Christmas, as well as being great evangelistically, is also a good time to model how to sing congregationally.
Having experienced so many other types of church music, it’s struck me that evangelical church music is very distinctively congregational, and this should be hugely attractive to visitors at our carol services, who come because they want to sing.
Just an audience?
Strangely, it’s rare that people are expected to sing when they come to a church these days. Most church traditions encourage a performance-driven meeting, where the congregation either simply listens or has minimal participation. The congregation is treated like an audience. Having been brought up as a cathedral chorister, I was very aware that most had come to listen to the choir sing. Some used the music to help them experience something spiritual. Some, I’m sure, listened to the words and meditated on them. Others used the music as an opportunity to switch off from the outside world for a bit or be entertained. One of the cathedral congregation members forwarded me a YouTube clip of an opera singer, whose performance he said was much more spiritually uplifting than having to sing interminable hymns. It was clear that music wasn’t supposed to be used by the congregation to serve the congregation. That was left to the professionals.
