Contemporary Christian worship in Rock Harbor Church, Costa Mesa, United States
Contemporary worship music (CWM), also known as praise and worship music,[1] is a defined genre of Christian music used in contemporary worship. It has developed over the past 60 years and is stylistically similar to pop music. The songs are frequently referred to as "praise songs" or "worship songs" and are typically led by a "worship band" or "praise team", with either a guitarist or pianist leading. It has become a common genre of music sung in many churches, particularly in charismatic or non-denominational Protestant churches with some Roman Catholic congregations incorporating it into the Mass as well.
In the early 1950s, the Taizé Community in France started to attract youths from several religious denominations with worship hymns based on modern melodies.[citation needed]
In the mid-20th century, Christian Unions in university environments hosted evangelistic talks and provided biblical teaching for their members, Christian cafés opened with evangelistic aims, and church youth groups were set up.[example needed] Amateur musicians from these groups began playing Christian music in a popular idiom. Some Christians felt that the church needed to break from its stereotype as being structured, formal and dull to appeal to the younger generation.[example needed] By borrowing the conventions of popular music, the antithesis of this stereotype,[clarification needed] the church restated the claims of the Bible through Christian lyrics, and thus sent the message that Christianity was not outdated or irrelevant. The Joystrings were one of the first Christian pop groups to appear on television, in Salvation Army uniform, playing Christian beat music.[citation needed]
Churches began to adopt some of these songs and the styles for corporate worship. These early songs for communal singing were characteristically simple. Youth Praise, published in 1966, was one of the first and most famous collections of these songs and was compiled and edited by Michael Baughen and published by the Jubilate Group.[citation needed]
As of the early 1990s, songs such as "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High", "Shine, Jesus, Shine" and "Shout to the Lord" had been accepted in many churches. Integrity Media, Maranatha! Music and Vineyard were already publishing newer styles of music. Supporters of traditional worship hoped the newer styles were a fad, while younger people cited Psalms 96:1, "Sing to the Lord a new song". Prior to the late 1990s, many felt that Sunday morning was a time for hymns, and young people could have their music on the other six days. A "modern worship renaissance" helped make it clear any musical style was acceptable if true believers were using it to praise God. The changes resulted from the Cutting Edge recordings by the band Delirious?, the Passion Conferences and their music, the Exodus project of Michael W. Smith, and the band Sonicflood. Contemporary worship music became an integral part of Contemporary Christian music.[2]
More recently songs are displayed using projectors on screens at the front of the church, and this has enabled greater physical freedom, and a faster rate of turnover in the material being sung. Important propagators of CWM over the past 25 years include Vineyard Music, Hillsong Worship, Bethel Music, Elevation Worship, Jesus Culture and Soul Survivor.
Theology and lyrics
As CWM is closely related to the charismatic movement, the lyrics and even some musical features reflect its theology. In particular the charismatic movement is characterised by its emphasis on the Holy Spirit, through a personal encounter and relationship with God, that can be summed up in agape love.
Lyrically, the informal, sometimes intimate, language of relationship is employed. The terms 'You' and 'I' are used rather than 'God' and 'we', and lyrics such as, 'I, I'm desperate for You',[3] and 'Hungry I come to You for I know You satisfy, I am empty but I know Your love does not run dry'[4] both exemplify the similarity of the lyrics of some CWM to popular love songs. Slang is used on occasion (for example 'We wanna see Jesus lifted high'[5]) and imperatives ('Open the eyes of my heart, Lord, I want to see You'[6]), demonstrating the friendly, informal terms charismatic theology encourages for relating to God personally. Often a physical response is included in the lyrics ('So we raise up holy hands';[7] 'I will dance, I will sing, to be mad for my king'[8]). This couples with the use of drums and popular rhythm in the songs to encourage full body worship.
