9-20-21<\/p>\n
A message from your friendly neighborhood Christian Curmudgeon. Actually, I am risible about some aspects, many aspects, of corporate worship these days, but it is not related to my being a reactionary about many other things. \u201cReactionary\u201d might be too strong; but I have been called a moon-calf, a fuddy-duddy, a jabbernowl. Perhaps with justice, but I must first grab a dictionary.<\/p>\n
I honestly (and earnestly) think that many forms of contemporary worship divert the focus from God and the Christian message, all in the name of \u2013 here we go \u2013 \u201crelevance,\u201d \u201cinclusion,\u201d \u201cbeing welcoming,\u201d \u201cattracting youth,\u201d and so forth.<\/p>\n
The Italians have a phrase that I remember hearing, or rather I remember the meaning which is very wise. I think it was something like \u201cPer andare avanti, guarda indietro,\u201d and its meaning is, \u201cBefore moving forward, one needs to look back.\u201d That is: remember; build on the past; respect your heritage. Further, using another Italian word, \u201critorno\u201d can be a palliative. That is: return to values before you lose what is valuable; preserve what carried you to a good place.<\/p>\n
Can these stern prescriptions apply to worship and music in the contemporary church? Yes, and applicable to many, many larger aspects of life these days.<\/p>\n
You don\u2019t have to be a mossback to recognize that our world is spinning out of control. Specifically I mean \u201cour\u201d world of Western Civilization — Post-Christianity, secularized and hedonist, materialist and moral-relativist. Whether virtually worshiping \u201cscience\u201d or finding value in no-values, our world thinks it has found the formula for success in the pursuit of happiness.<\/p>\n
We seem to believe that every generation, every society, every belief system in all of human history had it wrong. Contemporary society has figured it out, it tells us: the best religion is no religion; the best standards are no standards. \u201cImagine no possessions, I wonder if you can. No need for greed or hunger, A brotherhood of man.\u201d The theme song for a generation was really a funeral dirge of self-deception.<\/p>\n
Somewhere along the way, their karma ran over our dogma.<\/p>\n
Our puppet-masters dance more madly with each other, inspiring the suicidal, incestuous, relentlessly aimless \u201clife\u201d we are forced to live amidst the ruins of religion, order, respect, reverence, law, and learning.<\/p>\n
And what of my original choleric indictment of church worship? A minor factor? I don\u2019t believe the trends and modes in Christendom today are peripheral, but are squarely indicative of a rudderless society. Indeed, the general drift in contemporary churches \u2013 thank God, not all: I acknowledge that \u2013 are mirrors of what afflicts our \u201ccivilization.\u201d<\/p>\n
So I will address my thoughts to malignant trends in many churches today.<\/p>\n
*The mad rush to \u201crun\u201d more and more people into pews is an admission that churches don\u2019t believe the sweet Salvation message is sufficient.<\/p>\n
*The transformation of music and “doing” church to be \u201ccontemporary\u201d and \u201crelevant\u201d tells those who hunger for Eternal Truth that fads of the moment are what really matter to the clergy.<\/p>\n
*Many churches act as if traditional hymns are illegal and printed hymnbooks and prayer books are toxic. Except for the (rare) great old hymns, who knows the words or can sing more than those new songs’ seven words repeated 11 times?<\/p>\n
*Performances on stages, with worshipers as mere audiences, now are substitutes for congregational participation.<\/p>\n
*Hosts challenge people to smile and grin and yell Good Morning \u2013 \u201cLouder! I can\u2019t hear you!\u201d \u2013 when in fact some people seek church in order to weep and seek God and listen for Him.<\/p>\n
*I am not against instruments other than organs and pianos, but many people leave church services more in love with guitar riffs than with Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n
*I have seen uncountable youth pastors, in their 30s and 40s, wearing cargo pants, sporting tattoos, and dying their hair in order to relate to their Middle Schoolers. Kids today don\u2019t need idiot adults pretending to be kids who have classmates and friends already. What kids need are Christian adults to be role models.<\/p>\n
*Sin frequently is not addressed in many contemporary Christian churches. To ignore our sin nature and the stain of sin in our life is to deny what Jesus came to defeat, and the Holy Spirit sent to empower our resistance.<\/p>\n
*Do we know the prayers of the church any more? The Commandments? The Creeds that summarize our faith? Do we know the distinctives of our denominations, or do differences make no difference? Really?<\/p>\n
*Finally, how many American Christians are taught about the history of the church, about the defense of the faith \u2013 from schisms within, or from periodic Muslim invasions over 1500 years? How many of us know about, and take inspiration from, the martyrs who died for their faith?<\/p>\n
\u2026 I believe if we don\u2019t know about all the martyrs who died for the Faith, we surely will die for our lack of faith.<\/p>\n
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