The final installment of this overview will focus on the history of a cappella worship in the United States. The very nature of Americans and religion--our strong tradition of religious liberty, from a legal standpoint, and the wide dispersal of independent communities--makes it nearly impossible to summarize the subject. I hope, however, to provide an introduction to a few of the major threads in this story, by following the history of a cappella singing in some of the major religious bodies, and by featuring those groups from within each that remain a cappella today.
A Cappella Singing of the Anabaptist Churches
The third post in this series introduces the interesting origins of the Anabaptist movement and its a cappella singing, which I will not repeat here. The best known Anabaptist groups in the United States, of course, are the "plain people", such as the Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites. Not surprisingly, all but a small minority of reform groups have retained the a cappella singing of their ancestors.
Old Order Amish
The Old Order Amish still sing from the Ausbund, a German Anabaptist hymnal first published in 1564, supplemented by a few other later collections. The video below, repeated from the previous blog post, is a recording of the "Loblied" or "Praise Song" which is traditionally the second hymn in the service. This recording is audio only, out of respect for the Amish aversion to creating images. At the beginning of each line you will hear the leader "lining out" the opening phrase before the congregation begins, a practice common to many older a cappella traditions.
A Cappella Singing in Methodist Churches
Though Methodists are not usually thought of as an a cappella tradition, some were at one time opposed to the use of instrumental music in worship. At the 1846 conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and again in 1874, the formal Pastoral Address expressed disapproval of instruments in worship, though no formal action was taken (Westerfield Tucker, 167ff.). It is not surprising that it was the Southern branch of Methodism that was the last to adopt the use of instruments; Southerners of every religious stripe seem to have been more conservative in theology and practice than their Northern counterparts, perhaps reflecting the natural tendencies of a predominantly rural society with few major urban centers. This scenario played out among many religious groups, including, in its own way, the Restoration Movement.
Two groups that refused to follow the Methodist Episcopal mainstream during this time, the Free Methodist Church and the Wesleyan Methodist Church (later just the Wesleyan Church), continued in a cappella singing for several more decades. The Free Methodist Church was organized at a meeting in 1860 on the basis of "primitive Methodism," part of which was stated to be "congregational singing, without instrumental music in all cases" (Fortner). Half a century later, the Doctrines and Discipline of the Free Methodist Church still contained the frank statement, "In no case let there be instrumental music or choir singing in our public worship" (D&D 1915, p. 42). This remained the position of the group until 1943, when the General Conference voted to allow local congregations to decide whether or not to introduce instruments (Daily Times (Beaver & Rochester, NY) 19 June, p. 2).
The Wesleyan Methodist Connection of America, later just the Wesleyan Church, had a less united stance on this and many other issues. The Discipline of the Wesleyan Methodist Church of America contained until 1896 this somewhat equivocal statement: "We recommend the churches to dispense with instrumental music." (Discipline 1896, p. 115) It was omitted, however, from 1911 onward (Discipline 1911, p. 205). Many of the Holiness groups related to this tradition adopted instruments over the years, though others remain a cappella. One example of the latter is Christ's Sanctified Holy Church, which was organized in 1892 on Chincoteague Island, Virginia, and has spread through the southeastern U.S. as far as Mississippi ("About us"). The following video is from a singing in Leesburg, Georgia.
The Pentecostal movement, rooted in Wesleyan Methodism, began with a surprisingly strong a cappella worship tradition. For at least the first decade after its beginning in 1906, the famous revival at the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles did not have instrumental music (Robeck).
A Cappella Singing in Baptist Churches
According to David W. Music and Paul A. Richardson, Baptists in the United States were opposed to instrumental music in worship well until the 19th century. Even then, "it is safe to say that few congregations introduced instruments without stirring controversy" (102). Baptists in the South, ancestors of the largest Protestant body in the U.S. today, were still in opposition in large numbers at mid-century. Music & Richardson cite the sentiments of Jeremiah B. Jeter of the First Baptist Church of Richmond, Virginia, who wrote in 1840:
Old Regular Baptists
Found primarily in the Appalachians along the borders of Kentucky and the Virginias, the "Old Regular" Baptists trace their heritage to the New Salem Association founded in 1825. Though their principal distinction is their stance on the relationship between grace and free will, they have also traditionally been among the most resistant to changes in congregational organization and worship, and continue many practices dating from the 18th century (Grammich & Young). In addition to continuing the a cappella practice, they have retained the "lining out" procedure of singing in which the leader chants the words of each line quickly, then leads the congregation through the line following the tune, usually in a very slow, almost arhythmic fashion. This is a tradition dating back to very early Protestant congregational singing, allowing one person with a hymnal (or just a good memory) to lead a congregation that may not have had hymnals, or the literacy to use them.
Primitive Baptists
Primitive Baptists began to be recognized as a distinct group during the 1820s as they rejected the introduction of the missionary societies, seminaries, and Sunday School organizations that were later accepted by the majority of Baptists. They were also known for being the strictest Baptist adherents to the doctrine of predestination, thus receiving the (not always kindly) nickname of "Hard-shell" Baptists. The moniker "Primitive" or "Old-School" is more generally accepted, reflecting the view that they have simply remained in the faith of their fathers while others have moved in more liberal directions (Young). A cappella singing in worship is one of the distinct practices strongly maintained and defended by mainstream Primitive Baptists. The article "Instrumental music in the church" by Elder Bill Walden, which is linked on several Primitive Baptist websites, presents a rather familiar approach to the topic!
Primitive Baptist hymnals include the Old School Hymnal and Old Baptist Hymns, The video below is a group of Primitive Baptists singing SOAR AWAY, a hymn from the Sacred Harp tradition of shape-note music (to be discussed later). The videographer starts the recording well outside the little church building and slowly walks inside, giving an excellent demonstration of how this vigorous style of singing could roll across the "hills and hollows" back in a less noisy age. It also shows the amazing acoustical properties of the small, high-roofed wooden buildings of an earlier era, which make the small group of singers sound much louder.
