In this post I will be discussing the criteria by which I will assess Christian worship music for overall quality. I would like to note first in this post that I will only be posting music that has "passed the test", so I won't be spending much time criticizing music. I'd like to keep this a positive experience and provide readers with sound worship music, not simply tell them everything that's wrong with what's out there.
On that note however, it is important that we do establish what is wrong with most Christian music so you understand the standard by which I am making these assessments. But first, let me list the criteria. Each song will be rated on a 1 to 5 scale based on a number of categories:
1. Theological correctness. Music is one of the most influential mediums we have in our culture, and whether we like it or not, much of our Christian theological worldview is shaped by the music we allow into our ears. This is a very broad category with many subsections and elements I will be looking out for. These include but are not limited to:
- Theological accuracy
- Scriptural accuracy
- Proper portrayal of our relationship with God (see 2 and 4)
- Focus on the Resurrection and New Creation as opposed to "going to Heaven" (cf. Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright)
- Avoidance of Platonism (the demonization of the physical world and our bodies. Remember, the Resurrection is physical!)
3. Focus on victory. A popular theme in Christian music is "brokenness". In the Psalms it was appropriate poetic genre to begin with a tale of suffering and end the poem in triumph (e.g. Psalm 22). But much of what the ancients wrote about was real suffering. Pain is relative, but I find that when we sing about "how sad we are", it does severe injustice to say, the persecuted church or other Christians that endure more than what we in the West can really fathom. When we put the focus of our music on victory instead of some contrived suffering in hopes of finding solidarity with our psalmists, I think we will put our focus in the right place: the Resurrection of Christ.
Of course there is the sense of "brokenness" that comes from sin; the guilt and shame we feel when we've disobeyed God. That much is quite valid to sing about, so long as it ends in praise of God's forgiveness through repentance in Christ.
4. The Lordship of God. To avoid encouraging "moralistic, therapeutic deism", it's important to focus on songs that celebrate the lordship and sovereignty of God as opposed to things such as "how much he wants to cuddle you and fold you into his lovey-dovey arms". God does have affections I'm sure, but it is ethnocentrism at it's finest to read a cuddle-bug father figure into the text of scripture. It does not fully represent the character of God and I believe it to be quite misleading and damaging.
5. Musicality. In the Christian theater company I volunteer with, we have a saying: "If you can't do something with excellence, don't do it at all." I couldn't agree more. This is the least concerning of all the issues I've mentioned, but it is still very important. Usually musicality isn't an issue, as most Christian music is well composed. However... I think if the song is too musically fine-tuned for the purpose of creating an experience high, then is it really the Holy Spirit behind it or just the chord progression and kick drum accelerando?
This category also includes avoidance of lyrical clichés, such as "setting our hearts/church on fire", "You are Lord/God/Jesus" or "hallelujah" repetitions, etc. While that is more of a lyrical quality issue than actual musicality, it still bears relevance to the issue.
These are the standards by which I will be reviewing the music I share on this blog. I hope you enjoy what you hear!
Blessings in Christ,
Darrell
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