In a recent article on the Christian Post, Dr. Cornelius Plantinga of Calvin Institute of Christian Worship voices a sobering critique of contemporary evangelical and reformed worship, observing that discussion of sin is disturbingly rare. Plantinga says this is seen chiefly in the obsolescence of rites of confession, and in the songs of the churches, where the “biblical tradition of lament, which is all through the prophets and the Psalms is gone, just not there.”
Plantinga hits upon a crucial point: the psalms (whether spoken or sung) have been absent from church liturgies for decades. Therefore, it’s no surprise that weighty biblical issues like sin, judgment, confession, and lament have become passé. Abandonment of the psalter results in an impoverished liturgical vocabulary, invites trite sentimentalism, and substitutes stilted emotive ecstasy for the broad biblical palette of spiritual affections. Confession and lamentation become foreign once the psalms are lost.
However, the presence of confession and lamentation requires not only appropriate liturgical forms, but a people who are willing to acknowledge the realities of sin, suffering, and injustice in their lives and in society. Communities are shaped by liturgy, but liturgies also take shape according to a communal ethos.
Increasingly, churches are generationally, racially, and economically segregated. Whether by design or not, this has occurred in large part because churches have attempted to be relevant to a fault, deploying marketing campaigns to create an enticing “brand,” borrowing sales techniques to bolster growth, and eschewing tradition in favor of trends. Such a strategy leads to demographically-homogenous congregations. By courting the culturally savvy and elite, churches truncate the body of Christ and cut themselves off from those who have a historic memory and experience of oppression, struggle, and suffering (e.g., the elderly, poor, racial minorities, disabled)–people who would be much more familiar with the vocabulary of lamentation and confession (even imprecation) than the typical hipster evangelical.
To be sure, evangelical churches are populated with plenty of suffering people. And as Plantinga notes, “Ceasingly cheerful worship does not fit with the lives of people who come to worship.” Notwithstanding, the chirpy aura of many modern churches discourages corporate recognition of sin and voicing of lament. Would such a lopsidedly optimistic atmosphere be as plausible and as entrenched if the church better reflected her identity as the new humanity in Christ, and embraced all classes, colors, and ages in her worship and fellowship? Perhaps, then, the pathway to biblically faithful worship needs to include not only recovery of the psalms, but reconciliation of division within the church.<>