A Cappella Singing in Reformed & Presbyterian Churches
Those closest to the roots of Calvinism might be expected to hold onto his teachings about worship the longest, and to a great extent this was true. In 1842, the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., the largest Presbyterian body in the country at that time, published Questions on the Confession of Faith and Form of Government, a brief work in question-answer format intended to instruct the faithful in the official positions of the denomination. It included this statement:
The United Presbyterian Church of North America was more heavily influenced by the Scottish Covenanter tradition, and held out for another generation. Until 1882 the UPCNA's "Directory of Worship"--its approved regulations for conducting worship--explicitly forbade the use of instruments in worship. This was repealed at the 24th General Assembly (UPCNA Minutes, 519), over considerable protest. The following year saw the "Convention of United Presbyterians Opposed to Instrumental Music in the Worship of God," held in Allegheny, Pennsylvania.
Eventually the two United Presbyterian bodies combined, and, through a further series of mergers, became today's Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the largest Presbyterian group in the United States. But other Presbyterian fellowships resisted this trend of merger for a number of reasons. The Reformed Presbyterian Church in North America, General Synod (an ancestor of today's conservative Presbyterian Church of America, and not to be confused with the modern "Covenanter" group, the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America) did not allow instrumental music in worship until 1905, when the synod decided to allow the matter to be addressed at the congregational level (Hutchison 92). Other Presbyterian fellowships remain a cappella to this day.
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America
Two Uniquely American A Cappella Traditions
The focus of this series has been on the practices of specific religious bodies, but a discussion of a cappella singing in worship in the United States would hardly be complete without mentioning two other vital traditions that are not associated with any particular religious group.
The African American Tradition
During the period of slavery, music was a prized possession that could be shared but never taken away, and became a means of preserving the history and experiences of the community. The "spirituals" are a genre of great variety, combining uniquely African musical elements with those of the Protestant hymn tradition, and crafting lyrics that express a distinct voice of the African American Christian experience. The hymn "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" is a haunting and evocative text on its own; it becomes all the more powerful when one considers that it came from a people who had really seen men lashed, beaten, and executed. Yet the same spiritual tradition gave us songs of hope and joy, as well as such humorous but thoughtful lines as, "Everybody talking about heaven ain't going there."
The video below is a 1909 recording by the Fisk Jubilee Quartet, a group of African American singers from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. The song is one of the more lively of the spirituals, and prefigures much of the style of Southern gospel quartet singing in the 20th century.
For African American slaves, who were typically forbidden by law to read or write, it was a matter of practicality to have a leader with a good memory "line out" the longer hymns for the congregation. It also gave vent to the typically African musical aesthetic of "heterophony", in which a group can sing the same song together but with great individual freedom. (There is a good argument to be made that a cappella congregational singing tends to be that way by nature!) This practice is still maintained among the African American Old Baptists; in the video below the song leader "lines out" the Isaac Watts hymn, "When I can read my title clear".
A Cappella Singing in the Restoration Movement
The Rise of the "Organ Question"
It should come as no surprise that, at the beginning of the American Restoration Movement (or Stone-Campbell Movement, as some historians prefer), a cappella singing was the norm. Most of those involved came out of denominations that already eschewed instruments in worship, and in their pursuit of the restoration of an ideal New Testament Christianity, they found nothing to change their position on that subject. Musical instruments in worship are not documented among their congregations until two instances from the late 1850s, at Midway, Kentucky, and at the 6th Street congregation in Cincinnati. This practice was met with widespread disapproval, both at home and in the fellowship at large (Ferguson).
The instrument question was increasingly discussed in the second half of the century, however, beginning with an informal written debate between two formidable opponents, Amos Sutton Hayden (1813-1880) and John W. McGarvey (1829-1911), carried out in the pages of the Millennial Harbinger during 1864-1865. Isaac Errett, editor of the Christian Standard (a leading journal among brethren in the North), wrote an editorial in May 1870 declaring his belief that the use of instruments was an expedient, but should not be adopted anywhere if it would cause division. Opposition quickly evaporated in most Northern congregations, however, and by the 1880s most had adopted instruments in worship. Meanwhile, the leading editor in the South, David Lipscomb of the Gospel Advocate, supported the view that instruments were an unauthorized addition to worship. Many more congregations in the South resisted the adoption of instruments than in the North, and the numerical strength of the non-instrumental Churches of Christ in the U.S. is concentrated in the South to this day (Ferguson).
Whatever impact sectional prejudice had in the resulting division, the facts seem better to support an economic and theological interpretation: the wealthier, more socially mobile, and more theologically liberal congregations tended to adopt instruments in worship, and these congregations were much more concentrated in the North. This was true of other religious groups as well; the Southern Baptists have remained much more conservative than most of their Northern counterparts, and the Presbyterian Church of America, composed of conservative Presbyterians who wished to remain separate from the PCUSA, is also concentrated in the South.
The Hymnody of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.
The hymn repertoire of the early Restoration Movement sprang from the music common to the Baptist and Presbyterian churches of the Midwest, crystallized in Alexander Campbell's influential hymnal Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs. First published in 1828, this went through numerous editions before undergoing a more wholesale revision into the Christian Hymnbook in the 1860s. Though Campbell objected to the inclusion of musical notation as a distraction from worship, he did include suggested tunes for many texts (Mankin 11-12). A survey of these tune suggestions reveals a familiarity with the contemporary repertoire of Midwestern shape-note tunes (MEAR, PLEASANT HILL, STAR OF THE EAST) as well as the more traditional psalm and hymn tunes from previous centuries.
