Blogger Brian Hehn is the director of The Center for Congregational Song.

QUESTION

For someone graduating high school who wants to serve as a music minister or worship leader, what would you recommend that they do for their education?

ANSWER

Let me first say that I don’t think there’s a single program out there that will fully prepare someone to successfully navigate being a church musician in the 21^st century. What music ministers are being expected to do over the course of their careers in the 21^st century church compared to what the current academy offers reveals a huge gap. Broadly speaking, universities and seminaries continue to train musicians in a 20^th century model when the church has already moved on. Congregations have new, higher, and more diverse expectations of those they hire than ever before.

So here’s what I would recommend to a young student wanting to pursue a music-ministry career:

UNDERGRADUATE

First, attend an undergraduate school as a music education major or a music performance major. Regardless of your future ministry settings, a knowledge of how to manage large groups (“classroom management” and “group dynamics”) and the skills to teach and empower the musicianship of others will certainly be at the core of your responsibilities. A music education degree is the best route to gain and refine those core skills. The other important skill your degree can give you is to become highly skilled at your instrument, which is where a performance degree might come in handy. Being a good performer (whether instrumental or choral) will serve you well in various ways, including understanding the powerful nature of musical performances to stir the human soul.

While doing your degree, make sure you are active in ministry in some way. Depending on your situation, that may look different. Campus ministry opportunities, “church hopping” to experience a broad diversity of worship styles and leadership, or joining a local congregation and/or taking an internship at a local church can all be ways to begin the journey into ministry.

GRADUATE SCHOOL

Second, attend a seminary with an emphasis in worship and/or sacred music. Make sure the program you attend is intentional in connecting theological training with music-making in worship. Too often our university and seminary systems attempt to isolate or silo students into particular disciplines. This will rarely serve a 21^st century music minister well. When touring programs and speaking with program directors, ask them how many courses are shared with MDiv or other theology majors. Ask them what types of interactions the sacred/church music students have with the students who will eventually be pastors. Sit in on a church music course. Do they talk about theology and worship as much as they do musical practice? Finally, does the advanced degree program give emphasis or opportunities for you to experience a variety of instrumentations, worship styles, and genres?

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

Finally, attend conferences and continuing educations opportunities that continue to stretch your understanding of church and church music. Don’t always attend conferences that speak to your wheelhouse. If you’re an organist, go to a multicultural worship conference that doesn’t include organ. If you’re a praise & worship leader who primarily uses guitar, go to an ACDA conference to hear great choral music. Etc…

Ultimately, the journey is yours, and my recommendations could never contain a universal answer. The church needs highly specialized musicians who are masters of one particular thing, so maybe you need to do three degrees in instrumental performance. But the majority of us will be expected to do so much more than just one thing. So listen to God’s call, do what you love, but make sure your education is preparing you to be adaptable to wherever your ministry journey might lead. Remember, our job descriptions always include that pesky phrase, “and other duties as assigned.”

Author – Brian Hehn is the Director of The Center for Congregational Song

When the “other” sings the Gospel

As someone who is a life-long church musician but who cut(s) his teeth on Ben Folds Five, the Goo Goo Dolls, Nirvana, Ray Charles, The Beatles, and other secular pop/rock artists, I quickly became fascinated with the idea of sacred and secular. What makes a song sacred and what makes it secular? Can a sacred song be turned evil? Can a secular song be holy? I got to really dig into this topic during seminary when I began my formal theological training and was presented with various definitions of what the word “theology” means (thanks, Dr. Rebekah Miles of Perkins School of Theology!). This topic has continued to be one of my favorite subjects to dwell upon. Over the last decade I’ve realized how many things in my life have informed how I approach the topic, and that’s probably why I find it such a fascinating exercise to grapple with. Here are a few moments/ideas/circumstances that might help illustrate where I’m coming from:

Catechism

I grew up Presbyterian (USA) and was formed through the catechism class during which we were introduced to the Westminster Shorter Catechism. The first question (and my favorite) is “What is the chief end of man?” The answer is “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”
- The answer to this question was ingrained in me early in my life. And, I think, it’s the reason why I quickly see the holy in children playing in sprinklers on a hot summer’s day…or how sacred it can be to just laugh together with a group of friends. Enjoyment is a part of our highest calling to be a holy people.

