The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1881-05-18

at Gideon; and there, David and Solo,
mon offered their regular sacrifices. And
1t aoas for Gideon that David organized
his choir of singers with Instruments
See 2 Sam. vi: II; Chron. xvi 37-43.
The state of affairs was transitional. The
place of the altar was about to migrate,
by divine appointment, from Gideon to
Moriah, as it had migrated from Shiloh
to Gideon. During the transition, the
typical, sacriicial worship was Temporal
rily ambulatory. But, none the less, was
the musical worship always associated
with the typical sacrifices. But the sac
rifice is no precedent for the worship of
the New Testament Church.
But farther: granting, for the moment,
that instrumental music is now proper in
worship, the nature and antecedents of
the organ. are such, that its selection
from among other instruments, by Pro-
testants, as the one to be always used, is
the most unsuitable and perverse choice
possible. No instrument was introduced
until many ages after the apostles; and
the change was regarded as a strong and
an unfavorable innovation, and was syn
chronous with the growth of grave cor
ruptions.. When instruments came in
"Ichabod" was already beginning to be
written on the Church's spirituality
But the organ, especially the invention
of the approaching dark ages, was the
peculiar choice of the papacy. She chose
consistently. 1t is musical machine, in
which bellows produces the atmospheric
tension, which exclusively dictates the
dynamic force of the. tones. 1t is true
that the organist, by removing his hands
from the keyboard, can shut loud
stop and open soft one; or vice versa.
But as to its measures, the bellows makes
the unaccented note just as forcible as
the accented. The Instruments incapa-
bic of rhythm, of orsis and thesis. It's
mechanical, blaring tone browns the voice
which it should only support. 1t has no
accentuation. 1t is the deadly enemy of
syllabication in singing. Hence, of all
the musical instruments in the world, it
is the least fitted to accompany lyrical
singing. By this is understood articulate,
rhythmical eloquence; in which words,
expressive of thoughts and feelings, are
audibly uttered, as the medium of intel
ligent meaning, with the adjuncts of
poetry, melody, and harmony. But the
Christian hymn is sacred lyric or it is
naught. We are to "sing with the un-
derstanding," l Cor. xiv: IA. We are
to "admonish one another in psalms,
hymns, and spiritual songs" Col. iii: 16.
Let the reader who doubts on this point
see the Legislation of Paul in l Cor. xiv:
6 to 10, and verse %. Worship in an
unknown tongue, however devout, is use
less for edification. Except we utter by
the tongue a0ords easy to be understood,
how shall it be known what is spoken E?
For ye shall speak into the air" If
there be no interpreter, the man with the
gift of tongues is to be silenced If it is
not articulate and Ineligible, it is not
worship, and is not to be tolerated in
Gods house. If then, Protestants must
needs have instruments, what unlucky
perversity is it, which uniformly makes
them select the very instrument, of all
instruments, which is most at war with
least fitted for assisting Gods ordinance
of lyrical worship? Is it the determine
ton to be in the fashion whether or not
although it is a Popish fashion?
The Papist, in selecting the organ, is
consistent (where we are absurdly incon-
sistent). His theory Of religion is totally
different from our Bible theory. The
faith he inculcates is an implicit faith.
1t is not grounded in any acts of intelli-
gence, but in implicit submission to dog
ma. He expects to work sanctifcation,
not by teaching, but by the "opus oper-.
alum power" of the sacraments. His
cultatS is a symbolic pantomime. He
tells us that the words being in dead
language makes no difference whatever;
the Latin is just as good for the Irishman
as the Irish; because the ediication does
not come through words understood, but
l., L L. II. Il -