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Pastor's Ponderings
As you might imagine, I think about worship. A lot. I often wonder
what those who attend the services I help lead think about worship.
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word “worship”? For many people, though certainly not everyone, the answer might be music. There is a connection between worship and music, and there is a reason for that.
If I asked you to remember your favorite church song or hymn as a child, you would probably be able to tell me (incidentally, mine was and remains “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee”). In fact, you would probably be able to name and sing from memory quite a few songs and hymns, particularly if you grew up in the church. Now, if I asked you to recall a specific sermon or prayer, it is possible that you could recall and recount one or two, perhaps in the rare case a handful. You might even, with one or two, be able to reconstruct what was said, if not verbatim at least a general outline.
While sermons are at best like raindrops falling into a puddle (to use a metaphor from my preaching professor in seminary)…you may not remember a single raindrop, but put together they fill the puddle, music is different. We repeat the hymns and songs we sing. We grab hold of favorites.
However, I think there is another reason that is more closely tied with what worship is supposed to be. The word ‘liturgy’, a word that describes the shape and content of worship, means literally: “the work of the people”. The very nature of worship is the work of the people, the work of us gathered together intentionally in God’s presence. Music is probably the most significant place in worship in which the whole congregation participates. So, over time, worship and music have become equated.
Yet, I can’t help but think music is not the whole of worship. Music and worship are not exactly the same thing. I can sing and make music that is not worship. I can worship in silence or in prayer without music.
So, what is the relationship between music and worship? I ask that question honestly, and would love hearing your thoughts (pastorocayton@gmail.com). I also want to offer a possibility. Music can be the heartbeat of worship. It can provide tempo and energy as well as directing mood in worship. It can also open us up to the stories, both ancient and modern, in ways that the spoken or read word cannot.
I’ll see you when we stand together in God’s presence again!
Shalom,
Pastor Owen
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