While attending the Maundy Thursday service at church I ended up reading the "Directions For Singing" in the United Methodist Hymnal, which then became a distraction throughout the rest of the service. Just so I won't feel so bad about my lack of attention and reverence during the service I guess I'd better put down some thoughts on hymn singing and worship in general. Some of the things John Wesley said about hymn singing that I found especially meaningful:
III. Sing all. See that you join with the congregation as frequently as you can. Let not a slight degree of weariness hinder you. If it is a cross to you, take it up, and you will find it a blessing.
IV. Sing lustfully and with a good courage. Beware of singing as if you were half dead, or half asleep; but lift up your voice with strength. Be no more afraid of your voice now, nor more ashamed of its being heard, than when you sung the songs of Satan.
V. Sing modestly. Do not bawl, so as to be heard above or distinct from the rest of the congregation, that you may not destroy the harmony; but strive to unite your voices together, so as to make one clear melodious sound.
And most importantly:
VII. Above all sing spiritually. Have an eye to God in every word you sing. Aim at pleasing him more than yourself, or any other creature. In order to do this attend strictly to the sense of what you sing, and see that your heart is not carried away by the sound, but offered to God continually; so shall your singing be such as the Lord will approve here, and reward you when he cometh in the clouds of heaven.
There are a few words that are translated as "worship" in the bible. First is the hebrew word "Shachah" which means "to bow down, make obeisance, reverence, to beseech humbly". Next are three Greek words "Proskuneo", "Latreuno" and "Sebomai" which mean basically "to kiss towards", "to serve or to render religious service" and "to fear or hold in awe" respectively. Thus I guess a general definition of worship would be to express love and ascribe glory to God.
With such a general definition it becomes apparent that worship can occur in many (and I guess almost any) forms. This I suppose is one of the main reasons why currently there are so many different forms of "worship services" in churches. Now in contrast to the typical orthodox style of worship involving hymn singing and scripted prayer we have Christian rock music, people bursting into tongues, dancing and jumping about in more charismatic services. After all we are all free to glorify God in any way we choose right?
While I do agree that personal worship can occur in almost an infinite number of possibilities, I still do believe that personal worship and worship in a "worship service" at church are completely different. In the above quotations it is seen that Wesley called people to "join with the congregation" and "strive to unite your voices together". This is something that I strongly believe. That a church service is not so much about a personal time of worship with God but more of a communal time of worship where the church joins in unity to worship God as the Body of Christ. Therefore it is not so much how I choose to worship God, but how we can all praise God together "so as to make one clear melodious sound". This is why it always disturbs me slightly when in the middle of a worship service random people start jumping or dancing or shouting or blurting out in tongues. While I do not deny that these are valid expressions of worship, it becomes unedifying when it begins to cause the person to stick out from the crowd and perhaps distract other worshipers. Such things might "destroy the harmony" of the worship service. I am not against personal worship. I simply believe that personal worship can be expressed more outside of the church service in every other aspect of our lives.
I also believe that we should all be cautious of the idea that we can worship God any way we want. While any form of worship might be acceptable to God, the attitude in which we deliver the worship is important. It always troubles me slightly that when we say we prefer this form of worship over that form, it somehow makes the worship more about us. In the end are we seeking to glorify God or enjoy singing the songs that we like? While I can appreciate both the hymns sung in more orthodox services and the songs sung in more charismatic "youthful" services, I still find myself drawn more towards hymns. This is because I find the words in hymns to have so much more meaning than most (but not all) contemporary songs. If we are to "Have an eye to God in every word we sing", then it helps that the words in the songs are strongly rooted in doctrine and theology which shine forth when we sing them. Yet I realise that after awhile I am so enthralled by the beauty of the hymns that sometimes the beautiful words and meaning of the hymns actually distract me from truly worshiping God. Which is why I believe Wesley was wise when he told people to "aim at pleasing him more than yourself" and "attend strictly to the sense of what you sing".
This however provides an interesting dilemma. Is it wrong for us to choose methods of worship that we are more comfortable with since in it lies the possibility of our hearts being "carried away by the sound"?
O worship the King, all glorious above,
O gratefully sing God's power and God's love;
our shield and defender, the Ancient of Days,
pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise.
-UMH 73
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