‘I want mystery; I want weirdness; I want strangeness.’ This is what British Christianity’s favourite historian Tom Holland looks for in a church. Holland claims no Christian faith of his own, but there are many in the church who (with some genuine warrant) reckon he’s onto something.
At this point, enter stage left the countless church musicians of our land. Perhaps with the exception of pastors, you will find no-one tasked with a more delicate balancing act in all of Christendom: leading the people of God as they sing in worship. Alongside juggling the parameters of faithfulness to Scripture, relevance to and edification of a church family, not too fast, not too slow, not too high, not too low, pursuing a taste that is neither offensive nor anodyne (the list could go on)… how on earth do you make room for mystery, weirdness and strangeness as well?
With the precious few words left in this month’s column, let me suggest two things:
First, what makes Christianity weird is not its aesthetic, but its Emmanuel. It is not the adoption of a style, taste, practice or preference, but the person at its heart. Christianity needs not the recovery of a particular custom to stand out from the crowd, but of Christ and His cross that upends our world’s notions of power, status, righteousness, love and plenty more besides.
Second, that person calls us to a weirdness that is reasonable. Peter writes: ‘In your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.’
Our reverence of Christ should stand out; it should invite questions; it should be weird to a watching world. But that’s not the same as inexplicable.
So, church musician, feed your church family with songs full of the strangeness of the gospel of Jesus. Harness the sublime power of music so that hearts and minds delight in a hope that comes through death, not despite it, and tremble at a love so weird that it loves the unlovable unto the heights of heaven.
Sing UP!
What is your church like at singing?Anecdotal evidence and the lived experience of many would seem to suggest that …