H
ow great is our God! It is always fun to talk about the playing and
singing part of corporate worship with those who share my love for
music and song. However, I still have love and respect for those who
may not share my love of music and song, but rather, patiently endure
the singing while they wait for “the important part of the worship
gathering” – the sermon.
Different strokes for different folks, right? Some like to sing, some
don’t. Well, if you fall into the latter category when it comes to
congregational singing, Martin Luther would like to have a few words
for you. You see, Luther loved congregational music and considered
music next to theology in importance. He also had no problem saying
what was on his mind. The following excerpt is taken from a foreword
to a collection of songs written for multiple voices.
Luther said, “When man’s natural ability is whetted and polished to the
extent that it becomes an art, then do we note with great surprise the
great and perfect wisdom of God in music, which is, after all, His product
and His gift; we marvel when we hear music in which one voice sings a
simple melody, while three, four, or five other voices play and trip lustily
around the voice that sings its simple melody and adorn this simple
melody wonderfully with artistic musical effects, thus reminding us of
a heavenly dance where all meet in a spirit of friendliness, caress,
and embrace. . . . A person who gives this some
thought and yet does not regard it [music] as
a marvelous creation of God, must be a
clodhopper indeed and does
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