Theology of Worship and of its Music

This thesis follows the method of British Baptist liturgical theologian Christopher Ellis, applying it to the gathered worship of Aotearoa Baptists. The first chapter establishes the project as a ‘liturgical theology’ as opposed to a ‘theology of worship’, while at the same time acknowledging the critical step that Ellis adds to the method of Orthodox liturgical theologian Alexander Schmemann. It also clarifies the project’s methodological approach, tools, aim and scope. The second chapter uses the framework of Transplanting, Trending and Tending to provide a summary of the key developments in Aotearoa Baptist worship, from the first baptistic worship in the Nelson region to the present diverse nation-wide expression. Chapters 3-7 discuss five broad areas of Aotearoa Baptist worship: ‘Sharing’ (offered as a new category for description of Baptist worship), Prayer, Singing, Scripture and Sacraments. Following the first three steps of the method of Ellis, each chapter first outlines the variety of data for each grouping of activity, clarifying the meaning of that activity and discerns its wider liturgical value. The final chapter, representing the final step of Ellis, seeks opportunities for the development of Aotearoa Baptist worship for each category of activity.

Kate Bowler and Wen Reagan. 2014. "Bigger, Better, Louder: The Prosperity Gospel’s Impact on Contemporary Christian Worship." Religion and American Culture: A Journal of Interpretation, Vol. 24, Issue 2, pp. 186-230.

This article makes several claims about the relationship between praise and worship music and prosperity megachurches. First, it argues that the prosperity gospel has had a significant impact on contemporary worship music in America owing to its leadership in the twin rise of the megachurch and televangelism. Second, beginning in the 1990s, prosperity megachurches pioneered forms of worship music mimicking “arena rock” that capitalized on both the scale of their sanctuaries and the sophistication of their audio/visual production. The result was a progression toward music that would be a liturgy of timing, lighting, volume and performance designed for large venues. Finally, prosperity megachurches were ideally situated to benefit from this new music, both in the music industry and in their theology. Prosperity megachurches partnered with the expanding worship industry in the creation of new worship music, while the prosperity gospel theologically undergirded the affective power and performative pageantry of Christian arena rock, narrating worship music as a tool for releasing spiritual forces of prosperity. The result was a Sunday experience for the blessed that reinforced the celebration of God’s abundant blessings through music that was bigger, better, and louder.

The present article discusses what musical instruments are appropriated to adoration. General principles are presented in relation to the selection of instruments to worship and some biblical texts that may look problematic in the light of the given principles are considered. This article does not claim to be the last word. Rather it aims to stimulate respectful discussion in relation to this controversial issue.

Paul F. M. Zahl writes about “Formal-Liturgical Worship”, which he also calls Bible-based verticality. He defines the concept formal as “dignified service that is not governed by the spontaneity of the moment or the spontaneity of the officiant. It means service in a form, within a mold. It is not off the cuff or as mood would govern. Rather, it accepts the constraint of a consistent and predictable pattern.” And, liturgical means it is a “prescribed worship, service that is required for a given occasion.” He insists on the prominence of the Bible as the source for all kind of worship. It must be based on the Word. Theology has to precede the act of worship, he says.

Abstract
This project will investigate the link between physical expression and emotions in music.  Since the emotive nature of music is already well known, it will focus on the following questions:
1. Is physical expression a natural result of emotions?
2. Alternatively, can emotions be induced by physical expression?
Section A will explore the answers to these questions using musicology.  After demonstrating that bodily movements both express and induce emotions, it will deal briefly with the possible danger of manipulation.  In section B, the Bible’s teaching on bodily expressions used in worship will be investigated.  After a broader framework of holistic worship has been established, it will explore some key worship terms in Hebrew and Greek.  Examples of physical gestures used in worship in the Bible will be given, followed by physical gestures used in musical worship.  In section C, musicology and the Bible will be brought into dialogue with each other.  In particular, the bi-directional nature of physical expression and emotions in music will be discussed from the perspective of both fields of study.  Practical implications for corporate worship involving music will be teased out .  Finally, it will be established that physical gestures should be used in corporate worship and concluding recommendations will be made.