Campbell's vision of a common hymnal for all the congregations was probably never realistic, but whatever hold it ever had was certainly broken during the "hymnal dispute" of 1866. Following the death of Campbell, the ownership of his hymnal went to the American Christian Missionary Society, which was disavowed by many of the more conservative congregations as an unauthorized innovation in church organization, and a step toward the loss of congregational autonomy. The hymnal underwent an extensive revision and enlargement, was renamed the Christian Hymnbook, and was put up for sale with the understanding that all proceeds would go to the Missionary Society. David Lipscomb and Tolbert Fanning, writing in the conservative Gospel Advocate, strongly objected to the common hymnal of the brotherhood being tied to support of an organization of which many disapproved. They also noted that the increase in price put it out of reach of many of the impoverished congregations of the war-ravaged South (Bowman 57-58).
By the 1880s Lipscomb had decided to publish hymnals through the Gospel Advocate, catering to the needs of the Churches of Christ. The first of these was Christian Hymns (1889), with texts edited by Lipscomb's associate E. G. Sewell and music edited by Methodist hymnwriter and publisher Rigdon McIntosh. The contents lean heavily toward the Southern gospel song; it is striking, in fact, just how "contemporary" this hymnal was when it appeared. It was certainly a marked departure from the Campbell hymnal, and raises the question of just how closely the Southern congregations were aligned with the "common hymnal" to begin with.
In the early 20th century, Churches of Christ in the U.S. were very active in the shape-note singing-schools of Southern gospel, and produced at least one famous gospel songwriter, Albert E. Brumley (1905–1977), author of songs such as "If we never meet again this side of heaven" and "I'll fly away." The latter is sung in the video below, recorded at a singing in Gadsden, Alabama.
Though not enjoying Brumley's commercial success, other songwriters such as Tillit Teddlie and Lloyd O. Sanderson contributed significant new gospel repertoire to the Churches of Christ during this era.
The introduction of Elmer Jorgenson's Great Songs of the Church, a tremendously popular hymnal first published in 1921, did more than anything else to swing the stylistic pendulum back toward a balance of gospel and classical hymns. His book was even arranged with that in mind: the "gospel songs" were in one section, and the "hymns" in another nearly equal section. (It is interesting to see which songs went in which section!) Though Jorgenson's book was initially resisted in some quarters because of his controversial Premillennial views, it took on a life of its own, and outlasted the hymnal series from publishers such as Gospel Advocate and Firm Foundation. No other hymnal has had such a profound impact on the repertoire sung by the Churches of Christ in this country and abroad.
In the second half of the 20th century, a new hymnal publisher, Alton H. Howard, captured a large portion of the market in the South with Songs of the Church (1971). The success of this hymnal led to another influential book, Songs of Faith and Praise (1994), which was the first major hymnal among the Churches of Christ to incorporate a significant selection of contemporary "praise and worship" music. The contributions of African American Churches of Christ were also significant during this era, particularly in the works of Sylvia Rose Cobb. Her popular "Mansion, Robe, and Crown" is featured in the video below, recorded at the lectureship held by the Southwestern Christian College.
Conclusion
On reaching the end of this series, it seems useful to repeat its aims. It is not an attempt to argue the case of what kind of music is pleasing to God in Christian worship; others have done that exceptionally well over the years. In fact, I believe one could look at the literature on that subject today, fifty years ago, a century ago, and even further back, and find very little new to be said. My goals instead have been two in number: 1) to frame the argument in context of historical norms of worship practice, and 2) to introduce lovers of a cappella worship today to the rich variety of a cappella praise from ages past. The first goal is of course the more important, and can be restated more plainly as an attempt to encourage a cappella congregations not to accept the "born yesterday" mentality that views us as somehow odd and out of step, simply because we are in a minority at this particular moment in history.
I also hope to stir the honest consciences of those who practice instrumental worship, or those who may be undecided. Of course, the fact that any particular practice or point of view is accepted or rejected at some point in time is really beside the point; what matters is whether that practice or point of view is accepted or rejected by the Holy Spirit through His inspired Scriptures. But if we find that a matter has been settled among most of those calling themselves Christians, for much of the history of Christianity, and has only been changed in the last few centuries--with considerable acrimony and division--is it not worth a second look?
This was the approach taken recently by John Price in his Old Light on New Worship: Musical Instruments and the Worship of God (Avinger, Texas: Simpson, 2005). I do not agree with all his reasoning, and would hardly expect to, since he is an old-school Calvinist. But the criticisms his book has received are all too familiar (just check Amazon or GoodReads)--He is living in the past. This isn't relevant to today's problems. These arguments were settled a long time ago. Surely he doesn't mean to bring this up again. All of which amounts to what C. S. Lewis wittily called, "chronological snobbery."
When I gather with my brothers and sisters this Sunday--God willing--if we open our mouths to "sing with the spirit and the understanding" (1 Corinthians 14:15), "singing with grace in our hearts to the Lord" (Colossians 3:16), and "making melody" with no other instruments but hearts filled with love and gratitude (Ephesians 5:19), we can be sure that we are praising God in the way that He has appointed, that honors His will and is pleasing to His ears. We will also be joining, in spirit, the hosts of others who have done the same, down through the centuries, offering God "the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name" (Hebrews 13:15).
References: "About us." Christ's Sanctified Holy Church. http://www.cshc.org/page/about_us_27572
Bowman, John. Sweetly the Tones are Falling: A Hymnal History of Churches of Christ. Brentwood, Tenn.: Penmann Press, 1984.
"Conservative Mennonites." Wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_Mennonites
"Convictions." The Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America. http://reformedpresbyterian.org/convictions
Discipline of the Wesleyan Methodist Connection (or Church) of America. New York: A.W. Hall, 1896. http://books.google.com/books?id=ldHhAAAAMAAJ
Discipline of the Wesleyan Methodist Connection. Syracuse, N.Y.: Wesleyan Methodist Publishing Association, 1911. http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015071469475
Doctrines and Discipline of the Free Methodist Church. Chicago: Free Methodist Publishing House, 1915. https://openlibrary.org/books/OL7138411M/Doctrines_and_discipline_of_the_Free_Methodist_Church.
