hymn? Were they uneasy about singing together, espe- cially in the company of a pastor whom they had just met? Public communal singing became less common with the invention of the microphone. Further advances in technology allow us to be surrounded by singing, yet not sing. As with so many other dimensions of life, we leave it to the professionals. We put in earbuds and are privately serenaded by our favorite singers. While there is certainly nothing wrong with enjoying musical performances, we can be tricked into thinking that we aren’t good enough to sing ourselves (except in the shower or in the car where other sounds drown us out).
Though we are often born singing, those infant babbles fade and we become more self-conscious. Instead of sing- ing like Mary, we resemble Adam and Eve in the garden, hiding our voices, ashamed of being so vulnerable in front of others.
Nurturing the song Singing is a gift from God. The Psalms command and invite it: “O sing to the Lord a new song” (98:1); “Come into [God’s] presence with singing” (100:2); “I will sing of your steadfast love, O Lord, forever” (89:1). Lutherans have often been called “The Singing Church” as Martin Luther extolled this gift and expected it to be stewarded by the people. Alice Parker, a highly regarded leader of communal singing, notes in Melodious Accord: Good Singing in Church (Liturgy Training Publications, 1991): “There are churches in all denominations in this country where con- gregations do sing well and it is always because there is at least one person who is actively expecting it.” In a time when singing together is rarely expected, the church does a remarkable thing when it expects us to sing. Sometimes it erupts spontaneously, yet most often we need to intentionally plant singing seeds and tend them carefully to reap the benefits of this gift. Consider again the woman with Alzheimer’s who sang
“Away in the Manger.” She had most likely learned that carol in her childhood. Studies on music and the brain reveal that the songs we learn earliest in life remain with us the longest. What does this mean for assembly song? Think about suffering and the last days when choos-
Resources
• Musicians Guide to Evangelical Lutheran Worship (Augsburg Fortress, 2007). • ELCA: Visit
www.elca.org/worship. • Many continuing education opportunities are available through the Association of Lutheran Church Musicians (
www.alcm.org) and the Leadership Program for Musicians (
www.lpm-online.org).
December 2013 15
ing the songs we teach our children. This may sound dark and cheerless, but it’s actually a sign of deep care for our faith. With songs to be sung by Sunday schools, children’s choirs or the whole assembly, consider whether the tunes and texts are something children will want to recall at the end of their lives. The psalms are often the seeds for assembly song because they contain the deep range of joy and grief we need for our life’s journey. Don’t be afraid of repetition. To know words and melo- dies deep in our bones, we must sing them time and time again. We can still be challenged with new songs—espe- cially songs from other cultures. Balance is key: too much newness and the seeds won’t be planted deeply enough to take root and grow. Too much repetition and we are not open to the new songs the Spirit may be revealing to us. When we care about the health of our worshiping assembly’s song, we pay close attention to musical lead- ership and how leaders nurture our singing together. On the most basic level, this means making sure there is a person (or people) in your assembly actively expecting people to sing. This person or team must be given time, space and resources to tend the song. A leader should be attentive to how everyone breathes together to help the group sing with confidence. Breathing is the beginning. Keeping a steady beat is essential. Expect that leaders will do both well, and if they struggle to lead, find ways to encourage them so they, in turn, will encourage the whole assembly. Many of us can’t imagine worshiping God without singing together. Yet such singing, like a garden, needs time and attention. When we leave a worship service where the assembly sang well, we can’t help but be uplifted. For most of us, church is the only place we get to sing on a regular basis. Paying attention to the health of our singing does a body good—the body of Christ.
When congregational leaders gather to vision and eval- uate how we are carrying out God’s mission in the world, we need to also ask about the singing: How does how we sing together reflect our ministry as a whole? What seeds are being planted? Does our singing, like the words of Mary’s song, shape us for works of love and justice? These questions deserve our attention so that with Mary and all generations, “how can [we] keep from singing?”
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