THE HOUR IS COMING AND IS NOW HERE”: THE DOCTRINE OF INAUGURATED ESCHATOLOGY IN CONTEMPORARY EVANGELICAL WORSHIP MUSIC Matthew David Westerholm, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2016 Chair: Dr. Esther R. Crookshank This dissertation critically evaluates the portrayal of the doctrine of inaugurated eschatology in an identified core repertory, the most-used contemporary congregational worship songs in churches in the United States from 2000 through 2015. Chapter 2 explores views on the role of congregational singing as it relates to the presence of God and the spiritual formation of the believer. It compares Edith Humphries’ concept of the worship service as “entrance” with Ryan Lister’s view that God’s presence is both a goal and a means of accomplishing his purposes. Then, using the work of James K. A. Smith and Monique Ingalls, chapter 2 explores the role congregational song plays in forming the identity of churches and believers. The chapter concludes by suggesting...

The 15th century saw what may rightly be called “the Renaissance of sacred music”: Since the days of the Notre Dame school (around 1200), such an amount of freshly-composed polyphonic music for liturgical and devotional use had been unheard of, and in contrast to Notre Dame practice, 15th-century composeres covered almost all liturgical genres -- with the notable exception of music associated with the Lent period, with mourning and funeral rites and of similarly ‘sad’ or ‘ascetic’ character. At the same time, polyphony in the church was vilified by some theologians engaged in church reform as mundane, lascivious and incomprehensible. Such vituperations were obviously a symptom of success rather than of a ‘crisis of music’.
Two major reasons for the rise of sacred music during the early and mid-fifteenth century suggest themselves. Firstly, from the perspective of social history, such music was used in foundations of liturgical memoria, as in anniversaries. This suggests that polyphonic masses, motets, antiphons etc. were considered by many believers as entirely appropriate to please God and his saints and to invoke mercy. In order to understand why this should be so, we must indulge, secondly, in what one might call theological aesthetics.
The Renaissance of sacred music coincided with the import of English music on the continent. Though English influence was hardly single-handedly responsible for this trend, I argue that the specific sound-qualities of English music led the advocats of polyphony to consider them as a kind of heavenly music, of angelic song, or jubilation. Evidence for this view is provided by Jan and Hubert van Eyck’s angels concert on the Ghent altar-piece, or the famous depictions of Walter Frye’s Ave regina celorum in two paintings and a ceiling painting, as well as by texts like “Mayshuet”’s motet Are post libamina/Nunc surgunt in populo or Gilles Carlier’s Tractatus de duplici ritu cantus ecclesiastici in divinis officiis, Guillaume Crétin’s Déploration on Ockeghem or Eloy d’Amerval’s Livre de la deablerie.

In the past decades, worship is infamous for its wars over forms. This is mainly due to many Christians confusing worship with music. These Christians come in various persuasions from a libertine end all the way to the other end. In retaliation, some Evangelical theologians respond by saying that what matters is the heart and, hence, implying indifference on forms presumed to be preferential. Many have since written articles on worship wars and on biblical worship in the spectrum of whether or not forms matter. What seems to be the consensus among Christians who uphold the authority of the Bible is that acceptable worship must come from a sincere heart and involves all of life. Therefore, this paper seeks to biblically evaluate the relationship between the essence and forms of worship to constitute true worship.

This thesis looks at developments in evangelical/Pentecostal contemporary Christian worship music (CWM) in response to its theological critiques and analyzes the effects they are having on what training worship leaders will need. CWM has grown into a global phenomenon that largely either disregards or is ignorant of its theological critics. The rapid rate of churches adopting CWM practices in their services has led to numerous universities creating post-secondary degrees in Worship Leadership focused specifically on modern expressions of worship. This thesis uses a convergent parallel mixed methods research model to analyze how worship practices are changing in key evangelical-turned-sacramental churches to determine the worship education needs of worship leaders in similar churches. The research results can be used by universities to adapt or create Worship Leadership degrees that properly equip students for careers in the current and future church job marketplace. Churches can use these findings to help them navigate similar transitions in their worship practices. This research showed that evangelical-sacramental churches still use contemporary and modern musical genres but also use traditional songs. The research shows that these churches require worship leaders to be proficient in modern and traditional music styles, historical worship practices, songwriting, and pastoral care.

This thesis looks at developments in evangelical/Pentecostal contemporary Christian worship music (CWM) in response to its theological critiques and analyzes the effects they are having on what training worship leaders will need. CWM has grown into a global phenomenon that largely either disregards or is ignorant of its theological critics. The rapid rate of churches adopting CWM practices in their services has led to numerous universities creating post-secondary degrees in Worship Leadership focused specifically on modern expressions of worship. This thesis uses a convergent parallel mixed methods research model to analyze how worship practices are changing in key evangelical-turned-sacramental churches to determine the worship education needs of worship leaders in similar churches. The research results can be used by universities to adapt or create Worship Leadership degrees that properly equip students for careers in the current and future church job marketplace. Churches can use these findings to help them navigate similar transitions in their worship practices. This research showed that evangelical-sacramental churches still use contemporary and modern musical genres but also use traditional songs. The research shows that these churches require worship leaders to be proficient in modern and traditional music styles, historical worship practices, songwriting, and pastoral care.

