May. 26, 2016

The Pipe Organ In Worship, Part I

"Playing the organ in church is like wetting your pants in a dark blue suit ... it gives you a warm feeling, but nobody really knows what you've done."
-- Camille Saint-Saens


Why do so many pipe organs in moderately-sized churches fall into disuse? ...

ANSWER:  Usually, in almost every case, the reason is the budget, not the lack of organists.  In operating a church of the present day shortfalls of income are exceedingly common, and anything musical, including keeping the organ in good working condition, often gets pushed to the bottom of the list of needed expenditures.


Tithing is an Old Testament concept.

The tithe was a requirement of the Law in which the Israelites were to give 10 per cent of the crops they grew and the livestock they raised to the tabernacle/temple; in fact the Old Testament Law required multiple tithes -- one for the Levites, one for the use of the temple and the feasts, and one for the poor of the land -- which would have pushed the total to over 23 per cent.

Some understand the Old Testment tithe as a method of taxation to provide for the needs of the priests and Levites in the sacrificial system.

After the death of Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law, the New Testament nowhere commands, or even recommends, that Christians submit to a legalistic tithe system.

The New Testament nowhere designates a percentage of income a person should set aside, but only says gifts should be in keeping with income (1Cor.16:2).

Some in the Christian church have taken the 10 per cent figure from the Old Testament tithe and applied it as a "recommended minimum" for Christians in their giving.

Although no tithe is demanded of the Christian, the New Testament talks about the importance and benefits of giving.

We are to give as we are able; sometimes that means giving more than 10 per cent; sometimes that may mean giving less; it all depends on the ability of the Christian and the needs of the body of Christ.

Every Christian should diligently pray and seek God's wisdom in the matter (James1:5).

Above all, offerings should be given with pure motives and an attitude of worship to God and service to the body of Christ -- "Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."  (2Cor9:7).


Ask any pastor and (s)he will tell us that the Holy Scriptures are essential for the sowing of the seed of the Word of God, but nothing can or will prepare the soil of the human heart to receive that seed like hymns and other songs of faith; true worship therefore calls for companion volumes: a Bible and a hymnal -- the two are as inseparable as the sword of the Spirit and the shield of faith, and Christians really need both to stand firm in the strength of His might.
No other musical instrument is so well geared to leading congregational singing of hymns and songs like the pipe organ, and no other person is more responsible for the success of the music ministry than (s)he who is in command of this colossal machine.
With the onset of rhythm driven worship in many of our churches today, and with the thirst for entertainment some church-going people seem to have when they attend a worship service, and with the difficulties being encountered by some congregations these days in attracting regular attendees supportive of a budget which can employ a regular organist, some are calling into question the use of the pipe organ at all.
Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church, in his multi-million selling book "The Purpose Driven Church," whose publications, workshops, seminars, and video/televised programs unfortunately have had vast influence, proposes that all churches should adopt the Saddleback model in which the first thing a church should do, musically, is replace the organ with a band and abolish all traditional, conservative forms of music.
This aberrant thinking denies an important truth, and it is this:  Praise bands, guitar groups, pianos, drummers, and other percussion instruments all have their biblical place in worship, but they cannot do in worship what an organ does.

These instruments are not equipped to evoke that same sense of sheer, thrilling power and support for congregational singing; furthermore, there is no biblical justification for the exclusion of any instrument in worship that produces its sound by means of pipe (Ps. 150:4).

Any biblical justification for exclusive use of contemporary music in worship is also sorely deficient.
Before we say to ourselves, "We don't use the organ any more, why don't we just take it out and put the drum cage over there ..." we should rethink the role of the organ.
The pipe organ is one of the oldest instruments ever invented, dating back to 250 B.C.; an interesting piece of history is that some of the first organs were used in the Roman amphitheatres and coliseums where gladiators and wild animals killed Christians and each other; after many refinements and improvements it eventually made it's way into the church over a thousand years after its invention; and for many centuries it's been the dominant instrument among composers of sacred music.
While it's generally acknowledged that no musical instrument was developed for the express purpose of use in worship (except perhaps arguably the human voice), and that every musical instrument has its roots in either secular music or pagan worship, the pipe organ has been instrumental (no pun intended) in helping to develop the rich tradition of hymn singing and has almost single-handedly defined the splendor of the congregational song.
We can read in many published articles about people bemoaning the fact that church congregations don't sing like they used to sing; and most people would blame it on the newness of the songs or the decline of church choirs.
These are valid points, but something else has also contributed to this reality, and it's the reduced role of the pipe organ.
Historically, it was the King of Instruments that underscored congregational singing back when congregations really sang; the church organ was the "voice" of the people, giving the average congregant a place where their voice could "hide" in the awesome sound of resounding hymns; the pipe organ sound is a safe place to put your voice no matter how you sing.
The singing congregation is the living congregation; when a church dies we may be certain that it's music was dead first.
It is in this last statement that we find the church organ's true function -- that it exists not for itself but, just like the church choir, for the sake of the congregation.
Only when it helps its church to have a living congregation has it achieved its destiny.
Instead of shutting down that pipe organ in our places of worship, why not use a few less singers on microphones and allow the organ to undergird the congregational song, no matter what style of music being sung.
The organ need not be dominant on every song in order to be relevant; it need not be a showpiece, but it can be a really great support for the singing.
The power of this instrument might just be rediscovered that way.
And, every once in a while, why not let the organist lead the congregation in a transcendent worship experience using an instrument that has the range of power unmatched by any other.
Some of the most divine music ever written (particularly in the Lutheran and Anglican traditions) requires an organ; in these churches, it can't be replaced or omitted.
Those who know this will almost have a heart attack reading anything else; they'd be the first to say, "Bach and Buxtehude, and Britten and Vaughn Williams, with a praise band? ... NEVER."
Anglican choral music is very probably the apogee of Christian choral art, often both transcendent and breathtakingly beautiful ... and it wasn't written to be accompanied by piano, praise band, drums, harmonica, sax quartet, or any such.
The 500th anniversary of the Reformation is coming soon; our worship center could mark it early with an awesome pipe organ rendition of Luther's immortal hymn "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God."
Granted, we are supposed to be attending worship services to surrender our hearts to God, partly in praise and song, not to be entertained or to judge how well the praise band is doing; and yes, the admonition of the psalmist [Ps. 150] is to use whatever instrument we have, and our own voice, to praise the One Who is worthy (with lyres, harps, cymbals, trumpets, stringed instruments, as well as "pipe"); and yes, all of this sounds like a description of a praise band.
Even so, somehow the guitar can't touch that one.
Bottom line: the majority of pipe organs are found in churches; that's where the majority of organists work; those are the venues that have the most bearing on the art of organ playing; and that's where the majority of organists can expect to meet most of their challenges.
(con't in Part II)


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