Ferguson, Everett. "Instrumental music." The Encyclopedia of the Stone-Campbell Movement. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2004.
Fortner, Cathy. "Happy 152nd birthday, Free Methodist Church." http://fmcusa.org/historical/2012/08/23/happy-152nd-birthday-free-methodist-church/
"Free Methodists to Have Church Music." The Daily Times (Beaver & Rochester, New York), 19 June 1943, p. 2. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1996&dat=19430619&id=baAiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=bK8FAAAAIBAJ&pg=2624,7104324
Grammich, Clifford A., Jr., & Chester Raymond Young. "Old Regular Baptists." Encyclopedia of Religion in the South. Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 2005, p. 570-572.
Hutchison, George. The History Behind the Reformed Presbyterian Church, Evangelical Synod. http://www.pcahistory.org/findingaids/rpces/history/03.pdf
Krahn, Cornelius, and Orlando Schmidt. "Musical Instruments." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1989. http://gameo.org/index.php?title=Musical_Instruments&oldid=102559
Mankin, Jim. "Alexander Campbell's contributions to hymnody." The Hymn, vol. 49, no. 1 (January 1998), pp. 10-14. http://www.hymnary.org/files/articles/Mankin,%20Alexander%20Campbell's%20Contributions%20to%20Hymnody.pdf
Music, David W., and Paul A. Richardson. I Will Sing the Wondrous Story: A History of Baptist Hymnody in North America. Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 2008.
Minutes of the . . . General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church of North America, vol. 5 (1875-1883). Pittsburgh: United Presbyterian Board of Education, 1883. https://archive.org/details/minutesgenerala02amergoog
Minutes of the . . . General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, vols. 15/2 & 16/2. Philadelphia: Clerk of the General Assembly, 1845. https://openlibrary.org/books/OL20454175M/Minutes_of_the_General_Assembly_of_the_Presbyterian_Church_in_the_United_States_of_America
"Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America." Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reformed_Presbyterian_Church_of_North_America
Robeck, Cecil M. "Azusa Street: 100 years later." Enrichment Journal (Springfield, Mo.). http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/200602/200602_026_Azusa.cfm
Weed, Henry Rowland. Questions on the Confession of Faith and Form of Government of the Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, with a Selection of Scripture Proofs : Designed for the Instruction of Classes in the Doctrines of Said Church. Philadelphia: Presbyterian Board of Education, 1842. http://books.google.com/books?id=w6dHAAAAYAAJ
Westerfield Tucker, Barbara. American Methodist Worship. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. Young, Chester Raymond. "Baptists, Primitive." Encyclopedia of Religion in the South. Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 2005, p. 107-108.
A Cappella Singing of the Anabaptist Churches
The third post in this series introduces the interesting origins of the Anabaptist movement and its a cappella singing, which I will not repeat here. The best known Anabaptist groups in the United States, of course, are the "plain people", such as the Amish, Mennonites, and Hutterites. Not surprisingly, all but a small minority of reform groups have retained the a cappella singing of their ancestors.
Old Order Amish
The Old Order Amish still sing from the Ausbund, a German Anabaptist hymnal first published in 1564, supplemented by a few other later collections. The video below, repeated from the previous blog post, is a recording of the "Loblied" or "Praise Song" which is traditionally the second hymn in the service. This recording is audio only, out of respect for the Amish aversion to creating images. At the beginning of each line you will hear the leader "lining out" the opening phrase before the congregation begins, a practice common to many older a cappella traditions.
(recording begins with 2nd stanza)
Mennonites
The Mennonite fellowships, being larger and more diverse, exhibit variety in worship practices just as they do in the manner of the observance of "plain living." Originally, however, they were strictly a cappella; the first pipe organ was not installed in a Mennonite church building in the U.S. until 1874. By 1890 the General Conference Mennonite Church allowed instruments, but the more conservative Mennonite Church opposed their use down to the 1950s. These two denominations merged in 2012 to form the Mennonite Church (USA), the largest denomination of Mennonites. Another Mennonite denomination, the Brethren in Christ, also refrained from instrumental music in worship until the 1950s (Krahn).
Many Mennonite congregations, however, remain a cappella. Not surprisingly, of course, the Old Order Mennonites ("horse and buggy Mennonites") continue to sing as they always had. The same stand has been maintained, however, by groups toward the middle of the Mennonite spectrum. As the larger conferences moved in the direction of using instruments (among other changes), these conservative-to-moderate Mennonites coalesced into what is loosely called "Conservative Mennonites" (Wikipedia).
As might be expected, there is a diversity of repertoires and styles among the Mennonites, from the German hymns of the Old Order to contemporary praise choruses among the more modern conservatives. The video below presents an hour's worth of singing from the Sequoia Bible Fellowship in Squaw Valley, California, a conservative Mennonite congregation. (N.B. This is was a special singing night, so there were visitors present who did not adhere to the usual conservative Mennonite practice of head coverings for women.) The first song, "Behold the glories of the Lamb" (ST. MARTIN), goes back to the Harmonia Sacra, a Mennonite hymnal first published in Philadelphia in 1832. The style is very similar to that of Sacred Harp singing and other older shape-note traditions.
Later in the video one may hear more recent Southern gospel songs, such as "Higher ground", that are also common in the traditional repertoire of the Churches of Christ.
The Mennonite fellowships, being larger and more diverse, exhibit variety in worship practices just as they do in the manner of the observance of "plain living." Originally, however, they were strictly a cappella; the first pipe organ was not installed in a Mennonite church building in the U.S. until 1874. By 1890 the General Conference Mennonite Church allowed instruments, but the more conservative Mennonite Church opposed their use down to the 1950s. These two denominations merged in 2012 to form the Mennonite Church (USA), the largest denomination of Mennonites. Another Mennonite denomination, the Brethren in Christ, also refrained from instrumental music in worship until the 1950s (Krahn).