What is worship? What happens in the Divine Service? The following dogmatic discussion on the nature of the Divine Service attempts to uncover the important features, included in the concept of the Divine Service, which may be hidden or on the background in our daily language use. The discussion is divided into four parts: (1) the Divine Service as a
command: the worshipping nature of human being; (2) the Divine Service as grace: the Triune God is serving us; (3) liturgical (divine) service of the Church of Christ: communication of the Gospel and song of praise; (4) Table of Grace: communication of the grace of God and thanksgiving. The fourth part concludes with a look at the principles of theological ethics in the framework of the theology of the Divine Service. Therefore, this treatise could be supplemented by one more part, focusing on theological ethics, namely (5) the Divine Service in the everyday life of the world: life in the Spirit, or Christian freedom.

This paper considers how evangelical worship services ought to, but often do not, reflect our period in salvation history. This period is best described by the doctrine of “inaugurated eschatology”: a doctrine based on the biblical testimony, essential to our identity as evangelicals, but misunderstood in many of our churches’ gatherings. 

The paper begins by tracing the biblical data to highlight ways in which Scripture describes the kingdom of God’s current presence (the “already”) and future arrival (the “not yet”). It uses three lenses to articulate believers’ experience of the “already” and the “not yet”: affection, spatiality, and chronology.

Second, the paper traces inaugurated eschatology’s historical development to demonstrate the centrality the doctrine plays in our churches. Surveying the contributions of George Ladd, adherents of progressive dispensationalism, and Reformed thinkers, it demonstrates how the doctrine’s development became essential to the movement now known as evangelicalism. Namely, the articulation and joint endorsement of the doctrine of inaugurated eschatology created the shared paradigm that has enabled the wide level of cooperation that produced ventures such as the Gospel Coalition and the Evangelical Theological Society.

Third, drawing upon the work of Stephen Marini, the paper compares previous generations of American evangelical hymnody with the core repertory of Contemporary Worship Music (CWM). It finds that many historic hymns contain substantive reflections upon robust eschatological themes, whereas the most frequently used songs in CWM underrepresent elements of the “not yet.”

The paper concludes by arguing that evangelicals might consider current worship discussions (e.g., liturgical patterns, observing the church calendar, psalmody, lament, confession) from the perspective of inaugurated eschatology. It proposes practical ways that leaders of worship can better represent these themes as they plan services for the health and spiritual growth of their churches.

This article explores the impact of the Reformation and the post-
Reformation era on the Christian understanding of music, as well as the
historical development of music. The article begins with Martin Luther’s
unique contribution to the theology of music. The second section deals
with John Calvin’s complementary theology of music. The third section
shows that some Lutheran post-Reformation theologians have developed
their thoughts not only from the central tenets of Luther’s theology
of music but also from those of Calvin. The final section shows the relevance of reformational and post-reformational theologies of music to
contemporary issues in worship. In conclusion, an eclectic and principled
ecumenical understanding of those various theologies of music can help
to challenge in a sensitive way the current shortage of high-quality
music in our contemporary context.

This paper suggests that music is a form of communication. As art, music is able to communicate a message. This fact has some implications in the context of Christian Worship. This paper explores these implications.
This is the bibliographical reference for this paper (Turabian): 
“La música como mensaje: Algunas implicaciones para la música en la adoración.” In La música cristiana y la adoración. Edited by Glúder Quispe Huanca, 89-107. Lima: Universidad Peruana Unión, Publicaciones y Difusión Cultural, 2012.

This article is a reflection on the music in the area of worship. The author notes that it is a complex subject full of different meanings. Worship music is a phenomenon of multiple manifestations associated with varied experiences. Studying this kind of music is pretentious, much more trying to rule on it. Although we cannot be unilateral in the treatment of this topic, this article is also an invitation to reflect on worship music. 

This is the bibliographical reference for this paper:

“Introducción a la una filosofía de la música sacra desde una perspectiva adventista.” In La música cristiana y la adoración. Edited by Glúder Quispe Huanca, 211-222. Lima: Universidad Peruana Unión, Publicaciones y Difusión Cultural, 2012.

