hymns

Tonight our church had a hymn sing, and this brought to mind how full circle I have come on this genre of music.

When I was growing up my family listened to hymns a lot, and since I went to church regularly in traditional churches I heard my share of hymns as a kid.  As anyone who hears a lot of a specific type of music will do, there were songs that I liked and songs that I did not like.  I appreciated hymns overall, though, until I became a teen.

As I got into adolescence I grew to resent the expectation that church-goers would like the one genre of music over the others, and the attitude that many had that everything that was not a hymn was inferior (or worse, unholy).  I also got tired of the tendency of hymns to use outdated jargon, and plenty of "thees" and "thous." As such, while I did not hate hymns, I learned to strongly prefer other styles of music.

As I have grown as an adult, and especially in the past two or three years, I have come to appreciate the depth and maturity that exists in many hymns.  This is probably mostly due to the fact that I have more life experiences to appreciate a This has been in part because my understanding of Scripture and what practical Christianity really is has increased, and so some of what I thought I grasped before strikes me more seriously now.  Some of this is that I am no longer in a situation, or have recently been in a situation, where there are any expectations on what music I am going to like or what I am going to relate to.

One example of a song that I have only recently been appreciating on a doctrinal level is "Rock of Ages."  I am not Calvinist, and maybe this is one of the reasons it has taken some time to connect with me, but I feel I am only now grasping what I always claimed to believe—that I, and everyone else, truly come to God empty-handed.  I bring nothing to the equation except a reticent willingness to be changed.



An example of a song that I appreciate based on life experience in a way that I did not when I was a kid is "The Solid Rock."  Of my myriad of weaknesses, if there were one that I would pick out to say how much I underestimated the depth of it earlier in life, it is my ability to trust God.  My strength is in trusting Him, but it's something I need His help to even consider doing.



One song I am including here just because I like it is the Owl City version of "In Christ Alone."  It was written more recently than most traditional hymns, but it is essentially a hymn.  It is also every bit as meaningful as the other hymns I have been contemplating lately.



There are certainly some hymns I still do not enjoy, and probably never will.  However, I am getting to the point in my life where a good number of songs that I may have overlooked ten or twenty years ago can profoundly touch me.  I must be getting old.

demonization and favoritism

Something that perplexes me is the human drive to like and rationalize for those who we agree with and to demonize those we do not.  I am not pointing to any one group of people in particular.  In fact, what surprises me is how universal this appears to be.  I am also shocked at how on guard I have to be to keep from doing it myself.

This is probably the most pronounced in politics, but it also shows up in most other areas of life like religion and fandom.  Rather than accept that all humans are flawed and endowed with some redeemable traits, no matter their particular opinions, it is easier to see only the bad in those with whom I disagree and the good in those with whom I agree.

I cannot emphasize enough how amazed I am at how easy it is to slip into the line of thinking, "Of course that politician had shady dealings.  Have you seen his policy positions that completely contradict mine?"  It is also easy to think regarding my teams, "Ref, are you blind calling that unnecessary roughness?  That was a perfectly legal hit by the player on the football team I am pulling for.  I'd bet he volunteers his time and resources to his community, and saves people from burning buildings in his spare time—the saint!"  All of this is as if someone's position on the ideal tax system or role in a team from Detroit has anything to do with the quality of their character.

This sort of philosophical favoritism, giving some people unwarranted hate and others unwarranted admiration, is obviously not what God called us to.  I am not convinced that this is the sort of thing that most Christians are aware they need to give over to God, though.  Even though we all know that anything short of love for our neighbors is sin and we know that favoritism has been forbidden, do we (and I am certainly asking this about myself) really believe it?  Does this sort of thing truly make the cut of things we really think of as falling short of God's glory?

I am as in need of as much assistance in countering this flaw in my thinking on this as anyone else.  That is the point, though.  We all have natures so horribly flawed that we cannot on our own obey a simple command like, "Love your enemies..." (Matt 5:44).  This, even when the only thing that makes them an enemy is a difference of opinion about something relatively minor when considered in the grand scheme of things.

Disagree with me on this if you must.  Just understand it means that you must be a bad person.

blood and pastels

Easter, and Holy Week in general, is one of my least favorite holidays.  By rights it should be among my favorites because it represents the event that forms the foundation of my religious beliefs and my relationship with Christ.  It just seems so feminized, though.

This may come down to the fact that the real holiday is considered Easter and Good Friday is a day leading up to the ultimate holiday, but when I think of the Crucifixion and Resurrection I am disappointed with the emphasis on pastel colors and dressy attire.  I'd mention cute, furry animals as well, but that opens a can of worms about pagan roots on some of the celebration that I don't care to debate here.

In my thinking, Christmas should be the more feminine holiday and Easter should be the more masculine holiday.  Christmas is about birth and potential.  Easter is about violent death, death's defeat, and promises fulfilled.  Mary is as much the symbol of Christmas as anyone because God used her humble spirit for His glory.  Christ is the symbol of Holy Week because he showed what true humility and sacrifice was.  Christmas is about love and commitment in new relationships (Mary and Joseph), and Easter is about what love costs in a mature relationship (Christ and the Church).

We all choose how to celebrate and contemplate the holiday, but there are also cultural expectations within the church regarding how the holiday should be observed.  I wish you a great Good Friday and Easter as we all contemplate Christ's sacrifice and its implications on our lives.  This is what I will be doing this weekend.