Given my inclination to advocate for singing Psalms in worship, several persons have asked why I ran B. Censorious's "A Critic of Contemporary Christian Music Reviews the OPC Psalter-Hymnal." Simply put, I thought it a fine example of the "criticizing worsip music" genre of which reformed writers of the last several decades seem so fond, and further thought it would be a shame were I the only one to enjoy it.
When I first began reading works of this genre a couple decades ago, it occurred to me that many of the criticisms leveled against whatever kind of worship song the writer did not like (whether classic hymns or contemporary worship music) were presented as though they were careful theological conclusions despite the writer failing to give Scriptural backing for his arguments, and I wondered whether these were actually expressions of aesthetic and personal preference. It further seemed to me that the Psalms themselves could be faulted along the same lines that, say, "Shine, Jesus, Shine" is so widely criticized. In that light, Mr. Censorious's review article represents the natural conclusion of a reflexive urge to condemn uninspired worship songs.
I do believe there are any number of reasons to reject songs of any vintage as inappropriate for Christian worship. At the same time, I believe those who are quick to reject songs ought to be sure none of their reasons for so doing could not equally well be applied to the Psalter.
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