This is my LST (then LBC) undergraduate dissertation from 2001 on romantic imagery in worship songs. Please note it is now quite dated and may not represent my current views or level of understanding - but I post it here because people occasionally ask to see it.

What might we be doing to our hearers as we use language in corporate worship? Does it matter how we speak in and of the Lord's Supper? What is happening when the words "This is my body" are spoken in a congregation? One approach to answering these questions is by using the tools of speech act theory. Dan Block makes the bold statement, "The Lord's Supper is the defining ritual of the Christian community."  This statement can be helpfully explored by conceiving of the Supper as consisting of liturgical speech acts. The speech acts at the Lord's Supper have multiple, simultaneous illocutionary forces that have significant formative, perlocutionary potential. Though evangelical theologians have primarily used speech act theory for hermeneutics, it has usefulness for examining the performative speech of corporate worship. Originally conceived by J. L. Austin and further articulated by John Searle, speech act theory focuses on the intentions of the speaker, or what one does with words. Speech act theory utilizes the categories of locution, illocutionary acts, and perlocutionary effect. Liturgical speech acts are one way of construing speech act theory for examining the language of congregational worship, and they are the subject of my dissertation research.

This article is a reflection on the music in the area of worship. The author notes that it is a complex subject full of different meanings. Worship music is a phenomenon of multiple manifestations associated with varied experiences. Studying this kind of music is pretentious, much more trying to rule on it. Although we cannot be unilateral in the treatment of this topic, this article is also an invitation to reflect on worship music. The article outlines an introduction to Sacred Music from an Adventist perspective.

The doctrine of God's Triunity is at the core of Christian faith; this article presents a theological survey of how it has been understood in a musical way during the Christian era. The role of music as a participation in the liturgy of mutual love eternally experienced in the Trinity is first analyzed, with references to the Church Fathers and to modern/contemporary theologians. Later, the three main forms of congregational singing are taken into account (i.e., monody, polyphony and harmony), pointing out how each has been seen in turn as a symbol of the Trinity's love.

This paper examines Psalm 22:3 in its historical, literary, and canonical contexts in an attempt to answer the question: Does God inhabit the praises of his people? My aim in writing stems from a desire to uncover a biblically faithful interpretation application of a passage that has frequently been cited to overemphasize the responsibility of the worshiper in corporate gatherings.

The study opens with a synthesis of contemporary applications of Psalm 22:3 as found mostly within the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. I then present an exegesis of this passage, beginning broadly with the Psalms and narrowing to verse three in its context, leading to an examination of the Old Testament concept of God’s enthronement as it relates to his presence. Finally, I provide implications for the use of Psalm 22:3 in the context of contemporary worship under the new covenant. Throughout this paper I argue that although many modern Christians have understood God’s enthronement on the praises of his people as an anthropocentric idea of man’s responsibility in worship, a more faithful interpretation emphasizes God’s sovereign rule and reign over his covenant people as the central theme of Psalm 22:3.

Since the establishment of the first major cathedral girls’ choir at
Salisbury in 1991, many other cathedrals have followed suit. Various
studies have looked at the girls’ choir phenomenon from sociological or
physiological perspectives but none of these have linked it to its religious context, most commonly the Book of Common Prayer service of Evensong. Although this liturgy is made up of various Scripture readings, psalms and other songs, this thesis will focus on the Magnificat, the song of Mary. I will demonstrate that it can be productively used as a hermeneutic window (Kramer, 1990) to understand the socio-theological significance of a cathedral girls’ choir, arguing that the relationship between the Magnificat and the girls’ choir is homological. The discussion will have an interwoven ethnographic element, drawing on fieldwork conducted at Ely Cathedral between December 2015 and April 2016. The Ely Cathedral Girls’ Choir was founded in 2006 and has been under the direction of Sarah MacDonald since 2010. The cathedral choir of boys and men, which has led worship at Ely for hundreds of years, is directed by Paul Trepte. This arrangement of having two Directors of Music is a structural idiosyncrasy of Ely, related to the fact that the girls’ choir is entirely funded by the cathedral school rather than the cathedral itself. The theoretical discourse and ethnographic data will mutually inform one another to form an integrated perspective. Three themes will be used to explore the homological relationship between the text and the girls’ choir: social reversal, somatic and sonic efficacy, and eschatological tension.

