Music in the Methodist Church

In my experience growing up as a Christian, music is always preached to be a medium for praise to God. It is also a way to provide interest to a service; raising voices together tends to keep you engaged, and engaging will ultimately make one more receptive to the teachings they will hear. It creates a sense of community: the congregation are many bodies, but one voice, just as they are all members of one church in God. It is also a teaching tool: sometimes, a pastor’s sermons can be difficult to understand. A song placing their words in a new manner, now with the pure expressiveness of music, can bring them into new light. Music also has the tendency to stick in our minds; when those lessons are put to music, they also tend to stay in one’s memory.

"A Mighty Fortress is Our God" is an excellent example of what to expect in a Methodist church's traditional service, if on a larger scale.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35oBagX4TfU

To serve these purposes, Christian music is structured simply. The melodies are small in range and mostly diatonic, with only very small steps from note to note. They are built for any person to come into church and be able to listen and pick up on the tune quickly; simplicity in the overall style leads to better unity and clarity. In Christian music, the words are the most important; the music exists mainly to convey them.

In a Methodist church, these limitations lend to two separate styles appealing to different generations: traditional hymns for the older generation, and pop or rock for the newer.

Though hymns are written in parts, they are usually sung in unison, with only an organ to accompany them. Some would argue that these hymns are God’s music in its purest form; nothing more is added, as nothing more is needed. However, as is a common point of contention in churches, many prefer “updated” music. The church, they would say, needs to adjust itself for modern times and new generations. Christian pop and rock works well for these purposes; as these songs are structured in a style already familiar them, it appeals greatly to younger members of the congregation. Hymns may feel stuffy or boring to them, but they can jam out and feel filled with the holy spirit if they are approached in a way that speaks to them.

Most important in Methodist music is the congregation as a whole. Usually, they sing together; however, an individual or small group will occasionally be invited to perform. They may be a gospel or bell choirs, a cello soloist, one of the church’s children: all of it adds a well-needed variety to a service. Hearing the same hymns or the same pop tunes throughout every service could bore the congregation and make the words lose their meaning; so, the congregation contributes to keep the lessons alive.