Careers

My dad is a physician. He heals people (and/or keeps them healthy) for a living. In his medical practice, he doesn’t do that through anointing or prayer. Rather, he heals people using science.
- As I grew up and learned about what he did, I also learned about why he was a physician. It quickly became clear that his job was a holy thing informed and guided by his faith in a God who wants humanity to be whole and healthy…not just in spirit, but in body and mind as well. His job was a sacred one, but not because he was talking about Jesus or God, but because he was living out his calling.

Broadway

My favorite Broadway production is Les Misérables. I grew up listening to it, singing it, and learning how to play its songs on piano. It was one of the first shows I ever saw in a big theatre, and it was even quoted at my wedding. It’s not a sacred play…it’s not about God. It’s set during one of the French Revolutions and centers around the protagonist, an ex-convict turned mayor turned adopted father.
- While the play is certainly not a “sacred” play, it begins and ends with some stunningly sacred moments. Near the beginning, when Jean Valjean has yet to get on his feet, he steals from a priest. Instead of sending him back to jail, the priest sends him away with more silver than what had been stolen and a blessing to make a better life for himself. . Then, one of the last lines sung in the entire production is the phrase “to love another person is to see the face of God.” Forgiveness (from the priest) makes the entire plotline possible by giving Jean Valjean a chance to live out in the world. Love of his neighbor transforms Jean Valjean into the loving father and hero of the story.

Scripture

When I combine these life experiences with scripture, the line between secular and sacred continues to shift, morph, and sometimes even disappear.

The book of Esther

The book of Esther, found in the Hebrew Bible (Christian Old Testament), is obviously “sacred,” right? It’s a part of scripture, for goodness sake! When I learned that God is never mentioned, I found that fact curious and instructive.

Mark, Chapter 7 – The Syrophoenician Woman

In Mark 7 (and Matthew 15) we find the story of a Gentile (Syrophoenician) woman challenging Jesus when he would not heal her daughter. She was not Jewish, but because of her deep faith in Jesus, her daughter was healed. At that moment, it didn’t matter what religion she was. It only mattered that she believed Jesus could heal and bring wholeness.

Matthew 8 – “Lord, I am not worthy”

I currently serve a Roman Catholic parish. It strikes me that every time they prepare to take communion, the last words used by the assembly are “Lord, I am not worthy to come under your roof; but only speak the word, and your servant will be healed”- an adaption from Matthew 8:8. The words are those of a Roman Centurion – once again, not one of Jesus’ disciples and not a Jew. He was an outsider, and yet his words are included in the Gospel and are now spoken weekly by millions of Christians around the world.

Bridging the Gap

So, here are some songs that bridge the gap of secular and sacred for me. Some mention God, others don’t. They don’t come from the church, but they do come from a place or speak of a place that I find sacred.

Bob Marley – One Love

One love, one heart, let’s get together and feel all right

Regina Spektor – Laughing With

No one’s laughing at God, we’re all laughing with God

Ben Folds – The Luckiest

I love you more then have ever found the way to say to you

Belinda Carlisle – Heaven Is A Place On Earth

In this world we’re just beginning to understand the miracle of living

Les Misérables – Epilogue

To love another person is to see the face of God

Author – Brian Hehn is the director of The Center for Congregational Song.

Words Words Words

We get so caught up in what a song or hymn says through its lyrics/verses. I’ve watched debates rage on about what a text means and whether it has “good theology.” There are books written on analyzing texts, and pastors often analyze a song or hymn’s appropriateness for their congregation based on the words alone. We are fixated on words and the words are the primary and often only metric we use to determine theological content. But this overemphasis on words (or neglect of other aspects of congregational singing) misses the point. Let me give two scenarios to consider:

Scenario 1

Imagine, if you will, a congregation standing up to sing the opening hymn for their Sunday morning service. They wait for the instrumental introduction as usual and then begin singing. Their singing could be described in the following ways: partial interest, partial participation, mezzo piano dynamic, lazy and at times indiscernible diction, slumped shoulders, heads down, no bodily movement, a few smiles but mostly neutral facial expressions.