Avoiding the “Ode to the Arbitrary,” the regulative principle for worship posits that the Holy Scriptures provide very clear guidelines for corporate worship services, and adding to those guidelines are unbiblical and unhelpful. This presentation is an apologetic presentation of this approach to worship, in light of the arbitrary nature of the postmodern evangelical trends.

After spending a semester learning about worship in MUMIN5312 Introduction to Christian Worship classes in Singapore Baptist Theological Seminary (SGBTS), I would like to propose a Christian Education series on “Biblical Worship” for Grace Baptist Church, Singapore (GBC). The syllabus is in accordance with, and not contrary to, GBC’s statement of faith and covenant, committed to the authority and sufficiency of the Bible, and to be  reviewed by and conducted under the direct supervision of GBC’s team of elders. I consider it prudent to adopt Regulative Principles of Worship as the guiding principles of the syllabus.
The series will consist of three two-hour sessions for all church members and two more three-hour sessions just for all worship ministry members. It is designed with these objectives in mind: (1) to understand worship from biblical perspectives, (2) to live worship as obedient lifestyle, and (3) to reflect the biblical expressions of congregational worship. The end goal is for all members to understand that biblical worship is a lifestyle of obedience, which springs from gospel-biblical truths, necessarily but naturally quickens genuine feelings of humility, gratitude, joy, and praise, and may be expressed through praying, singing, and meditating God’s Word, among others.

This chapter examines the place of music and worship within the published work of the contemporary Anglican theologian Martyn Percy. The chapter shows how Percy, recently appointed Dean of Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford, UK, has engaged music within worship as a theological statement, an ideological apparatus, a performative practice, and a formative metaphor, and how Percy has been instrumental in the development of the emerging field of Congregational Music Studies.

So what are the implications for us today as we consider this future hope Paul taught to the early church? We are clear that Paul insisted on a communal life; a faith expressed not only in private, but also in public.  He calls us to finding community spaces both locally (and I suggest globally), where the hope of the crucified Christ can be expressed as we engage in the world’s present suffering, in anticipation that ‘all things will be made new’ (2 Cor. 5:17).  As “image bearers” of Christ’s hope, what modern responsibilities do we have as the ekklesia? Is our responsibility ecological; sustaining life and protecting the wonder of God’s creation? Surely we also have a responsibility to the world’s poor and to the socially and politically marginalised? I suggest we also care about other things as well, such as nurturing creativity in the arts; so that God’s beautiful story can be revealed in new prophetic ways. Our ecclesiology may also need to be challenged. How can we not just “do” church but “be” a missional community, reflective of God’s future Kingdom, without buying into the world’s consumerism and individualism? Finally, do we need to nurture a new generation of church songwriters and song leaders who promote sound theology in their worship? Whilst churches are beginning to wake up to the eschatological hope that Paul speaks of, our hymns and songs have yet to catch up. We need to rediscover songs (and write new ones) that collectively renew hearts and minds and broaden our perspective of community, mission and our future hope on earth. Many of today’s worship songs (and past hymns) are sadly filled with Gnostic imagery of heaven that indulge in personal introspection and “escapism”.[1]


________________________________________
[1] Examples of hymns and songs with questionable lyrics:
1. How Great Thou Art - and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!
2. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of Your glory and grace.
3. Away in a Manger - and fit us for heaven, to thee with Thee there
4. Amazing Grace (“My Chains are Gone” version, last verse from J. Newton’s poem) - The earth shall soon dissolve like snow; the sun forbear to shine. But God who called me here below, will be forever mine.
5. This World Is Not My Home - This world is not my home. I'm just a-passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue.
6. Lord I Lift Your Name On High - from the cross to the grave from the grave to the sky
7. Leader of Faithful Souls - travel to the sky…meeting our Saviour in the skies, our everlasting home above. This earth not our place
8. Love Divine, All Loves Excelling - Till in heaven we take our place.
9. Christ the Lord is Risen Today - Soar we now where Christ has led, following our exalted Head. Ours the cross, the grave, the skies

In this essay I develop a theology of seminary worship. I first explore four standard ways of thinking about worship in a theological school. I argue that, in the end, all of these suffer from internal tensions.  They speak of the role in a theological school of worshipping God; but in the end, they all conceive of the seminary chapel as serving the worshipping community. As an alternative, I argue that seminary worship happens for God’s sake; and I embed this in a wider account of theological study as a whole as for the sake of God. I explore how such vision gets implemented in a concrete seminary worship program.

