I love history. It’s never quite as one would expect it
to be. Never seems to be black and white and easy to figure out. Like people,
history is messy, imperfect, highlighting the good, the evil, and the shades of
gray. So much to learn! I find it so fascinating and messy beautiful.
I’ve read a few resources the past couple weeks and the
picture it paints of the early church is encouraging and beautiful as well as
delightfully human and far from perfect. The early church looked a lot like us
in all the ways that matter. They wanted unity. They valued sound
doctrine and codifying it to keep it pure. They seemed to genuinely enjoy being
together and involving themselves in benevolence and good deeds…encouraging one
another to holy lives befitting believers in Christ.
I tried to find as much as I could about music in the
early church and what scholars call ‘liturgy’--the order or form of
worship--basically what they did and how.
It was disappointing if you want to find a lot of information
about instruments or how they sung. There is nothing about instruments for the
first few centuries, no focus for good or bad on whether or not to use them.
Their priorities were different.
Around the sixth century is comes up that the church didn't
use instruments but they didn't appeal to scripture. They were concerned with
association. Some said it was 'Jewish’ while others said it was 'pagan.' Some
were concerned with immorality associated with instrumental music. They wanted
to make sure Christian worship was different from pagan worship. Greek gods and
goddesses were often pictured with flutes. Didn't want that! Some said it
reminded them of ‘calls to war.' Christians were supposed to be peaceful.
What stood out to me was what the early church did
emphasize. They spent a lot of time talking about some things worth looking at.
I’m not criticizing or endorsing what they did. I’m just interested in the
history.
Before 100 A.D. they met two times on Sunday. In the
morning gathering (before sunrise) they did extensive reading of scripture from
the OT and whatever NT letters were available. Then they had exhortation by a leading
elder, followed by prayers and singing. The evening service had the ‘agape’—a love
feast followed by the communion. They met before daybreak and took vows to live
holy and ethical lives. By the end of the first century the ‘agape’ was dropped
and communion moved to morning gathering.
Their Priorities:
1. Unity. They wrote a lot about submitting
to the bishop. By “bishop” they meant an elder over many churches in an area.
Ecclesiastical structure was important to them very early on. Every congregation evidently had a lead elder, fellow elders, then deacons. It was a basis for unity and order. Clement
of Rome even discussed apostolic succession as well as the importance of submitting to elders and bishop.
2. Benevolence. Good deeds
reflected Christ. They talked about helping brethren and ‘strangers’. Service
was highly valued. Women played an important role in this area.
3. The Lord’s
Supper and Baptism. The Didache (among the earliest writings) describes a kind
of hierarchy of preferences of baptism. First choice, baptism by immersion in ‘living water.’
If no stream of running water was found they could use another source of water. If no large source of water could be found, they could pour water following a
minimum one- two day fasting period. They did three “pours.” One each for the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit. Only those
baptized received communion.
4. The
requirement for baptism. At first it was just faith in Christ. But by the
second century they began requiring a probationary period before baptism. The ‘catechumen’
was not allowed in the same general worship area. Baptisms were usually
performed at Easter or Pentecost. Baptism for the sick and infants became an
issue that was not uniformly agreed upon during this time.
5. Fasting.
6. Sound doctrine. The church
dealt with legalism and Christology. Gnosticism and Docetism challenge the doctrine
of the nature of Christ. Other issues of the day included the nature of
salvation and resurrection. Creeds
became an important weapon to combat false
teaching. Councils took the essential points of doctrine, codified them, and the
church memorized them so that they would know false teaching when they heard
it. Creeds were like a mnemonic device. They helped believers remember
essential doctrine. Here is the Apostle’s Creed (pre-340 A.D. version):
“I believe in God the Father Almighty. And in Jesus
Christ His only (begotten) Son our Lord, who was born of the Holy Ghost and the
Virgin Mary; crucified under Pontius Pilate, and buried; the third day He rose
from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of the
Father, from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. And in the
Holy Ghost; the Holy Church; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the
body; (the life everlasting).”
Music History within the Church:
1. In the fourth century Ambrose
introduced antiphonal singing of psalms and congregational singing of hymns.
2. Gregorian chants came into
style in the sixth and seventh century. Solemn, monotone chanting. No harmony
like we know it today.
3. Festive and
happy singing was considered vulgar, associated with minstrel entertainment.
4. By the tenth century the
Western Church began using organs.
5. During the Reformation instruments
fell out of favor, this time for their association with Jewish worship, or
worse, Catholic worship. Not all the Reformers agreed about this.
6. Classical music of the Baroque
period was composed for the church.
Ideas about music and instruments have changed a lot
throughout history and will continue to do so. There was no 'ancient order' or pattern of authorized
worship forms/styles that focus on the external acts. The early church did not get it all right and neither do we.
Thank God
for his immeasurable grace that saves us: frail, fallible, and fallen as we
are. It is by grace we have been saved and stay saved, not in restoring a
non-existent ancient order or ever-changing pattern of authorized external, ritualistic worship. We worship in 'spirit' and in 'truth'. This is the kind of worship our Lord desires and has always desired. May the Lord bless our feeble efforts as we do the best we can to give him the sacrifice of our lips, our actions, our lives that He alone deserves. May He lead us every step of the way for his own purpose and glory.
Next time: "When a Judgment Call Becomes
Identity".
Resources:
·
Christianity
Through the Centuries (3rd edition), Earle E. Cairns
·
christianitytoday.com
·
liturgica.com
·
calledtocommunion.com
·
The
Didache
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