The Way of the Mean in Worship...

In Greek philosophy there was an idea proposed by Aristotle that there is a desirable middle between the two extremes, that of excess and that of deficiency, which we should all strive for. For example courage, which is a virtue, if taken to excess would manifest itself as recklessness and if observed as deficient it would appear as cowardice.

I really like this idea and I think that we can apply it in so many places.  One of those places is the Sunday morning worship musical experience of modern American Christianity.  Be aware that I write this off the top of my head without any ability or training in music - just observation after attending a charismatic church, a Southern Baptist church, and a Presbyterian church (PCA).

When God first saved me (around 1005) I began attending a neo-pentecostal church.  The musical worship there centered on a band with acoustic/ electric guitar, bass, keyboard, and drums.  The lead pastor sang every Sunday and he had 2-3 girls who sand backup.  It was always either a  lively or a somber worship experience.  We would switch between upbeat and slow songs by contemporary artists like Jonathan Stockstill, Chris Tomlin, or Hillsong.  People would raise their hands, weep openly, bounce with excitement, and shout Amen.  I often took off my flip-flops (as did Moses on the mountain) in reverence to the "holy ground" as I swayed and danced to the music.  We weren't overly wacko - there was no rolling in the floor or being slain in the spirit, thank God! 

- The musical worship at this neo-pentecostal church was wildly emotional and you could feel the notes and the energy like it was a physical thing - however the lyrics were shallow and repetative for the most part.

As we left that church, over doctrinal and ecclesiological issues, we began to attend a So. Baptist church.  In contrast to the 150+ members of our charismatic church, this SBC church had 2000 people on Sunday mornings.  They had an amazingly varied musical worship experience.  There was both a band and a choir - there was a quartet and solo singers - there were guest musicians and banjo days...It was very entertaining, like a concert, we all watched and clapped, but that was about it.  No crying, no dancing, not much hand-raising.  The songs ranged from traditional hymms to  Chris Tomlin style contemporary.

- The musical worship at this SBC church was very ecclectic and always entertaining - however it never seemed participatory nor very touching.  The lyrics were varied between solid hymnal theology and 7-11 repeats as a general rule.

At our current Presbyterian church (PCA) the musical worship is typically done by one or two guys on stage with acoustic guitars.  We are a small congregation (less than 100) and occasionally others will help out, but it is usually the same two fellows.  They play a mix of old hymms set to modern arrangments, traditional hymms, and a few more contemporary works.  No one claps, no one raises hands, no one dances for sure.  The songs are beautiful and rich and they often are quite touching but there is little expression of that feeling.

-  The musical worship at the PCA church we attend now is highly Christ-exalting with very good theological undertones.  It is beautifully composed and it has the potential to stir much emotion, even though that isn't typically apparent.

...so, I am trying to say that the charismatic church and the Presbyterian church are at opposites sides of the spectrum as the Golden Mean applies.

The charismatics are overly emotional with a lack of depth in their song choice  while the Presbyterians have the right kind of songs devoid of any emotion.

What is needed is a middle ground, a place where theologically solid songs are sung in worship AND where the worshippers themselves bring their whole heart to the experience.

I wish I could say that the So. Baptist church had gotten it right - no dice.  They did have solid songs for the most part, but there was little emotion displayed in worship.  I think that their size was a real hinderance, when a church gets too big the Sunday morning worship becomes entertainment for man and not an act of glorifying God.

There is a black Reformed church downtown that I bet has some killer worship.   In fact, Sho Baraka of the Reformed Rap group 116 Clique is on staff there.  I wish it was a local church for us, oh well.

I hope that this post has given you a simple introduction to the Way of the Mean (the Golden Mean) and I hope it has given you something to think about as you read the thoughts of a completely non-musical guy who was just considering the different facets of musical worship.