The article is based on my own oversight of the worship program at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary

This dissertation critically evaluates the portrayal of the doctrine of inaugurated eschatology in an identified core repertory, the most-used contemporary congregational worship songs in churches in the United States from 2000 through 2015.
Chapter 2 explores views on the role of congregational singing as it relates to the presence of God and the spiritual formation of the believer. It compares Edith Humphries’ concept of the worship service as “entrance” with Ryan Lister’s view that God’s presence is both a goal and a means of accomplishing his purposes. Then, using the work of James K. A. Smith and Monique Ingalls, chapter 2 explores the role congregational song plays in forming the identity of churches and believers. The chapter concludes by suggesting that the aesthetic paradigm of Nicholas Wolterstorff has useful implications for the manner in which congregational singing serves as the occasion for entering the divine presence.

Chapter 3 maps a typology of themes related to the doctrinal umbrella of “inaugurated eschatology,” as codified by George Ladd and now a widely-used term in evangelical scholarship, so as to provide nuanced categories by which one can evaluate the content and scope of eschatological thought in American evangelical life. After a brief survey of the doctrine’s historical development, tracing the contributions of George Ladd, Anthony Hoekema, and “progressive dispensationalism,” the dissertation traces the biblical data to highlight ways in which Scripture speaks of the kingdom of God’s current presence (the “already”) and future arrival (the “not yet”). The chapter then considers believers’ experience of the “already” and the “not yet” in language of affection, spatiality, and chronology.

Chapter 4 traces these eschatological themes in American evangelical hymnody from ca. 1700 through 1985, addressing a few representative hymns from each hymnic era by way of illustration. Drawing upon the work of Stephen Marini, Eric Routley, Richard Crawford, and others, the chapter surveys select examples of American evangelical hymnody from four time periods in US history (beginning in 1737) and finds that many of these historic hymns contain substantive reflections upon robust eschatological themes.

Chapter 5 surveys the core repertory of CWM across the span of years from 2000 to 2015 for a portrayal of the themes of inaugurated eschatology. Using Richard Crawford’s concept of “core repertory,” it synthesizes CCLI reports of song usage over a defined recent period (2000 to 2015) to identify a core group of songs for analysis, and derives a body of 83 songs. Using the lens of inaugurated eschatology developed in chapter 3, it concludes that elements of “not yet” are underrepresented in contemporary evangelical congregational song.

Chapter 6 proposes practical ways that church leaders of worship can better represent these themes as they plan services for the health and sustainable growth of their churches. Chapter 7 summarizes each of the chapters, draws implications, and suggests areas for further research.

In recognition of the observation that sound is an integral element in the very fabric of creation, this paper will set forth a brief theology of music so that a greater understanding of the context of my musical experience as a United Methodist Christian from North Alabama may be had.  To begin, I will argue for the fundamentality of sound to a proper understanding of creation.  In light of such an understanding, a robust theology of matter borrowing from Eastern Orthodox tradition will greatly aid the furtherance of a theological perspective on music and music-making.

Fellowship of Catholic Scholars Quarterly 27:3 (Fall 2004): 44-47.  A book aimed at a popular readership, Bread of Life, Cup of Salvation offers a good look at some basic concepts concerning the Eucharistic Liturgy, but sometimes allows vague concepts and unexamined practical biases crowd out his own solid thought.

God does not seek for golden vessels, and does not ask for silver ones, but He must have clean ones. 1 -Dwight L. Moody Paul wrote the Book of Titus to offer wisdom and encouragement as Titus continued to build the Cretan church in the face of challenges from his congregation. He opens the pastoral epistle clarifying the qualifications for church leaders, which includes being above reproach, the husband of one wife, having believing children, not insubordinate or debaucherous, not arrogant, nor quick-tempered, a drunkard, violent or greedy; he must be hospitable, a lover of good, selfcontrolled, upright, holy, disciplined, trustworthy to the word, and able to teach and rebuke sound doctrine (1:6-9). After instructing Titus how to deal with false teachers, he offers the defining exhortation in v.15-16: "To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work." In these verses, we see two important points: (1) for those who are pure-possessing faith in Christ-there is no compromise, everything is pure for them; and (2) they demonstrate their faith through their deeds. There is no middle ground; those in Christ are to do all things according to his character. This does not mean Christians are sinless, but their lives are characterized by qualities consistent

The 'annual carol service' is a common feature in the calendars of many churches in run-up to Christmas. But the liturgical and theological aspects of these events is all too easily overlooked. And, whether chosen deliberately or not, every carol service promotes a theology and a vision of what is involved in worship. Vocatus atque vocatus non theologia adest!