As they sing, the instrumental accompaniment goes like this:

Praise the Lord! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Praise God in his sanctuary; [Generic organ registration preset 1]

praise him in his mighty firmament! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Praise him for his mighty deeds; [Generic organ registration preset 1]

praise him according to his surpassing greatness! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Praise him with trumpet sound; [Generic organ registration preset 1]

praise him with lute and harp! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Praise him with tambourine and dance; [Generic organ registration preset 1]

praise him with strings and pipe! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Praise him with clanging cymbals; [Generic organ registration preset 1]

praise him with loud clashing cymbals! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! [Generic organ registration preset 1]

Praise the Lord! [Generic organ registration preset 1 with added crescendo pedal and long last chord]

The theology of the words is hard to critique since they’re straight out of scripture. So I’m assuming the majority of you who are reading this would not attempt to argue the theology of the words. This song has “good theology,” right?

Scenario 2

I recently attended a “Circle Songs” retreat at the Omega Institute in New York State. The leaders were Bobby McFerrin and his colleagues that make up the group “Give Me Five.” In what they call “circle singing,” a group standing in a circle is led in multiple improvised repetitive parts usually using an improvised (made up) language by the leader, very similar to scat in jazz singing. Here’s an example of a circle song in that style:

Now imagine a worship service emphasizing the creativeness of God and God’s creation that includes a song like this. There are no “words” per se, but rather the song contains made-up syllables that provide the mechanism for the improvised melodies to interlock with each other. The singing is embodied and joyful. The singers make eye contact with each other and everyone is engaged in the music making. The textures of the sound change constantly as new layers are being added or subtracted or as the leader improvises a melody over the top.

Using the typical conversations I’ve seen to determine whether this song has “good theology,” it would quickly become apparent that this song not only doesn’t have good theology, it has no theology.

By hyperfocusing on a hymn or song’s words without considering who is singing it or when/where they’re singing it (both historically and liturgically) is missing out on a whole lot of theological content that goes beyond the written word.

Expanding Our Metrics

I’d argue that both scenarios help us see how the current conversations surrounding whether a song has “good theology” are woefully unsubstantial. By hyperfocusing on a hymn or song’s words without considering who is singing it or when/where they’re singing it (both historically and liturgically) is missing out on a whole lot of theological content that goes beyond the written word.

Scenario 1 contains words that have what most of you would consider “good theology.” But if the hymn is led and sung in the way described above, I would argue that the song has terrible theology. By singing in that way, we’re telling God, “I’ll praise you a little bit…but not with ALL my being…that would be ridiculous.” We’re telling God, “I’ll praise you with 40% of my being…that’s all I can muster right now.” We’re telling each other, “I love God, but not as much as I love watching the game and eating wings.” This, my friends, is bad theology. I don’t care what the words say.

Scenario 2 most certainly contains theology, but none of it can be ascertained by listening to the words. In fact, I’d argue that scenario 2 contains better theology than scenario 1. While the words don’t contain any explicit theological content, the embodiment of the singing and the spirit with which it is sung contains strong theological content. Furthermore, by placing a joyful improvised piece of music within the context of a service centered around the idea of God’s creativeness and the creativeness of God’s creation, we are telling God, “We are thankful for and enjoy the gift you gave us that is creativity.” We are telling God, “We will praise you in every way we can think of and in constantly new ways.” We are telling each other, “You are a part of God’s creation and we are in this together. I’m listening to you and want to be in community with you.” These are theologically rich statements, all made without uttering a single word of an established language.

The challenge for many of us is to listen.

The Challenge

The challenge for many of us is to listen. Before determining for ourselves or especially for others whether a song has “good” or “bad” theology, there must be a process of listening.

Listen to the experience of others. How are they experiencing a song?

Listen to the experience of our elders. How have they experienced a song in the past?

Listen to the community’s voice as it sings. Is it sounding? Is it silent? Is it anemic? Is it joyful?

