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 PrintableVersion The Music ExchangeThe singing bluesWHY JOHNNY CAN’T SING HYMNS Every now and then I get asked to review a book, which is one of the few things that forces me to read these days. So, having read David Gordon’s previous book, Why Johnny Can’t Preach for a staff review, I imagine that already I’m not in his good books, as one of the reasons Johnny can’t preach is because Johnny doesn’t read. Why Johnny Can’t Sing Hymns is a deeply thought-through book from someone who calls himself a media ecologist. The basis of Gordon’s argument is that the church has been sucked into worshipping the idol of contemporaneity, leading us down the path of only ever accepting what is new, while simultaneously ignoring past traditions as passˇ and insignificant. Hence, Johnny can’t sing hymns because he’s been brainwashed into thinking that only what sounds contemporary is acceptable. ‘My goal is to explain why we have a preference for music that is often literarily, theologically, or musically inferior… to explain why, for the first time in church history, a generation finds itself so completely cut off from the traditional musical canon of the church.’ The first thing that I noticed about the book is that it is exactly twice as long as Why Johnny Can’t Preach, which was doubly disappointing for me — first, music issues should never demand twice the amount of ink as preaching issues, and, second, I’m a slow reader. The book provides a compelling critique of today’s thirst for the new and disregard for the old, and is strong in its emphasis on the importance of correct theology in our congregational songs. It is also strong on the importance of singing together as Christians. I love the conclusion that ‘song is the divinely instituted, divinely commanded and divinely regulated means of responding to God’s great works...’ Distinctive qualityHowever, the distinctive quality of this book is the way it tackles the style of the songs we sing, and not merely the content. We are reminded throughout that we cannot get away with saying, ‘It’s just a matter of taste’. By the end of the book I’d worked out that Gordon is longing for us to return to congregational hymns that are preferably led by the piano with the full musical score being printed for the congregation so that parts can be sung in harmony. Theological weaknessI perceive that there are roughly two weaknesses in Gordon’s argument. The first is theological. Gordon says rightly: ‘Any change in tradition needs a theological defence’. However, the theological defence for retaining tradition is so weak that it’s clear that tradition overrides theology. For example, in his comparison of pop music (‘banal and accessible’) and classical music (‘transcendent and less accessible’), he argues that these qualities make classical music much better suited to accompanying Christian hymnody. He bases his argument for the importance of inaccessibility on ‘Jesus’s discussion of the “narrow” way that leads to life, and his sober commentary that “those who find it are few”’. Another theological argument for his retention of tradition is that the Apostle Paul commended his churches for maintaining ‘the traditions even as I delivered them to you’ (1 Corinthians 11.2, ESV). The reader must decide whether Western hymnody is adequate in defining the ‘traditional musical canon of the church’. To be fair, Gordon is rightly despairing of the speed of change, rather than change in itself, but when he argues that not all change is good, he takes the power out of his point by drawing the reader’s attention to the changes brought about by Hitler and Stalin. Guitar bashingEvil dictators are not the only ones who come in for flak. On the way, Willow Creek, the Free Church, kazoo players and Gillette razors all take a bit of stick. But at the bottom of the pile, yes, right at the bottom, are guitarists. They simply can’t do anything right: ‘Guitar-playing just doesn’t sound serious; it sounds like casual amusement’. ‘We simply cannot accompany Martin Luther’s “A Mighty Fortress is our God” successfully with a guitar.’ And that’s the second weakness — it’s clear that David Gordon really doesn’t like the guitar. I’ve defended my guitarist friends before, and I must say that they are godly people who are more than capable of playing ‘A Mighty Fortress’. What’s more, in my experience guitarists can bring to life an old hymn tune that an inexperienced pianist or organist can totally murder, so it seems to me that the real reason that Johnny can’t sing hymns is because Jimmy hasn’t practised his guitar. Keep the babyGuitarists, pick up your plectra and show the world that you can throw out the bath water and keep the baby. You can play ‘A Mighty Fortress is our God’. Then you might encourage traditionalists to see that they can keep their baby too. Till then, you’ll have to keep in mind that, as you’re playing the latest Christian song in the latest fashion on your newest guitar, there’s always someone out there who’s a little bit grumpy. Richard Simpkin© Evangelicals Now - January 2011 |
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