “Our God” is the most
popular piece of music in Christian churches today. That’s according to charts
that track congregational singing — yes, there is such a thing. But approaching
the Top 10 is a retro hymn: “In Christ Alone,” co-written by Keith Getty.
Keith’s wife,
Kristyn, sings the hymn, while he plays the piano in their home near
Nashville’s Music Row. The couple came to town to write songs not for
individual artists, but for what Keith Getty calls “the congregation.”
“Our goal is to
write songs that teach the faith, where the congregation is the main thing, and
everybody accompanies that,” he says.
There’s no
definition for what’s a hymn and not a praise song. But Keith Getty says it
should be singable without a band and easy for anyone sitting in the pews to
pick up. And it should say something bold.
“I think it’s to the
church’s poverty that the average worship song now has so few words, so little
truth,” he says. “[It] is so focused on several commercial aspects of God, like
the fact that he loves our praises.”
Kristyn Getty says
that some of the most popular music doesn’t show God the proper reverence.
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