Multilingualism in Religious Musical Practice

This Special Issue explores the dynamics of multilingualism in Christian worship, a phenomenon with a historic and global reach, with particular connections to missionization and migration. Within such a complex and expansive phenomenon, the contributors focus on multilingualism in religious music, drawing from theological ethicist and ethnomusicologist Nathan Myrick’s concept of “musical caring”, in which congregational music demonstrates care ethics “when it enables human flourishing”, “provides space for people to voice their needs…honestly”, and “preserves people in and restores people to just relationships with each other” (Myrick,Nathan. 2021. Music for Others: Care, Justice, and Relational Ethics in Christian Music. Oxford: Oxford University Press). This Special Issue explores the motivations for and approaches to multilingualism in sung congregational worship.

Attentive to multilingualism as a significant socio-liturgical dynamic within particular global Christian communities, this Special Issue features established and emerging scholars working across diverse academic fields, including ethnomusicology, theology, the history of world Christianity, musicology, biblical studies, and liturgical studies. We offer this Reprint as a resource for scholars and practitioners, expanding awareness and understanding of how multilingual worship music shapes and sustains Christian communities worldwide.