[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][fusion_text]Yesterday we talked about making your own music. When you do so, you are following an illustrious tradition, from singing of the Psalms to the chants of the early Church right up to Christian rock & hip hop of today.
Did you know that the earliest Christian music was antiphonal — singing or playing the music in alternative groups, much like our rounds today.
Of course, Gregorian chants are famous & still practiced today. Their rhythms can be hypnotic, putting one into a state of grace, appropriate for contemplation & prayer.
Even the Latin masses in the early Catholic church were often sung, & we see that today in many churches, Catholic & Protestant, where the pastor may sing out & be answered by the congregation.
And then there are Christmas Carols, those festive songs celebrating Our Savior’s birth. There are even Easter Carols, although that tradition has largely died out. Perhaps it is time to bring it back.
We now think of hymns as being a part of worship, but it was not always so, at least not in the sense of the entire congregation singing from their hymnals. This is a beautiful quotation from Thomas Aquinas about the hymn:
“A hymn is the praise of God with song; a song is the exultation of the mind dwelling on eternal things, bursting forth in the voice.”
As you sing your hymns on Sunday, why not contemplate this simple but pithy statement. Your voice is indeed an “exultation of the mind” & a gift to God in thanks for all of His many gifts to us.
If you would like to learn more about the rich history of Christian music, we recommend these books. They are a delight not only for the knowledge they will bring you, but for the photographs & illustrations as well. We have a glorious history in music — celebrate it.
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