The music and worship of (1) that group of Christian sects whose defining characteristic is the belief that the occurrence on the day of Pentecost recounted in the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles not only signalled the birth of the Church but described an experience available to believers in all ages, namely, baptism in the Holy Spirit; and (2) those churches, either belonging to or outside the mainstream denominations, that were touched by the Charismatic Renewal movement of the latter half of the 20th century. Associated with these traditions is a distinctive repertory of songs and choruses expressing, often in a vivid and personal manner, individual and collective experience of the Christian faith.
J. RANDALL GUTHRIE
Pentecostal and Renewal church music
The Pentecostal Movement in America, strongly influenced by Methodism and the Holiness Movement (out of which it grew), is considered to have emerged at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, with outpourings of the Holy Spirit manifested in North Carolina (1896), Kansas (1901) and California (1906). At the beginning all leaders preached the Wesleyan doctrine of sanctification as a ‘second work of grace’, and the ‘third blessing’ as baptism in the Holy Spirit, with speaking in tongues as evidence. So strong was the teaching on baptism in the Holy Spirit that at a very early stage at least six hymnals with the title Pentecostal Hymns were used within the movement.
From its meagre beginnings Pentecostalism has grown into a global force within Christendom, crossing denominational barriers in a way that few other movements have managed. Missionary activity on the part of several of the long-established Pentecostal Churches, international crusades by leading evangelists such as Oral Roberts, religious broadcasting and the proliferation of Christian television networks have all contributed to its worldwide spread. Today, there are three broad groups of Pentecostal believers: (1) classical Pentecostals, belonging to Churches whose origins date back to the beginning of the 20th century, for example, the Assemblies of God, the Church of God (Cleveland, TN), the Pentecostal Holiness Church, and the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel; (2) neo-Pentecostals, who accept baptism in the Holy Spirit but choose to stay within the mainstream denominations; and (3) charismatics, whose affiliation and doctrinal beliefs lie outside the classical Pentecostal or main denominational frameworks, but whose faith is centred on the distinctively Pentecostal blessings and phenomena, namely, baptism in the Holy Spirit with the spiritual gifts, such as divine healing, of 1 Corinthians xii.8–10. In 1992 it was estimated that about a quarter of all Christians belonged to Pentecostal or charismatic denominations.
Music, often highly spiritual and improvisatory, has always been a significant feature of Pentecostal worship. The Movement’s immediate musical roots lay in the traditional congregational songs common to many other denominations, particularly the hymns of Isaac Watts and Charles Wesley. But even more widespread and characteristic were the Holiness Movement songs, which focussed on purity of heart, eradication of sin and a deeper walk with God (e.g. The Cleansing Wave), camp-meeting songs, concerned with man’s earthly trials, conversion to the Christian life, and the experience of joy on the path to heaven (e.g. Our Lord’s Return to Earth), and gospel songs, which were songs of personal testimony and heartfelt belief in Jesus Christ, especially during times of trial (e.g. Blessed Assurance). The more distant origins of Pentecostal music, however, may be found in biblical traditions of music and worship. In the Old Testament music clearly had both a ‘functional’ and a ‘spiritual’ aspect: in everday life it was used, for example, in social contexts, as a martial accompaniment to physical work, for didactic purposes, and as an element in liturgy; but sacred song could also be a vehicle for expressing the deeper dimensions of human thought and experience. The functional aspect is of primary importance to Pentecostals, for whom music must be easily accessible, capable of reflecting the ‘everyday life’ of the believer and allowing the worshipping community to convey its needs to God (as, for example, in Reuben Morgan’s Your Unfailing Love: ‘When my burden keeps me doubting, when my memories take the place of you, Jesus come’). But it is also necessary for sacred music to reinforce theological belief and impart spiritual truths, thus helping people to grow closer to their Creator (as in songs concerned with healing, the second coming of Christ, spiritual baptism and the workings of the Holy Spirit). The use of various musical instruments, the importance of singing psalms and scriptural songs, and the rebirth, within the Charismatic Movement, of dance in worship, may be directly attributed to Old Testament example (see Alford, 688).
