American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1867-04-17

hearts to the Lord. ."--Eph. 10. Let the
word ofChrist dwell in you richly in all wis
dom, teaching and admonishing one another
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
singing with grace in. your hearts to the
Lord.'-Col iii, 16. "Is any merry let him
sing psalms. ms."-James v, l3. The duty Of
teaching and admonishing one another, Of
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, indicted by the Holy
Ghost, and singing these songs is enjnined by
the Holy Spirit. Christian MS are commanded
: TO express their spiritual joys, by singing
psalms" Nothing could be more express
than all this. Besides, it was the practice Of
the early Christians for the whole coRgrega-
tion to join in singing the praise of God is
as evident as any other well attested fact.
Pliny says tLat "the early Christians met
together before day and sung praises to
Christ MS God - evidently meaning the whole
assembly. We have no intimatian OF any
other practice obtaining from the Apostolic
age to the days ofthe reformation. It's well
, known that it was the practice Of all the re-
formed churches for the whole congregation
TO unite in the song of praise. How good
and comely is all this
.sPraise We the Lord; for it is good praise to
our God to sing;
For il il pleasant, and tOpraise, 1t IS comely
thing. .''-Ps. exlvii, J.
After all the bone of contention and what
will keep the protestant churches from be-
coming n unit is the rejection of the songs
indicted 10y the Holy SPIRIT, and substituting
in their room the poetic effusions of human
genius that they have made, withtNt Gods
permission, their songs of praise for them
selves may be permitted to decide for lhem-
selves who shall sing them, and how itshal
be done. Their songs are their creatures
and let them dispose of them. If it is go
thatal the aeople of God dill sing the praise,
Of Grh, as tlley were commandcd-and who
ear doubt ir?--the psalms must lave been
read out by verses or lines, land this il the
order of the not,d DIR. Spurgen while min,
is,ering to the thousands.) If that were rot
done, either the whole people must have oil
the 10 X of psalms e,mmhtel t, memory,
or they could not have SUM. Copies OF the
law were 80 scarce, when wFiten out with
n pen and ON parchment, that in the most
nrrso,rOus state IF the church in Israel.
there could not have been more th'n on"
copy Of the law in each syna gogue; 1t is per
f.ctIy crr,ain there could not lave bee one
for each family, or one for each wo' slipper
in the synagogue; the inre erce is irrcsista
bic that in rider that every one" might
sing t. the Lord, the palm must have been
epucelIad out rending it liae E line.
The people all praised GSd' IN the day
the ark was carried up TO the place thn'
David had prepared for it on the hlI If
Zion. On the very day Of the procession
.N. ChroA. xvi, 36,) the psalm which Ahey
sung was delivered t. the leaders in praise,
so that they neither could have committed.
il to memury nor could have copies have
been wr tten out for all the people TO sing
il without LIxISc.. ibis must have been the
case, to-. wirh all the psalms when they were
sent first TO the people to lie sung. The
manner in which tlcy first sung them was,
no doub', continued ever afterwards They
,nrithcr complained that the sense WAS mar
qel nor the melody of the music impaired by
that mo lc of singing. in the early ages OF
the church the same method NUT have CON
tinusl, for the copies Of the Scriptures were
81 rare and expensive that, except among
II. II a. Ea,y
they were scarcely to be found in private
families. 1t was with no little difficulty
that every church could be supplied with a
copy of the word, until the invention Of the
art of printinS-a little before there forlna>
ton of the sixteenth century. During all
thut long period, if all the people sung the
praises of Go6-as they all did who hrd
vo'ces-the practice Of reading the lines pre-.
vailed. This caano: be gainsaid.
In the reformed congregations, on the
cor tinent, tht same practice was continued;
for, though tie copies of the psalms were
not so rare, yet few Of the people could read.
In the Directory for worship agreed upon
by the assembly of Dvines at Westminster,
and which is the basis of the form of wurs
ship Of ali the Presbyterian church hes in
Britain and America, we have the follow
ing provision: THAT the whole cOngrc-
CATION may join in these THE singing of
p, aim, every one that can read is 20 have
a psalm book; and all others not disabled by
age or otherwise, are to Id. hor:ed to learn
to read. But for the present, where many
in the cingregat or cannnt read, it is NJ
vn.cnt that he miaister or some Fl per-.
ron appointed hv him, do read the psalm,
line hy line. before the singing thereof"
As the ersirn of p alms row in ue made
BY the General ASSEMBLY OF the church oil
Scntaud in the purest times of the -refurma
tion, and now used 10y the United and Re-
formed Presbyterian churches. by the free
and established church of Scotland AS n, W
printed. what was originally one line is d
vided into two Reading the psalm line by
line, meant the reading OF phatwe now call
two lines:
a. That man hath feet blcssedn rs who
waIkcth MT astray,"