The metaphorical language of the lyrics is subjective, and therefore does risk being misinterpreted; this emphasis on personal encounter with God does not always balance with intellectual understanding.[clarification needed]
Just as in secular, popular and rock music, relationships and feelings are central topics[example needed], so in CWM, association to a personal relationship with God and free expression are emphasised.
As in traditional hymnody, some images, such as captivity and freedom, life and death, romance, power and sacrifice, are employed to facilitate relationship with God.[example needed]
The modern hymn movement
Beginning in the 2010s, contemporary worship music with a distinctly theological lyric focus blending hymns and worship songs with contemporary rhythms & instrumentation, began to emerge, primarily in the Baptist, Reformed, and more traditional non-denominational branches of Protestant Christianity.[9][10] Artists in the modern hymn movement include well-known groups such as Keith & Kristyn Getty[11] and Sovereign Grace Music,[12] as well as solo artists such as Matt Papa, Enfield (Hymn Sessions) and Aaron Keyes. By the late 2010s, the movement had gained sizable traction in many churches,[13] streaming services and other areas in culture.[14]
Musical identity
Because, in common with hymns, such music is sung communally, there can be a practical and theological emphasis on its accessibility, to enable every member of the congregation to participate in a corporate act of worship. This often manifests in simple, easy to learn melodies, in a mid-vocal range, repetition, familiar chord progressions and a restricted harmonic palette. Unlike hymns, the music notation may primarily be based around the chords, with the keyboard score being secondary.
At more charismatic services, members of the congregation may harmonise freely during worship songs, perhaps singing in tongues (see glossolalia), and the worship leader seeks to be 'led by the Holy Spirit'. There may also be role of improvisation, flowing from one song to the next and inserting musical material from one song into another.[clarification needed]
Performance
The worship band
A contemporary worship team leads the congregation using lyrics projected on a motion background, and coordinated lighting
There is no fixed band set-up for playing CWM, but most have a lead singer and lead guitarist or keyboard player. Their role is to indicate the tone, structure, pace and volume of the worship songs, and perhaps even construct the order or content during the time of worship. Some larger churches are able to employ paid worship leaders, and some have attained fame by worship leading, blurring contemporary worship music with Christian rock, though the role of the band in a worship service, leading and enabling the congregation in praise normally contrasts that of performing a Christian concert.[example needed] In CWM today there will often be three or four singers with microphones, a drum kit, a bass guitar, one or two guitars, keyboard and possibly other, more orchestral instruments, such as a flute or violin. There has been a shift within the genre towards using amplified instruments and voices, again paralleling popular music, though some churches play the same songs with simpler or acoustic instrumentation.
The role of technology
Technological advances have played a significant role in the development of CWM. In particular the use of projectors means that the song repertoire of a church is not restricted to those in a song book.[clarification needed] Songs and styles go in trends. The internet has increased accessibility, enabling anyone to see lyrics and guitar chords for many worship songs, and download MP3 tracks. This has also played a part in the globalisation of much CWM. Some churches, such as Hillsong, Bethel and Vineyard, have their own publishing companies, and there is a thriving Christian music business which parallels that of the secular world, with recording studios, music books, CDs, MP3 downloads and other merchandise. The consumer culture surrounding CWM has prompted both criticism and praise, and as Pete Ward deals with in his book "Selling Worship", no advance is without both positive and negative repercussions.[15]
Criticisms
Criticisms include Gary Parrett's concern that the volume of this music drowns out congregational participation, and therefore makes it a performance.[16] He quotes Ephesians 5:19, in which Paul the Apostle tells the church in Ephesus to be 'speaking to one another with psalms, hymns and songs from the Spirit', and questions whether the worship band, now so often amplified and playing like a rock band, replace rather than enable a congregation's praise.
