Traditional or Contemporary Christian Music: Hymns or Hype

 

I am a fan of music. I have listened to different genres in the past, including Traditional and Contemporary Christian music. One thing I have noticed is the line drawn between these two can be very definitive; members of the church generally pick a side and stay. Some would say this happens because of the generational gap that occurs, especially in the diversity of church membership today.
Typically, the age group of any church ranges from the very young to the very old. With this variety, there is going to be different musical interests, and people with different backgrounds. I like both Traditional and Contemporary, but as with anything else, it kind of depends on the mood I'm in. There are times when I enjoy the upbeat, hand-clapping and foot stomping, instrument heavy, "Bring Heaven Down" style found in the Contemporary genre.

Then there are other times where all I want is to praise the Lord while singing and clapping to the time tested, heart-felt, slow and beautifully composed hymns that the world has enjoyed throughout history. We should not, however, allow this to be a deciding factor in our opportunity to worship our Father. The music is a small portion of the total experience.

 

If you are unsure which side of the line you stand on; maybe understanding the difference will help.

In a lot of churches a "traditional song" is classified as a hymn, while "contemporary songs" are not merely "modern," rather they are the popular music of the day. The reason for the distinction is unclear. Some think that it is due to the radical shift in style and devotional thinking that took place during the Jesus Movement . A hymn is a song typically written with the spirit of adoration and praise directed toward God. Contemporary music is written to make a person feel good. Hymns are sung in a very reverent manner giving well deserved honor and praise to our Creator, while the more modern music "contemporary" is performed with the intent of worshipping but at the same time lifting one's personal spirit (feel-good music).

 

Now that we are educated in the difference between "traditional" and "contemporary" maybe we can utilize both in our worship; realizing that our Father does not care how we go about it, He just wants us to enjoy him fully. For the traditionalists out there; God enjoys and expects praise from His followers, but He also wants us to enjoy life and be lifted up ourselves during times of worship. For the more contemporary crowd out there; remember that there is more to following Christ than just feeling good about ourselves. We are to be reverent in times of worship to God. Hymns were used long ago in exactly this way, and there is no need to fix something that is not broken.

 

Traditional and Contemporary Christian music both have their time and place. Using them correctly to access our God experience is what we all should be striving for, not disputing over which is appropriate or better.