Traditional versus Contemporary Music - How a Short-Term Gain led to Long-Term Pain

George Marsden once mentioned that John Calvin and the 16th-Century English puritans had taken the regulative principle to a new level. They refused to accept that anything explicitly outside of Scripture could be brought into the church. Although many Puritans owned musical instruments, they dared not take them inside the church. The only songs they sang were biblically translated psalms. And as if they had to underscore themselves one more time, they refused to add musical notes to those psalms. (Marsden 143-145)

This topic was the “hot button” of the era. Puritans, including Johnathan Edwards, Cotton Mather, and Joseph Sewall, started supporting change in what was known as the “Singing Controversy.” They defended changes such as the inclusion of harmonies and non-Scriptural words. (Marsden 143-145)

The essence of that controversy has continued to this day. Although the discussion items have changed, the core of the matter has not. It has become known in some circles as the “regulative principle,” which asks if anything should be included in the church if it is not addressed in Scripture, and it’s been a common question this century. (Lennox) At this point, the modern-day version of the issue has come down to this — Should a worship service have traditional or contemporary worship

THESIS & DEFINITIONS

Now, what is contemporary music exactly? According to Merriam-Webster, it is something that is “happening, existing, living, or coming into being during the same period of time [as the subject].” Thus, contemporary music is simply the music of our times. And that leads to the question: What is the music of our time? According to Statista, a leading provider of market and consumer data, R&B/hip-hop was the most listened to type of music — with a ginormous distributed consumption rate of 29% — nearly doubling the second-place alternative. (Gotting 2022.) The music genre is best defined by the following: “Rhythm and blues, commonly known as R&B, is a musical genre developed by Black Americans in the 1940s that’s been continuously refined through the present day. R&B derived from gospel, jazz, folk, and traditional blues music and emerged in tandem with rock ‘n’ roll. (Masterclass) So clearly, drum-heavy music is “in” for our time. However, when I refer to “contemporary music” in this paper, I will generally refer to “contemporary” in a broader sense; such as songs that have been put to music in the last twenty to thirty years, and that has a potent groove.

But what is traditional music? In a broad sense, they typically refer to songs designed for groups or communities. They were often called “folk songs.” (Library of Congress) However, traditional music in the church often refers to psalms & hymns, typically sung in a simple, chorus-type way. Yet, it is important to note that in this paper, style, not content, of the different types of music will be the focus.

For new church plants — contemporary music offers more benefits, due to the lack of maturity that a younger church will start out with. However, a church should not change its musical worship from traditional to contemporary, or vice versa.

To effectively understand this issue, we have to understand the reasons we sing. But before we do, we must understand what worship is not. As John Macarthur once pointed out in an interview: “Music is not worship. Worship may include singing and music. The two are not synonymous. Worship is the attitude of the heart. And for me, this is what I want in worship, I want someone to come alongside me and help me lift up my heart in praise. That’s why I go to worship.”(MacArthur)

We sing because it is commanded by God, affirms our faith, connects our emotions, and unifies the church. James 5:13, Colossians 3:16, and Ephesians 5:19 all command that we are to sing praises to the Lord. When our God urges us to follow a discipline, we must do so. But God uses all things for the good of his people. (Rom 8:28) Following the discipline of singing allows us to connect the heart to our intellect. We must worship God in spirit and in truth. (John 4:24)

And through that, our faith is affirmed. When we sing, we confess the truth that we stored up in our minds. As Luke 6:45 claims, the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. And when hearts are unified together, unity is created. Unity is a critical command of the church. (1 Cor 1:10, Rom. 15:6, Eph. 4:3)

REBUTTALS

Now, to be clear, Christian liberty demands that we hold each brother to his conscience on issues outside the clear scope of Scripture. Thus, I do not hold that traditional music is unsuitable for a church service. I only hold that it is the lesser alternative. I believe this for five reasons: contemporary music is usually more fresh, enjoyable, effusive, understandable, and relevant.

The first reason that contemporary music is more useful than traditional music is its freshness. Freshness generally means that the energy of a song is moving an upward direction. (Ewer) Although it is true that the instruments may become louder as the energy increases, it also keeps people engaged and undistracted. Additionally, current music is usually more complimentary, allowing singers to take liberties in style, range, and even melody. (Rives) These freedoms allow each song to have a slightly new vigor, and can increase enthusiasm. In older songs, the music is often set in a way that you break the rules by going up or down a note. However, with contemporary music, you have the freedom to make little tweaks that allow each song you sing to be slightly different.