Seventh-day Adventist author Samuele Bacchiocchi expressed concerns over the use of the "rock" idiom, as he argues that music communicates on a subconscious level, and the often anarchistic, nihilistic ethos of rock stands against Christian culture. Using the physical response induced by drums in a worship context as evidence that rock takes peoples' minds away from contemplating on the lyrics and God, he suggests that rock is actively dangerous for the Church.[17]
The theological content too has raised questions for some, including Martyn Percy, who argues there is too great an emphasis on a very intimate relationship with God, using terms such as 'I' and 'you' instead of 'we' and 'God', and very passionate, physical language, and argues that this bias needs urgent correction. He explains how the emphasis on emotion can encourage hype and a need to create an atmosphere which evokes a sense of encounter with God, rather than allowing God to do so.[15]
Despite the biblical basis employed to underpin CWM, such as Ephesians 5:19, its surrounding culture tends to exclude systematic use of the psalms in weekly worship, sidelining lament from regular worship practice.[18] The emphasis on praise, and on an interpretation of 'worship' that is overwhelmingly positive, can lead to avoidance of the psalms of lament. Michael Vasey writes: "Scripture is, of course, full of lament – and devotes its finest literary creation to warning the godly against quick and easy answers. The power of many of the psalms we are embarrassed to use lies precisely here. Of all this there is little echo in our contemporary reading."[19] Whereas denominational churches generally use a weekly lectionary that gives a broad range of scriptural themes, including selected psalms on those themes, CWM churches tend not to have an agreed lectionary and the consequent agreement on using a broad range of material.[citation needed]
Pope John Paul II, concerning the role of music in regard to worship, wrote, "today, as yesterday, musicians, composers, liturgical chapel cantors, church organists and instrumentalists must feel the necessity of serious and rigorous professional training. They should be especially conscious of the fact that each of their creations or interpretations cannot escape the requirement of being a work that is inspired, appropriate and attentive to aesthetic dignity, transformed into a prayer of worship when, in the course of the liturgy, it expresses the mystery of faith in sound."[20]
Some have noted that contemporary worship songs often reflect the social climate of individualism as the lyrics emphasize personal relationship with God, even within a group context.
Interviewed in Christianity Today in 2011, Grove City College professor T. David Gordon said contemporary music was not easier to sing or better than traditional music, but familiar. If this style of music was all people listened to, then that would make them happy. He also said praise bands had a hard time finding good music, but played the contemporary music because the church wanted it, with the only criteria being how contemporary the music sounded. Gordon also said churches were adding hymns to contemporary services, but that in the past the main concern had never been how new the music sounded.[21]
Gordon said in 2014 that contemporary music could not be as good because one generation could not compete with 50 generations of hymns, and even the contemporary songs were in some cases just the old hymns with an updated sound. Writers of new songs had a hard time with "theologically sound, but significant, profound, appropriate, memorable, and edifying".[22] After his 2011 interview, Gordon said Mark Moring of Christianity Today had observed that contemporary music in churches was on the decline. Gordon said the people who first wanted it are older, and contemporary music had become so common that it was no longer a marketing tool, and no longer new when people wanted what was new. Praise teams, Gordon said, were like performers, but that they were in conflict with what the Bible said. And the congregation needed to participate.[22]
Contemporary Christian worship groups, such as Hillsong United, are ranking in the top ten on Billboard and other national charts and are earning publicity in pop culture publications.[27][28][29][30]
In 2019, the U.S. radio network Air1 (which was previously devoted to Christian hits) changed its format to focus primarily on worship music.[31][32]
↑ McEachen, Ben (June 25, 2018). "What do you mean by worship?". www.eternitynews.com.au. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
↑ 'Lord I Lift Your Name on High', Rick Founds, copyright 1989 Maranatha Praise, Inc.
↑ 'Shout to the Lord', Darlene Zschech, copyright 1993 Hillsong Publishing
↑ 'Thy Word Is a Lamp', words by Amy Grant, music by Michael Smith, arrangement by Keith Phillips, copyright 1984 Meadowgreen Music Co./Bug and Bear Music
↑ 'Take Our Bread', Joe Wise, copyright 1966 by Joe Wise, used in the United Methodist Hymnal by permission of G.I.A. Publications, Inc.