Many Mennonite congregations, however, remain a cappella. Not surprisingly, of course, the Old Order Mennonites ("horse and buggy Mennonites") continue to sing as they always had. The same stand has been maintained, however, by groups toward the middle of the Mennonite spectrum. As the larger conferences moved in the direction of using instruments (among other changes), these conservative-to-moderate Mennonites coalesced into what is loosely called "Conservative Mennonites" (Wikipedia).
As might be expected, there is a diversity of repertoires and styles among the Mennonites, from the German hymns of the Old Order to contemporary praise choruses among the more modern conservatives. The video below presents an hour's worth of singing from the Sequoia Bible Fellowship in Squaw Valley, California, a conservative Mennonite congregation. (N.B. This is was a special singing night, so there were visitors present who did not adhere to the usual conservative Mennonite practice of head coverings for women.) The first song, "Behold the glories of the Lamb" (ST. MARTIN), goes back to the Harmonia Sacra, a Mennonite hymnal first published in Philadelphia in 1832. The style is very similar to that of Sacred Harp singing and other older shape-note traditions.
Later in the video one may hear more recent Southern gospel songs, such as "Higher ground", that are also common in the traditional repertoire of the Churches of Christ.
A Cappella Singing in Methodist Churches
Though Methodists are not usually thought of as an a cappella tradition, some were at one time opposed to the use of instrumental music in worship. At the 1846 conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and again in 1874, the formal Pastoral Address expressed disapproval of instruments in worship, though no formal action was taken (Westerfield Tucker, 167ff.). It is not surprising that it was the Southern branch of Methodism that was the last to adopt the use of instruments; Southerners of every religious stripe seem to have been more conservative in theology and practice than their Northern counterparts, perhaps reflecting the natural tendencies of a predominantly rural society with few major urban centers. This scenario played out among many religious groups, including, in its own way, the Restoration Movement.
Two groups that refused to follow the Methodist Episcopal mainstream during this time, the Free Methodist Church and the Wesleyan Methodist Church (later just the Wesleyan Church), continued in a cappella singing for several more decades. The Free Methodist Church was organized at a meeting in 1860 on the basis of "primitive Methodism," part of which was stated to be "congregational singing, without instrumental music in all cases" (Fortner). Half a century later, the Doctrines and Discipline of the Free Methodist Church still contained the frank statement, "In no case let there be instrumental music or choir singing in our public worship" (D&D 1915, p. 42). This remained the position of the group until 1943, when the General Conference voted to allow local congregations to decide whether or not to introduce instruments (Daily Times (Beaver & Rochester, NY) 19 June, p. 2).
The Wesleyan Methodist Connection of America, later just the Wesleyan Church, had a less united stance on this and many other issues. The Discipline of the Wesleyan Methodist Church of America contained until 1896 this somewhat equivocal statement: "We recommend the churches to dispense with instrumental music." (Discipline 1896, p. 115) It was omitted, however, from 1911 onward (Discipline 1911, p. 205). Many of the Holiness groups related to this tradition adopted instruments over the years, though others remain a cappella. One example of the latter is Christ's Sanctified Holy Church, which was organized in 1892 on Chincoteague Island, Virginia, and has spread through the southeastern U.S. as far as Mississippi ("About us"). The following video is from a singing in Leesburg, Georgia.
The Pentecostal movement, rooted in Wesleyan Methodism, began with a surprisingly strong a cappella worship tradition. For at least the first decade after its beginning in 1906, the famous revival at the Azusa Street Mission in Los Angeles did not have instrumental music (Robeck).
A Cappella Singing in Baptist Churches
According to David W. Music and Paul A. Richardson, Baptists in the United States were opposed to instrumental music in worship well until the 19th century. Even then, "it is safe to say that few congregations introduced instruments without stirring controversy" (102). Baptists in the South, ancestors of the largest Protestant body in the U.S. today, were still in opposition in large numbers at mid-century. Music & Richardson cite the sentiments of Jeremiah B. Jeter of the First Baptist Church of Richmond, Virginia, who wrote in 1840:
I am not favorable to the use of instrumental music in the worship of God. It is warranted neither by precept, nor example, under the new dispensation. . . . On this there is but little difference of opinion among the Baptists of Virginia" (103)Music & Richardson offer some instructive insights into the shift in Baptist thinking. Foremost was a change in thinking about how Scripture guides what is done in worship. Earlier generations had followed the "regulative principle", that is, they believed that Scripture regulates what is done in worship. But later generations adopted the "normative principle", assuming that anything not prohibited by Scripture is lawful. The authors also note that this change coincided with a rise in affluence and education, as well as an increasing desire to make the Baptist faith more attractive to a wider segment of the population (109ff.). Readers of Earl West's Search for the Ancient Order will recognize an almost identical transformation within the Restoration Movement, only a few decades later. But as can be seen with other major religious groups, there are still remaining branches of the Baptists practicing the a cappella singing that was once universal.
Old Regular Baptists
Found primarily in the Appalachians along the borders of Kentucky and the Virginias, the "Old Regular" Baptists trace their heritage to the New Salem Association founded in 1825. Though their principal distinction is their stance on the relationship between grace and free will, they have also traditionally been among the most resistant to changes in congregational organization and worship, and continue many practices dating from the 18th century (Grammich & Young). In addition to continuing the a cappella practice, they have retained the "lining out" procedure of singing in which the leader chants the words of each line quickly, then leads the congregation through the line following the tune, usually in a very slow, almost arhythmic fashion. This is a tradition dating back to very early Protestant congregational singing, allowing one person with a hymnal (or just a good memory) to lead a congregation that may not have had hymnals, or the literacy to use them.
