I steal ideas. Ideas about worship and worship music are a particular favourite of mine, God forgive me. I’ve spent a lot of time hanging around organists, composers, worship leaders, percussionists and other of my betters, picking their brains. I here offer some of the fruits of my kleptomania.
“Don’t sing African American or Canadian music just during Black History month. After all, we’re black in March, April and May. June, July…we’re still black.”
—James Abbington of Atlanta, Georgia, to the Southern Ontario Chapter of the Hymn Society in the U.S. and Canada.
“We Caribbeans love to dance, to shake our bodies. But when we go church, we are very Afro-Saxon.”
—Paschal Jordan, a Benedictine monk from Trinidad and Tobago, on the challenges of persuading his congregational members to embrace the music of their black Caribbean heritage.
“People who have no strength to celebrate have no strength to liberate themselves.
—Pablo Sosa of Argentina, a composer and leader of cross-cultural song, on the spirit of fiesta.
“Widen your sound pool.”
—A paraphrase of the work of Mary Oyer, a Mennonite song leader and musicologist from Goshen, Indiana.
“Beware the tambourine. It is a weapon of mass percussion.”
—Greg Scheer of Grand Rapids, Michigan, to a master class of congregational song leaders in Richmond, Virginia.
“I wish performers in praise bands weren’t all so pretty. Just once I’d like to see an ugly, dumpy praise band.”
—Jeremy Begbie of England, plenary speaker at the 2010 Calvin Symposium on Worship.
“Churches try to provide worship that makes people comfortable. Instead, worship should offer an experience of intimacy.”
—From a conversation with John Thornburg, a hymnwriter and congregational song animator from Dallas, Texas.
“Sing lustily and with good courage.”
—John Wesley, English hymnwriter and founder of what was (at first) derisively called Methodism.
“God gave you many joints. Use them!”
—Patrick Matsikenyiri of Zimbabwe, as he taught songs, with dancing, to the Hymn Society conference in Vancouver.
“We have two stories to tell: God’s story and our story. It’s when the two come together that worship happens.”
—My mash-up of ideas from Rev. Drew Strickland, Calgary, and U.S. novelist Frederick Buechner.
“Keep doing yeasty things.”
—Paul Westermeyer of St. Olaf College, Minnesota, encouraging a couple of song leaders.
Most of these quotations were pilfered (and sometimes paraphrased) directly from their rightful owners. But I must acknowledge an idea bank that I have held up on many occasions: Gather into One: Praying and Singing Globally by C. Michael Hawn, published in 2003 by Eerdmans.