Pentecostal and Renewal church music
During the early decades of the 20th century, as the Pentecostal Movement developed, a freer, more demonstrative kind of worship evolved whose influence would eventually leave no branch of the Western Church untouched. In the 1950s and 1960s a ‘neo-Pentecostal’ style of worship began to appear, particularly in the USA and Great Britain, among small groups of Christians belonging to the mainstream denominations. At first these ‘charismatic fellowships’ would mainly gather in homes or in smaller rooms of churches for prayer-meeting type services. But as the Charismatic Renewal movement gathered worldwide momentum, it was only a matter of time before its characteristic style of worship, known as ‘Praise and Worship’, whose hallmark was an intensely personal form of group singing called ‘praise singing’, began to be be incorporated into the normal services of individual churches. Many Christians of hitherto traditional persuasion – Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, Mennonites, Anglicans/Episcopalians, Lutherans, Roman Catholics – came to realize that their worship, though outwardly proper and beautiful, seemed inwardly void and unimaginative, lacking freshness and life-giving spirituality. By contrast, Charismatic Renewal brought a fresh ‘wind of the Spirit’, imparting a new vitality and meaning by restoring an emphasis on dynamic worship, in both a personal and corporate way. Worship could be an experience of joy and celebration, often manifested in enthusiastic, winsome singing, the raising of hands, exclamations of verbal praise, and, at times, spontaneous spiritual dance. The study of scripture (aided by new versions of the Bible) also plays a vital part in this type of worship, and in many churches there has been a renewed interest in the Eucharist, but praise and praise singing remain central.
Although a casual observer might easily interpret congregational praise singing as primarily emotional, its authenticity is supported by biblical practice. Some theologians see the 20th-century Charismatic Renewal movement as the spiritual restoration of Davidic worship around the Ark of the Covenant, especially through praise singing. A number of elements in Praise and Worship are based on Old Testament models and represent a liberating trend by allowing expression of the whole body and person. The joyous intensity and robust, exuberant style of praise singing is a response to Psalm lxvi.1–2, ‘Make a joyful noise unto God all ye lands: sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious’, as well as other exhortations such as ‘cry aloud’ (Psalm lv.17) and ‘shout for joy’ (Psalm v.11); even ‘laughter’ is not excluded (Psalm cxxvi.2) from worship. Such singing is often accompanied by bowing and kneeling (Psalm xcv.6: ‘Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our maker’), clapping of hands and shouting (Psalm xlvii.1: ‘O clap your hands all peoples; shout to God with a voice of triumph’), lifting up of hands (Psalm cxxxiv.2: ‘Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord’), and – perhaps the most surprising of all – dancing (Psalm cl.4: ‘Praise him with the timbrel and dance’; and 2 Samuel vi.14: ‘David danced before the Lord with all his might’).
The charismatic service allows for a type of freedom and spontaneity whereby pastor and ‘worship leader’, who form a dual team, do not feel the need to be in complete control of the progress of the meeting. It is assumed that unexpected changes of direction will occur, as motivated by the Holy Spirit, although this does not mean that an eclectic, free-for-all pattern emerges but rather that a type of ‘guided spontaneity’ prevails in which events in the service are anticipated but not prescribed or predicted. The worship leader – a kind of master of ceremonies responsible for guiding the direction of the service – chooses and leads the songs, leads prayer, quotes scripture and provides commentary. The ability of the congregation to ‘flow with the Spirit’ as directed through the worship leader is essential. A common freedom and excitement of praise is often shared by worship leader and congregation alike, resulting in improvised and creative worship that emanates from the very hearts of the participants, who may express themselves in prayer, testimonies, word of knowledge, prophecy, and expressions of praise in singing, shouting and dancing.