Primitive Baptists
Primitive Baptists began to be recognized as a distinct group during the 1820s as they rejected the introduction of the missionary societies, seminaries, and Sunday School organizations that were later accepted by the majority of Baptists. They were also known for being the strictest Baptist adherents to the doctrine of predestination, thus receiving the (not always kindly) nickname of "Hard-shell" Baptists. The moniker "Primitive" or "Old-School" is more generally accepted, reflecting the view that they have simply remained in the faith of their fathers while others have moved in more liberal directions (Young). A cappella singing in worship is one of the distinct practices strongly maintained and defended by mainstream Primitive Baptists. The article "Instrumental music in the church" by Elder Bill Walden, which is linked on several Primitive Baptist websites, presents a rather familiar approach to the topic!
Primitive Baptist hymnals include the Old School Hymnal and Old Baptist Hymns, The video below is a group of Primitive Baptists singing SOAR AWAY, a hymn from the Sacred Harp tradition of shape-note music (to be discussed later). The videographer starts the recording well outside the little church building and slowly walks inside, giving an excellent demonstration of how this vigorous style of singing could roll across the "hills and hollows" back in a less noisy age. It also shows the amazing acoustical properties of the small, high-roofed wooden buildings of an earlier era, which make the small group of singers sound much louder.
A Cappella Singing in Reformed & Presbyterian Churches
Those closest to the roots of Calvinism might be expected to hold onto his teachings about worship the longest, and to a great extent this was true. In 1842, the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., the largest Presbyterian body in the country at that time, published Questions on the Confession of Faith and Form of Government, a brief work in question-answer format intended to instruct the faithful in the official positions of the denomination. It included this statement:
[Sec. V.] Q. 6. Is there any authority for instrumental music in the worship of God under the present dispensation?
A. Not the least; only the singing of psalms and hymns and spiritual songs was appointed by the apostles; not a syllable is said in the New Testament in favour of instrumental music; nor was it ever introduced into the Church until the eighth century, after the Catholics had corrupted the simplicity of the gospel by their carnal inventions. It was not allowed in the Synagogues, the parish churches of the Jews; but was confined to the Temple service, and was abolished with the rites of that dispensation (Weed 55).But this position did not hold. In 1845 the Synod of Cincinnati put forward an overture requesting a formal declaration from the General Assembly on the matter of instrumental music in worship; the Committee on Bills and Overtures stated,
Whereas by our Constitution, (Form of Government chap. ix. sect. 6, and Directory for Worship, chap. iv. sect. 4,) the whole internal arrangement of a church as to worship and order, is committed to the Minister and Session, therefore,
Resolved, That this Assembly do not feel themselves called upon and obliged to take any further order on this subject, but leave to each Session the delicate and important matter of arranging and conducting the music, as to them shall seem most for edification; recommending great caution, prudence, and forbearance, in regard to it" (UPC-USA Minutes 21-22).I am no expert in the ecclesiastical politics of mid-19th century Presbyterians, but I think I recognize a "punt" when I see one. The simple assertion that it was out of their hands left it open to the factions within each congregation to fight it out, and the recommendations, sincere though they must have been, say nothing about the Scriptural points of the matter--implying by their silence that it had become a matter of expedience.
The United Presbyterian Church of North America was more heavily influenced by the Scottish Covenanter tradition, and held out for another generation. Until 1882 the UPCNA's "Directory of Worship"--its approved regulations for conducting worship--explicitly forbade the use of instruments in worship. This was repealed at the 24th General Assembly (UPCNA Minutes, 519), over considerable protest. The following year saw the "Convention of United Presbyterians Opposed to Instrumental Music in the Worship of God," held in Allegheny, Pennsylvania.
Eventually the two United Presbyterian bodies combined, and, through a further series of mergers, became today's Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), the largest Presbyterian group in the United States. But other Presbyterian fellowships resisted this trend of merger for a number of reasons. The Reformed Presbyterian Church in North America, General Synod (an ancestor of today's conservative Presbyterian Church of America, and not to be confused with the modern "Covenanter" group, the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America) did not allow instrumental music in worship until 1905, when the synod decided to allow the matter to be addressed at the congregational level (Hutchison 92). Other Presbyterian fellowships remain a cappella to this day.
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America
The largest of the Presbyterian groups in the U.S. that continue the a cappella practice of their forbears is the Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America, also known (like their Scottish counterparts) as "Covenanters" because of their historic connection to the Solemn League and Covenant dating from the English Civil War. (Not surprisingly, the Covenanters were some of the staunchest proponents of independence when the American Revolution came!) Organized in this country during the 1700s, the RPCNA has resisted merging into one of the larger Presbyterian conferences, though it has at times lost significant portions of its membership to these bodies (Wikipedia). Following the original practice of Scottish Presbyterianism, they sing only the Psalms. The official position of the RPCNA on instruments in worship is expressed thus: "In keeping with the New Testament Church’s directive for heart worship, we sing without the aid of musical instruments" ("Convictions").
Two Uniquely American A Cappella Traditions
The focus of this series has been on the practices of specific religious bodies, but a discussion of a cappella singing in worship in the United States would hardly be complete without mentioning two other vital traditions that are not associated with any particular religious group.
The African American Tradition
During the period of slavery, music was a prized possession that could be shared but never taken away, and became a means of preserving the history and experiences of the community. The "spirituals" are a genre of great variety, combining uniquely African musical elements with those of the Protestant hymn tradition, and crafting lyrics that express a distinct voice of the African American Christian experience. The hymn "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" is a haunting and evocative text on its own; it becomes all the more powerful when one considers that it came from a people who had really seen men lashed, beaten, and executed. Yet the same spiritual tradition gave us songs of hope and joy, as well as such humorous but thoughtful lines as, "Everybody talking about heaven ain't going there."
The video below is a 1909 recording by the Fisk Jubilee Quartet, a group of African American singers from Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. The song is one of the more lively of the spirituals, and prefigures much of the style of Southern gospel quartet singing in the 20th century.
For African American slaves, who were typically forbidden by law to read or write, it was a matter of practicality to have a leader with a good memory "line out" the longer hymns for the congregation. It also gave vent to the typically African musical aesthetic of "heterophony", in which a group can sing the same song together but with great individual freedom. (There is a good argument to be made that a cappella congregational singing tends to be that way by nature!) This practice is still maintained among the African American Old Baptists; in the video below the song leader "lines out" the Isaac Watts hymn, "When I can read my title clear".
