The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1885-03-11
For the Central Presbyterian.
CHOIRS.
DAVID MCMEEKIN

For the Central Presbyterian.
CHOIRS.
We have dread of choirs and would
not for the world, over our initials, in
the Central, breathe the mildest dissatis-
faction with this institution. But, as we
have confdentially entrusted our name
to the editors, and fight under cover, we
can afford to be bold as a lion, and speak
our mind without fear, favor, or afec-
ton" If any one, however, lmagines,
from this threatening exordium, that we
are opposed to choirs, he would be vastly
mistaken. We could easily stake out
boundary within which, if choir could
be vigorously confined, it would be good
thing. But, in long and miscellaneous
experience, we have rarely known one
that did not spurn all restraint, and set
sail with colors flying, upon the limitless
sea of discretion. We prefer precentor
and organ to lead the singing, and have
insuperable objections to choirs as gener-
ally constituted.
They form, usually, an independent
and sensitive, and often defiant class in
the church-an anperiun1 IN inaperiO.
Most pastors and Sessions would as soon
tackle a rattlesnake as the choir, and
generally the preacher who ventures to
control one, either soon finds his musical
Achilles sulking in his tent" until his
Importance is confessed and his offended
pride appeased, or raises tempest about
his ears more p1tiless than the conten-
tious storm" which burst upon the de-
fenceless head of King Lear.
But choirs, usually, extinguish congre-
gational singing We read in the Bible
" Let the people praise thee o God; let
all the people praise thee ;" and yet one,
entering a church with choir, might
we'll conjecture that it had a revised
version running thus, Let the choir
praise thee o God; let one in the choir
praise thee" Theoretically, the Office of
choir is to lead the people in singing;
and yet it naturally and almost inevita-
bly, monopolises this part of the worship
because, when a thoroughly cultivated
taste controls the music, tunes will be
selected with which the people are not
familiar, and the exactness of scientific
concord will render a discordant note
in the congregation so conspicuous that
the unskilled will prefer silence rather
than run the risk of blunder and be-
coming the butt OF merciless ridicule.
Thus the right of the people to partici-
pate in the only part OF worship in which
they can audibly join, is taken away,
and the delightful privilege of praise
gradually fades into disuse and disrepute,
and the congregation is educated to think
that the alone duty of the people is to
listen to the sermon and play dummy,
and endure the fantastic tricks of choir
which, to say the least have no tendency
to lift the soul of the worshipper sky
ward
But choirs often violate the proprie-
ties of the place and occasion. The SUI
preme aim of every worshipper should
be to discipline and chasten the soul into
perfect harmony with the protested pur-
pose of the occasion, and all the services
of the sanctuary should be so conducted
as to contribute to this end, and fix
the mind and heart upon the spiritual,
and nothing could be more unseemly and
discordant than exhibitions of pride and
vanity And yet it is difficult often for
the most unbounded charity to repress
the suspicion that the music Of the choir
is mere stage play, the despoable trick
OF an actor TO win applause, rather than
the honest confession of the humble and
penitent, o the grateful outburst of the
Joyous and thankful saint, oblivious OF
every presence, but Gods. Now we
challenge the right Of any man or woman
to disturb the worship Of God with i'm
prophecies, that tend to Danish all de-
voutness, and defect the soul from its
proper and spiritual end, and convert
the temple Of Jehovah into theatre for
the display Of personal accomplishments.
But
The notion that scientific music is the
thing for the house of God is grounded
on a vicious principle and misconcep-
ton of the function of music in worship.
Singing is part Of worship, and intend
ed, as prayer, to express in words the
alteration, penitence, gratitude, faith, and