The second reason that contemporary music is more useful than traditional music is its enjoyability. The reason that the thesis of this paper was qualified in the second sentence is that older congregations will most-likely be offended if music is changed from traditional to contemporary (MacArthur), or vice versa. Besides, many people wouldn’t enjoy different types of music in the same way. As one lady said, “Traditional! There's absolutely no contest there. The contemporary music is not, for the most part, written as well as a 300-year-old Bach chorale.” (Spanga) Therefore, opinions will vary, but almost everyone agrees that contemporary music is helpful to the younger generation. As another lady said, “Contemporary music appeals more to the younger audience in the congregation, and I truly believe if contemporary music did not exist, we would not have young choirs.” (Atterbury) Whether or not the choir part is true, most everyone agrees that younger people tend to listen to music that they have grown up on, to which would be contemporary.

The third reason that contemporary music is more useful than traditional music is its effusiveness. Although not all emotions are from heaven, there is a uniqueness in both traditional and contemporary music. Just as traditional “worshipers” stand in solidarity with each other and the past, contemporary worshipers accept the affections and unity of the church in the present. And while it is true that many contemporary songs are inappropriate for the Sunday morning gathering, that can be avoided with the wise selections of “worship leaders” and pastors.

The fourth reason that contemporary music is more useful than traditional music is its understandability. Traditional hymns were written in old English, making it harder for modern-day listeners to meditate on the words. Additionally, although hymns have been known for their historical ease to sing, some have a difficult and high melody. And while many contemporary songs are sung in difficult ways, this was not forced. Many churches, unknowingly, are singing in keys too high for their congregations. If a church lowers its key from an E to a C, for example, the congregation should be able to sing along with much more ease. And with the fact that modern songs are more contemplative and repetitive, they are easier to comprehend and understand than hymns.

The fifth and final reason that contemporary music is more useful than traditional music is its relevancy. Old songs often include expressions of speech that are confusing to the modern listener. For example, the song It Is Well with My Soul by Horatio Stafford, includes unknown phrases such as attendeth, billows, buffet, and estate. Thus, many, if not most, people will sing the song only remembering the line after which it is named. While this hymn can be sung beautifully and has a touching background story, many people will sing it ineffectively, not being able to reflect on its true meaning. It is true that those who are mature in the faith, and more mature in age, will understand older hymns better, and that is why the thesis is qualified to sustain those churches already in the process of “worshiping.”

COUNTER-REBUTTALS

However, very few people have accepted this thesis. Proponents of contemporary music argue that it is vain, cultish, and unintentional.

So in response to the claim that contemporary music is vain, it would be helpful to note that all music, both traditional and contemporary, can fall under this category. Thousands of hymns have been written, with only a select few making it to the present. We do not see the staggering amount of inappropriate hymns only because they have fallen out of use. With a wise eye, a leader can choose appropriate traditional and contemporary hymns.

In response to the claim that contemporary music is cultish, there has to be a realization that the effects of sin on our world have led all things to be tainted by sin. Just as some pentecostal and prosperity gospel “churches” use contemporary music inappropriately, Muslims and Mormons use traditional music inappropriately. The means do not necessarily make the end. This type of reasoning is often called a genetic fallacy, in logical circles, because it attacks where an argument came from rather than the argument itself.

Finally, in response to the claim that contemporary music is unintentional, the same could be said for traditional music. In contemporary music, we wrap ourselves in emotions that can go too far, while in traditional music, we reflect on the past, which can also create unhealthy dependence on former things.

CONCLUSION

Thus, arguing that contemporary music should be thrown out or decreased because it is vain, cultish, or unintentional is an insufficient claim. All styles of music, inappropriately done, can create these reactions.

Therefore, contemporary music is a more appropriate, effective, and praiseworthy form of worship. It has the potential to be enormously effective as long as wise decisions are made regarding pitch, song choice, and emotions expressed during the song. It fulfills the goals of singing in a significant way — obeying God’s commands, affirming our faith, connecting our emotions, and unifying the church.

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