The Shape-Note Tradition
As we have seen, during the first 200 years or so of European settlement in North America, many of the largest Protestant religious bodies sang a cappella in worship. Because of this shared practice, it was not uncommon to have community hymn singings that were not under the auspices of a specific denomination. During the Colonial and early Federal era "singing-schools" became a big business, making full-time careers for composers such as William Billings and Jeremiah Ingalls. A hymn from this era that is still in many hymnals today is Oliver Holden's CORONATION, "All hail the pow'r of Jesus' name". Below is a video of the original version of this hymn sung at a Sacred Harp singing in Stroud, Alabama. In keeping with the singing-school tradition, the group runs through the music with solfege syllables first, then sings the words. (WARNING: Sacred Harp singing is very loud and enthusiastic; adjust your volume accordingly!)
Though the more refined tastes of 19th-century urbanization gradually displaced this music from its cradle in New England, it found a welcome in the frontier states of the Midwest and South, and evolved into a musical tradition of its own. The invention of shape-note systems for indicating the scale steps made it easier to teach a basic level of music reading very quickly, and rural and frontier communities dearly appreciated this outlet for education, edification, and socializing.
The best-known book today from this tradition is the Sacred Harp (1860), but it was preceded by the equally important Southern Harmony (1835). (See the "Introduction to Sacred Harp shape note singing" at www.fasola.org for more information on these hymnals.) The composers of this early shape-note music were typically self-taught, or rather, taught by one another, in a rough-and-ready style that must have horrified Lowell Mason and the Bostonians but well suited the loud and enthusiastic singing of the little country meeting-houses. This genre was also deeply imbued with the modal scales of Anglo-Scots-Irish folk music, as can be heard in WONDROUS LOVE.
By the dawn of the 20th century this music was largely crowded out by the new gospel genre, but in the folk music revival of the 1960s, and in the renewed study of American roots music coinciding with the Bicentennial, many people rediscovered this indigenous tradition. Today singings from the old four-shape books are held all over the nation. In the video below, singers in western Massachusetts, one of the states that gave birth to the singing-school movement, sing the most famous tune ever to come from the South, NEW BRITAIN.
A Cappella Singing in the Restoration Movement
The Rise of the "Organ Question"
It should come as no surprise that, at the beginning of the American Restoration Movement (or Stone-Campbell Movement, as some historians prefer), a cappella singing was the norm. Most of those involved came out of denominations that already eschewed instruments in worship, and in their pursuit of the restoration of an ideal New Testament Christianity, they found nothing to change their position on that subject. Musical instruments in worship are not documented among their congregations until two instances from the late 1850s, at Midway, Kentucky, and at the 6th Street congregation in Cincinnati. This practice was met with widespread disapproval, both at home and in the fellowship at large (Ferguson).
The instrument question was increasingly discussed in the second half of the century, however, beginning with an informal written debate between two formidable opponents, Amos Sutton Hayden (1813-1880) and John W. McGarvey (1829-1911), carried out in the pages of the Millennial Harbinger during 1864-1865. Isaac Errett, editor of the Christian Standard (a leading journal among brethren in the North), wrote an editorial in May 1870 declaring his belief that the use of instruments was an expedient, but should not be adopted anywhere if it would cause division. Opposition quickly evaporated in most Northern congregations, however, and by the 1880s most had adopted instruments in worship. Meanwhile, the leading editor in the South, David Lipscomb of the Gospel Advocate, supported the view that instruments were an unauthorized addition to worship. Many more congregations in the South resisted the adoption of instruments than in the North, and the numerical strength of the non-instrumental Churches of Christ in the U.S. is concentrated in the South to this day (Ferguson).
Whatever impact sectional prejudice had in the resulting division, the facts seem better to support an economic and theological interpretation: the wealthier, more socially mobile, and more theologically liberal congregations tended to adopt instruments in worship, and these congregations were much more concentrated in the North. This was true of other religious groups as well; the Southern Baptists have remained much more conservative than most of their Northern counterparts, and the Presbyterian Church of America, composed of conservative Presbyterians who wished to remain separate from the PCUSA, is also concentrated in the South.
The Hymnody of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.
The hymn repertoire of the early Restoration Movement sprang from the music common to the Baptist and Presbyterian churches of the Midwest, crystallized in Alexander Campbell's influential hymnal Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs. First published in 1828, this went through numerous editions before undergoing a more wholesale revision into the Christian Hymnbook in the 1860s. Though Campbell objected to the inclusion of musical notation as a distraction from worship, he did include suggested tunes for many texts (Mankin 11-12). A survey of these tune suggestions reveals a familiarity with the contemporary repertoire of Midwestern shape-note tunes (MEAR, PLEASANT HILL, STAR OF THE EAST) as well as the more traditional psalm and hymn tunes from previous centuries.
Campbell's vision of a common hymnal for all the congregations was probably never realistic, but whatever hold it ever had was certainly broken during the "hymnal dispute" of 1866. Following the death of Campbell, the ownership of his hymnal went to the American Christian Missionary Society, which was disavowed by many of the more conservative congregations as an unauthorized innovation in church organization, and a step toward the loss of congregational autonomy. The hymnal underwent an extensive revision and enlargement, was renamed the Christian Hymnbook, and was put up for sale with the understanding that all proceeds would go to the Missionary Society. David Lipscomb and Tolbert Fanning, writing in the conservative Gospel Advocate, strongly objected to the common hymnal of the brotherhood being tied to support of an organization of which many disapproved. They also noted that the increase in price put it out of reach of many of the impoverished congregations of the war-ravaged South (Bowman 57-58).
