Probably not! But it's an interesting thought. I am currently reading Andrew Dunlop's Out of Nothing: A Cross-Shaped Approach to Fresh Expressions and was struck by a comment he makes - "I regard communal singing as one of the most countercultural aspects of church - even though I happen to like it."
Is he on to something? It is certainly true that, aside from football matches and karaoke, church is one of the few places where adults regularly sing together - and it clearly feels very strange to unchurched folk on those occasions when we get them to come to church, usually for some special reason. We are having to re-imagine music in church thanks to the pandemic, and it is proving quite challenging - and I just wonder if there is a long-term lesson to learn. I am certainly not advocating removing music from church. It contributes a great deal, and will continue to do so. Music, after all, is a large part of life. It is just communal singing that is not so universally practised.
Of course, there are few things more moving than a large congregation singing, whether enthusiastically or meditatively - but that's not what most of us experienced most Sunday before all this started back in March. Might there, at least, be room for a more mixed economy of how we do music in church?
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