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Music: Unifier or Divider


Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19)

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God (Colossians 3:16)

            As I think about music and community is that music is one of the things that can either bring a community together or divide it. If it is too loud or dominant, it isolates; it reduces participation. If it is too quiet, other things distract. I have found that when the worship singers cannot be heard clearly, people in the congregation don't sing. When they do sing, they sing only as loudly as the singers lead them to sing. If the instrumentalists drown them out, the congregation tends to watch the performance.  Sometimes, we hear that worship is "for an audience of One." Paul suggests that they are not, or at least not always.  They are also for us. They should draw us together. They should give words to our gratitude, guide our minds to truth, and unite us as a body. If we are to share psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, we need to find ways that allow the congregation to share in the content.
           There are times for music according to our own tastes and in our own styles. Music within a community should be suited to that community. It must reflect the hopes, dreams, goals, and principles of the community. We tend to remember music, which means that it is vital that the music in our community  be suited to our community because otherwise, we're claiming one set of principles, and teaching another.

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