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word hymn derives from Greek ὕμνος (hymnos), which means "a song of praise". A writer of hymns is known as a hymnist. The singing or composition of hymns is called hymnody. Collections of hymns are known as hymnals or hymn books. Hymns may or may not include instrumental accompaniment. Polyhymnia is the Greco/Roman goddess of hymns.
Contemporary Christian music (CCM), also known as Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music, is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect of Christian media, which is lyrically focused on matters related to the Christian faith and stylistically rooted in Christian music. Originating in the United States, it was formed by those affected by the 1960s Jesus movement revival who began to express themselves in other styles of popular music, beyond the church music of hymns, gospel and Southern gospel music that was prevalent in the church at the time. Initially referred to as Jesus music, today, the term is typically used to refer to pop, but also includes rock, alternative rock, hip hop, metal, contemporary worship, punk, hardcore punk, Latin, electronic dance music, R&B-influenced gospel, and country styles.
Dance is present in mythology and religion globally. Dance has certainly been an important part of ceremony, rituals, celebrations and entertainment since before the birth of the earliest human civilizations. Archeology delivers traces of dance from prehistoric times such as the 5,000-year-old Bhimbetka rock shelters paintings in India and Egyptian tomb paintings depicting dancing figures from c. 3300 BC.
Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence and lament, and its forms vary widely around the world. Church music, hymnals, gospel and worship music are a part of Christian media and also include contemporary Christian music which itself supports numerous Christian styles of music, including hip hop, rock, contemporary worship and urban contemporary gospel.
Hallelujah is an interjection from the Hebrew language, used as an expression of gratitude to God. The term is used 24 times in the Tanakh, twice in deuterocanonical books, and four times in the Christian Book of Revelation.
A church service is a formalized period of Christian communal worship, often held in a church building. Most Christian denominations hold church services on the Lord's Day ; a number of traditions have mid-week services, while some traditions worship on a Saturday. In some Christian denominations, church services are held daily, with these including those in which the seven canonical hours are prayed, as well as the offering of the Mass, among other forms of worship. In addition to this, many Christians attend services on holy days such as Christmas, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, Ascension Thursday, among others depending on the Christian denomination.
Church music is Christian music written for performance in church, or any musical setting of ecclesiastical liturgy, or music set to words expressing propositions of a sacred nature, such as a hymn.
Hillsong Music is Christian music produced by Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia as well as offshoot churches, Hillsong London, and Hillsong Kiev. Hillsong albums are released and distributed by Hillsong Music. The main groups are Hillsong Worship, Hillsong United, Hillsong Young & Free, and Hillsong Kids.
In Christianity, worship is the act of attributing reverent honour and homage to God. In the New Testament, various words are used to refer to the term worship. One is proskuneo which means to bow down to God or kings.
Exclusive psalmody is the practice of singing only the biblical Psalms in congregational singing as worship. Today it is practised by several Protestant, especially Reformed denominations. Hymns besides the Psalms have been composed by Christians since the earliest days of the church, but psalms were preferred by the early church and used almost exclusively until the end of the fourth century. During the Protestant Reformation, Martin Luther and many other reformers, including those associated with the Reformed tradition, used hymns as well as psalms, but John Calvin preferred the Psalms and they were the only music allowed for worship in Geneva. This became the norm for the next 200 years of Reformed worship. Hymnody became acceptable again for the Reformed in the middle of the nineteenth century, though several denominations, notably the Reformed Presbyterians, continue the practice of exclusive psalmody.
The New Century Hymnal is a comprehensive hymnal and worship book published in 1995 for the United Church of Christ. The hymnal contains a wide-variety of traditional Christian hymns and worship songs, many contemporary hymns and songs, and a substantial selection of "world music" selections origin, a full lectionary-based Psalter, service music selections, and a selection of liturgies from the UCC Book of Worship (1986). Generally speaking, the hymnal is theologically within the mainline Protestant tradition, with a slant toward liturgical forms.
"Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!" is a Christian hymn written by the Anglican bishop Reginald Heber (1783–1826).
Presbyterian worship documents worship practices in Presbyterian churches; in this case, the practices of the many churches descended from the Scottish Presbyterian church at the time of the Reformation.
Contemporary worship is a form of Christian worship that emerged within Western evangelical Protestantism in the 20th century. It was originally confined to the charismatic movement, but is now found in a wide range of churches, including many which do not subscribe to a charismatic theology. Contemporary worship uses contemporary worship music in an informal setting. Congregational singing typically comprises a greater proportion of the service than in conventional forms of worship. Where contemporary worship is practiced in churches with a liturgical tradition, elements of the liturgy are frequently kept to a minimum. The terms historic worship, traditional worship or liturgical worship are sometimes used to describe conventional worship forms and distinguish them from contemporary worship.
"Shout to the Lord" is a praise and worship song written by Christian worship leader Darlene Zschech in 1993. A popular worship power ballad, it was published by Hillsong Music Australia.
Our God and Our God and Lord refers to God. It is also one of the Names of God in Christianity.
Psalm 96 is the 96th psalm of the Book of Psalms, a hymn. The first verse of the psalm calls to praise in singing, in English in the King James Version: "O sing a new song unto the Lord". Similar to Psalm 98 and Psalm 149, the psalm calls to praise God in music and dance, because he has chosen his people and helped them to victory. It is one of the royal psalms praising God as the King of His people.
The regulative principle of worship is a Christian doctrine, held by some Calvinists and Anabaptists, that God commands churches to conduct public services of worship using certain distinct elements affirmatively found in scripture, and conversely, that God prohibits any and all other practices in public worship. The doctrine further determines these affirmed elements to be those set forth in scripture by express commands or examples or, if not expressed, those implied logically by good and necessary consequence. The regulative principle thus provides a governing concept of worship as obedience to God, identifies the set of specific practical elements constituting obedient worship, and identifies and excludes disobedient practices.
Church music during the Reformation developed during the Protestant Reformation in two schools of thought, the regulative and normative principles of worship, based on reformers John Calvin and Martin Luther. They derived their concepts in response to the Catholic church music, which they found distracting and too ornate. Both principles also pursued use of the native tongue, either alongside or in place of liturgical Latin.
References
Bacchiocchi, Samuele (ed.), The Christian and Rock Music: A Study on Biblical Principles of Music (Michigan, 2000)
Darlington, Stephen, and Kreider, Alan (ed.), Composing Music for Worship (Norwich, 2003)
Jones, Ian and Webster, Peter, "The theological problem of popular music for worship in contemporary Christianity", in Crucible. The journal of Christian social ethics (July–Sept 2006), pp.9–16; full text in SAS-Space
Miller, Donald, E., Postdenominational Christianity in the Twenty-First Century, Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Vol. 558, (July 1998), pp.196–210
Sheldon, Robin (ed.), In Spirit and in Truth: Exploring Directions in Music in Worship Today (London, 1989)
Ward, Pete (2005). Selling Worship: How what we sing has changed the church. Authentic Media. ISBN978-1-84227-270-1.
Webster, Peter and Jones, Ian, "Expressions of Authenticity: Music for Worship" In: Redefining Christian Britain. Post 1945 perspectives. SCM, London, 2007,pp.50–62; full text in SAS-Space
Webster, Peter and Jones, Ian, "Anglican 'Establishment' reactions to 'pop' church music in England, 1956–c.1990". Studies in Church History, 42 (2006) . pp.429–441; full text in SAS-Space
Wilson-Dickson, Andrew, A Brief History of Christian Music, (Oxford, 1997)
Wuthnow, Robert, All in Sync: How music and art are revitalising American Religion, (California, 2003)
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