By the 1880s Lipscomb had decided to publish hymnals through the Gospel Advocate, catering to the needs of the Churches of Christ. The first of these was Christian Hymns (1889), with texts edited by Lipscomb's associate E. G. Sewell and music edited by Methodist hymnwriter and publisher Rigdon McIntosh. The contents lean heavily toward the Southern gospel song; it is striking, in fact, just how "contemporary" this hymnal was when it appeared. It was certainly a marked departure from the Campbell hymnal, and raises the question of just how closely the Southern congregations were aligned with the "common hymnal" to begin with.
In the early 20th century, Churches of Christ in the U.S. were very active in the shape-note singing-schools of Southern gospel, and produced at least one famous gospel songwriter, Albert E. Brumley (1905–1977), author of songs such as "If we never meet again this side of heaven" and "I'll fly away." The latter is sung in the video below, recorded at a singing in Gadsden, Alabama.
Though not enjoying Brumley's commercial success, other songwriters such as Tillit Teddlie and Lloyd O. Sanderson contributed significant new gospel repertoire to the Churches of Christ during this era.
The introduction of Elmer Jorgenson's Great Songs of the Church, a tremendously popular hymnal first published in 1921, did more than anything else to swing the stylistic pendulum back toward a balance of gospel and classical hymns. His book was even arranged with that in mind: the "gospel songs" were in one section, and the "hymns" in another nearly equal section. (It is interesting to see which songs went in which section!) Though Jorgenson's book was initially resisted in some quarters because of his controversial Premillennial views, it took on a life of its own, and outlasted the hymnal series from publishers such as Gospel Advocate and Firm Foundation. No other hymnal has had such a profound impact on the repertoire sung by the Churches of Christ in this country and abroad.
In the second half of the 20th century, a new hymnal publisher, Alton H. Howard, captured a large portion of the market in the South with Songs of the Church (1971). The success of this hymnal led to another influential book, Songs of Faith and Praise (1994), which was the first major hymnal among the Churches of Christ to incorporate a significant selection of contemporary "praise and worship" music. The contributions of African American Churches of Christ were also significant during this era, particularly in the works of Sylvia Rose Cobb. Her popular "Mansion, Robe, and Crown" is featured in the video below, recorded at the lectureship held by the Southwestern Christian College.
The trend toward using overhead projection instead of hymnals gathered momentum at the turn of the century, and early technologies which had only lyrics raised concerns over what would happen to congregational singing in parts. Fortunately, advances in desktop music publishing have made it possible to project both words and music--even in shape notes--in a practical and effective manner. The Paperless Hymnal product offers songs in batches of 100-200 each, at about $1 per song; congregations can mix and match depending on the repertoire desired.
Resolving the issue of the selection of songs, however, is not amenable to a simple technological fix. The Churches of Christ have not been to the "worship wars" experienced by nearly every other religious group in our time; the main difference has been, where others fight their generational battles over the use of guitars vs. organs, we have sometimes argued over which particular style of a cappella music we will sing. Cool heads, open minds, and loving hearts will get us through these problems.
It is less easy to say what will happen with the small but increasing trickle of congregations that have begun to use instrumental music in their worship services. It is a disturbing trend--but in no case where I have been familiar with the congregation have I been taken completely by surprise. Just as it was in the late 1800s, the actual adoption of instrumental music in worship is typically a trailing indicator of a larger realignment in theology and practice. I pray that it is not as extensive in our day, as it was in the former.
Conclusion
On reaching the end of this series, it seems useful to repeat its aims. It is not an attempt to argue the case of what kind of music is pleasing to God in Christian worship; others have done that exceptionally well over the years. In fact, I believe one could look at the literature on that subject today, fifty years ago, a century ago, and even further back, and find very little new to be said. My goals instead have been two in number: 1) to frame the argument in context of historical norms of worship practice, and 2) to introduce lovers of a cappella worship today to the rich variety of a cappella praise from ages past. The first goal is of course the more important, and can be restated more plainly as an attempt to encourage a cappella congregations not to accept the "born yesterday" mentality that views us as somehow odd and out of step, simply because we are in a minority at this particular moment in history.
I also hope to stir the honest consciences of those who practice instrumental worship, or those who may be undecided. Of course, the fact that any particular practice or point of view is accepted or rejected at some point in time is really beside the point; what matters is whether that practice or point of view is accepted or rejected by the Holy Spirit through His inspired Scriptures. But if we find that a matter has been settled among most of those calling themselves Christians, for much of the history of Christianity, and has only been changed in the last few centuries--with considerable acrimony and division--is it not worth a second look?
This was the approach taken recently by John Price in his Old Light on New Worship: Musical Instruments and the Worship of God (Avinger, Texas: Simpson, 2005). I do not agree with all his reasoning, and would hardly expect to, since he is an old-school Calvinist. But the criticisms his book has received are all too familiar (just check Amazon or GoodReads)--He is living in the past. This isn't relevant to today's problems. These arguments were settled a long time ago. Surely he doesn't mean to bring this up again. All of which amounts to what C. S. Lewis wittily called, "chronological snobbery."
When I gather with my brothers and sisters this Sunday--God willing--if we open our mouths to "sing with the spirit and the understanding" (1 Corinthians 14:15), "singing with grace in our hearts to the Lord" (Colossians 3:16), and "making melody" with no other instruments but hearts filled with love and gratitude (Ephesians 5:19), we can be sure that we are praising God in the way that He has appointed, that honors His will and is pleasing to His ears. We will also be joining, in spirit, the hosts of others who have done the same, down through the centuries, offering God "the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name" (Hebrews 13:15).
References: "About us." Christ's Sanctified Holy Church. http://www.cshc.org/page/about_us_27572
Bowman, John. Sweetly the Tones are Falling: A Hymnal History of Churches of Christ. Brentwood, Tenn.: Penmann Press, 1984.
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Westerfield Tucker, Barbara. American Methodist Worship. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001. Young, Chester Raymond. "Baptists, Primitive." Encyclopedia of Religion in the South. Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 2005, p. 107-108.
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