The key to praise singing lies in the participation of the congregation, for praise music is not primarily to be listened to but rather to be sung (choir items and organ playing, therefore, are usually of lesser importance). The music generally consists of short, often repetitive choruses and other scripture songs, whose antecedents may be found in the Pentecostal camp-meeting and gospel songs (see §1 above). The voice of the worship leader, amplified by an efficient sound system, is of primary importance in leading the singing, although gestures (not necessarily the conventional directing patterns) are often used to indicate the beginning and ending of phrases. The singing is usually reinforced by a back-up group of ‘praise singers’ (or an individual co-singer) and instrumentalists, but rather than functioning as a choir the singers encourage participation through their visual exuberance and their leadership in physical movements.
The musical characteristics of praise singing are very much bound up with popular music styles and performing practice, for example, the use of pop-derived harmonies, rhythms and instrumentation (drums, piano, synthesizers, guitars and, in large churches, wind instruments). Some of the most prominent charismatic churches engage arrangers and copyists on a weekly basis to provide new instrumental charts for praise singing. The result is a type of ‘sacra-pop’ that has become the dominant musical style in such worship. The development of electronic technology has been an important factor in the growth of the genre, for sound reinforcement systems and electronic and amplified instruments permit an enormous array of sounds and dynamic levels not previously available. Nevertheless, a wide range of practice exists, and in many churches the style of singing remains simple, with minimal use of instruments and electronic support.
The kind of praise singing described above has somewhat displaced traditional congregational song and the use of the hymnal, not least because holding a hymnbook inhibits the worshippers from raising or clapping their hands. The most widespread practice is to sing from memory, with some use of the overhead projector to provide the words. However, ‘liturgical’ churches of charismatic persuasion tend to blend their use of memorized choruses and scripture songs with use of the hymnal and the servicebook. In the early stages, Praise and Worship music was mostly passed on by oral tradition, for example, the chorus ‘Seek ye first’ (1972) and the simple repetitive ‘Alleluia’ (1972). Other typical and universally known charismatic songs, many of them in a direct, folklike idiom, include ‘This is the day’ (1967), ‘I exalt Thee’ (1976), ‘I will enter his gates with thanksgiving’ (1976), ‘Praise the name of Jesus’ (1976), ‘Give thanks’ (1978), ‘I love you Lord’ (1978) and ‘We bring the sacrifice of praise’ (1984). What is considered to be the first published collection of Praise and Worship music, Scripture in Song by David and Dale Garratt, appeared in New Zealand in 1968. Today most collections are published in the USA, by companies such as Maranatha Music, Vineyard Music and Integrity Music, including, respectively, Maranatha! Music, Praise, Hymns and Choruses (1987, 4/1997), Songs of the Vineyard (1980s–) and Hosanna Music Songbooks (1987–). Another significant source, devoted primarily to Praise and Worship music but in hymnal format, is Songs and Praise for Worship (1992). Praise and Worship choruses also appear side by side with more traditional hymns in various denominational hymnals, for example, The United Methodist Hymnal (1989), The [Southern] Baptist Hymnal (1991) and the Church of the Nazarene’s Sing to the Lord (1993), and also in such non-denominational books as The Hymnal (1986) and Celebration Hymnal (1997). Further resources include Hillsongs Australia (1993, originating in Australia but produced in the USA by Integrity Music) and Renew: Songs and Hymns for Blended Worship (1995).
The Praise and Worship phenomenon, with its central activity of praise singing, is regarded by some commentators as a peripheral movement. But this is to fail to recognize its extraordinary growth and impact during the 20th century. Praise singing is not bound by denominational barriers but rather fosters a natural ecumenicity: persons of all ages, from varying theological, ethnic and cultural traditions, can share in it together, bringing with them the distinctiveness of their backgrounds. It would not be unreasonable to predict that the new spirit of praise singing will exert an increasing influence on Christian worship during the 21st century.
Pentecostal and Renewal church music
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