Listen to the context. What surrounds the song culturally? What surrounds the song liturgically?

Listen to your own voice. Does the song resonate with your own faith journey? Does the song challenge your faith journey?

Listen to the words. Yes, of course words are important! They form our minds and shape our hearts. Are the words borne from scriptural waters? Are the words pastoral or prophetic? Do the words support or challenge God’s people on their journey? Do the words speak Truth?

Invitation

In collaboration with the Center for Sacred Music at Virginia Wesleyan University, we are excited to be singing together this Veterans Day. The festival, “In Times of Trouble, O God of Peace,” will include a hymn written during World War I, great hymns of the faith, and some new hymns written about God’s kingdom of peace. We hope you’ll join us for this festival of song in which we’ll pray and sing together.

Date, Time, & Location

4PM on Sunday, November 11th, 2018

Wycliffe Presbyterian Church, 1445 N. Great Neck Road, Va Beach (ph: 757-496-2620)

Festival Leader

Brian Hehn is an inspiring song-leader equally comfortable leading an acapella singing of “It Is Well” as he is drumming and dancing to “Sizohamba Naye.” Experienced using a variety of genres and instrumentations, he has lead worship for Baptists, Roman Catholics, United Methodists, Presbyterians, and many more across the U.S. and Canada. He received his Bachelor of Music Education from Wingate University, his Master of Sacred Music from Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, and is certified in children’s church music (K-12) by Choristers Guild. He has articles published on sacred music and congregational song in multiple journals and co-authored the book All Hands In: Drumming the Biblical Narrative, published by Choristers Guild. While working for The Hymn Society as the Director of The Center for Congregational Song, he is also Associate Director of Contemporary Music at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Baltimore, Maryland, and adjunct professor of church music at Wingate University in Wingate, North Carolina. Brian lives in Baltimore, Maryland, with his wife, Eve, and son, Jakob.

Author – Brian Hehn is the director of The Center for Congregational Song.

Denominationally Promiscuous

Although not verified through any written text, it is common for hymnologists and church musicians to quote the 20^th century hymnological giant Eric Routley as saying that church musicians are “denominationally promiscuous.” I must confess that I fall into that category. Raised in South Georgia, my father was a former Roman Catholic and my mother a former Southern Baptist. So when it was time to raise us in a church family, they found a liturgical compromise by attending a Presbyterian Church (USA) congregation with solid children’s and youth programs. Upon entering college, I found myself attending and eventually serving as a music intern for a Cooperative Baptist church. After four years there, I entered a United Methodist School of Theology and served United Methodist Churches as director of music for over seven years. Finally, my last two posts as associate director of music have been in a suburban Roman Catholic parish followed by a Roman Catholic Cathedral, where I currently serve. I should mention there was a 1-year period in there when I attended an ELCA Lutheran congregation with my family on Sunday mornings when my primary leadership role was for Sunday afternoon Catholic masses. While serving churches as a church musician has always been a part of my professional life, the other part has consisted of serving ecumenical non-profits and doing conferences/workshops for a variety of churches and organizations.

After working for and worshiping with so many different denominations, I have often asked myself questions like, “wouldn’t it be better to work for the denomination I actually resonate most closely with?” and “is it authentic for me to lead worship in a denomination with which I have some clear-cut theological and/or social disagreements?” These are important questions. But, for me, there’s just nowhere to serve that wouldn’t put me in the same position I’ve been at in every church/denomination I’ve served so far. Every denomination and/or tradition gets some things right and gets some things wrong. Every denomination and church has members that are closer to sinner and closer to saint at any given time. But what I have found in every context so far is that every denomination is full of clergy who have given their lives to try and lead God’s people, every church has staff who are trying their best to lead worship in spirit and in truth, and every worship service has congregants who are trying their best to find the Holy somewhere in this world and in themselves.

I’m grateful for my ecumenical journey, and I’ve learned a lot about my faith and the church universal by spending time with those who think and worship differently than I do. So here are the top three things I’ve learned from each denomination/church I’ve served so far, and the one thing I wish I could tell them.

Testimony is powerful.