The Performer-Audience Model of Worship
“In 1964, Marshal McLuhan famously opined, “The medium is the message.” In other words, the content of a given communication is influenced by the context in which it is presented. A news story in an evening newspaper is different than the same story on the 6-o’clock news is different than the same story read on a website.
This is familiar ground to every communications major for the past 50 years, but rarely do we consider its impact in the realm of the sacred. In particular, the context in which a given hymn or spiritual song is used will shape that hymn’s very nature.”
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The Congregation-Participant Model of Worship
“Conversely, hymns used in the congregation-participant model will be like this:
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SIMPLE. Performers may be skilled musicians, but the ordinary members of the congregation emphatically are not. Indeed, every congregation contains those who do not enjoy singing, do not sing well, and only sing in the assembly because they believe God has commanded them to do so. Most congregants are not able to read music. They do not gather weekly for rehearsal; instead, they show up on the first day of the week and sing without preparation. In a setting like this, only simple songs survive. A band can navigate a praise song with inconsistent meter and tricky rhythm; a congregation will train-wreck every time. When the congregation has to actually sing interesting music, its love of interesting music diminishes greatly.”
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if you live near Cookeville, TN come join us for the 3rd Annual Summer Singing @ Jere Whitson Road
phillip w. martin 