A Brief History Of Congregational Song
From the earliest times, the people of God have raised their voices in song to praise the living God of creation and redemption. These never-ending expressions of faith have been tremendously varied, both in textual content and musical style. At times these heartfelt songs have been but simple, brief responses of affirmation by the gathered congregation. At other times, congregational songs of praise and prayer have been both lengthy and complex. Regardless of the text and tune, everyone takes part, because congregational singing is for everyone. No one is to be silent. Indeed, all who are capable of speech are called upon to sing their praise to God. In order to promote wholehearted participation, the texts that are sung need to be understood by the members of the local congregation. The music which accompanies each text must also be accessible. Only when the text and tune are understood by those who sing them does the song truly become congregational. Each singer in the congregation is then freed from misunderstanding and distraction and thus is able to sing with conviction. In order to achieve this, some education is needed. In early biblical times the chanting of liturgical texts was taught to the boys and young men of the worshiping community. In later biblical times the surrounding Greek cultural influences were purified and incorporated into the forms of sung praise to Christ. In Europe during the Middle Ages, the Latin hymns that were written adopted the poetic form familiar to those who sang them. Furthermore, when Cyril and Methodius took the Orthodox faith from Constantinople to Russia in the tenth century, they formed an alphabet for the Russian people and translated the services and hymns into Slavonic. When Martin Luther established the chorale, he, too, wrote and encouraged the use of language and music understood by the people of his country and his time. Similarly, the words and music of the Psalters used in the English-speaking world for over two hundred years were well known and loved by those who sang metrical psalms. The advent of the hymns of Watts and the Wesleys brought about another bonding between song and singer, with new textual content and spirited music. Moreover, the hymns of the Oxford movement provided many in England with suitable congregational resources, while the gospel song gave others in America material for evangelism. This is rightly so. Each culture, at any given time, has a need for its own congregational song. According to Donald P. Hustad, congregational song is the tribal music of the church. Likewise, the late Erik Routley called it "the folk song of the church." And even though these expressions change from place to place and from time to time, they are living expressions of a common love for God and vital statements of relevant Christian experience. In America, it generally makes little difference to most worshipers whether a hymn was written by a German pastor, an Anglican priest, or an African-American singer. It matters little whether the text is an original work by a Methodist or a Baptist or if the words are translated from another language. It is not so important to the singer that the music comes from the eighteenth century or the twentieth-first century. It is the meaning of the text and the feeling of the music that have become most important. Thus, a multiplicity of texts and a variety of musical styles best serve the contemporary worshiper, giving meaningful expression to belief and emotional release to the deepest longings of the heart. The following entries trace the history of congregational song. Special attention is given to the origin and development of hymns that are still commonly sung today.