Search Results (20)

This paper discusses the Chart of the Taoist Rituals of Lord Lao, or “chart of Lord Lao” for short, a document drawn up, preserved, and utilized by a local Taoist altar in the border region of Hunan and Jiangxi provinces in southeastern China. This chart illustrates the body of the Most High Lord Lao (Taishang Laojun), with various parts labelled with sacred spaces, deity names in textual form, and ritual instructions. As such, the document elucidates the interconnectedness between the body, cosmos, and rituals within local Taoist beliefs. This article aims to analyze the chart of Lord Lao by comparing it with ritual texts, the liturgical tradition of the Taoist altar, and texts from the Ming dynasty Taoist Canon. Through this analysis, it becomes evident that the chart of Lord Lao and its associated practices reflect an intricate relationship between different layers of Taoist traditions. This includes the connections between classical Taoism and the emerging ritual traditions of exorcism during the Song and Yuan dynasties, as well as the interplay between these emerging traditions, such as the Correct Rites of the Heart of Heaven, and more local traditions of exorcism, such as the Rites of Mount Lü. Full article

This paper examines the emergence of vernacular liturgies in Latin America, particularly through the incorporation of folk music in Nicaraguan Masses following the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II). In response to the Romanization of the Catholic liturgy in the nineteenth century, folk songs in local languages became a form of theological and cultural resistance, offering an alternative to the Latin-dominated liturgical tradition. Despite Vatican disapproval of certain Mass settings due to their non-traditional texts, these vernacular liturgies transcended their missionary origins, enriching both devotional practice and theological discourse. The study explores key Vatican II documents on liturgical participation, examines the role of liberation theology in framing vernacular and multilingual Masses as tools for social and religious transformation, as well as historical precedent as a lens for understanding the progression of change in the setting of the Mass, particularly in Latin America. Using the Misa Campesina, by Carlos Mejía Godoy, as a case study, the paper demonstrates how Nicaraguan folk Masses embody the intersections of ecclesial reform, cultural identity, and social justice within the broader context of Latin American liturgical innovation. Full article

Multilingual and multicultural worship can take on many models and expressions. Initially, Chinese immigration to the UK in the 1950s and 1960s led to an increased population of churches. Many Chinese church services were conducted in Cantonese, catering to the needs of first-generation immigrants, mainly from Hong Kong. Yet, the children of these older generations grew up with a bicultural hybridized identity expressed first in small English-speaking youth groups that led to English-speaking worship services within Chinese churches. Contributing to the field of worship studies through music repertoire studies over four weeks in June and July 2017 at Birmingham Chinese Evangelical Church, we raised the following questions: (1) what do the chosen worship songs represent with regards to the liturgical theology and cultural expressions of this community and (2) how is self-perception and perception of the divine expressed in the lyrical themes of these songs? Our study revealed that singing English songs from the West dominated the corporate liturgical identity of these services. Yet, through a British-born Chinese evangelical cultural reading, some lyrical themes were particularly resonant within Chinese culture, such as honor, shame, reverence, and bowing. Full article

The relationship between popular vernacular Catholicism and the more official liturgical variety has varied over centuries. Following the subjugation of Ireland by the late 17th century, and the institution of anti-Catholic proscriptions, the number of priests available became more restricted. Religious observation subsequently centered on holy days and local sacred sites including healing wells, many of them dedicated to saints. Always central figures in death rituals, women who mourned the dead—“keening women”—were so called because they lamented the dead through a combination of voice and song. We will show how the songs relate to a deep liminal spirituality that existed semi-independently of official Church norms, and how the voice served to establish their position. In the Catholic revival of the late nineteenth century, such forms were ousted by European modes of worship, but persisted at the margins, allowing us insight into their previous vigor. Full article

Prayer in human life enables directing attention to God and a transcendent goal beyond Earthly life. Singing has been present in the life of Israel since the oldest times, which is proved on the pages of the Holy Scriptures, in the Books of Exodus and Psalms. In the New Testament, there is a lot of encouragement to sing the glory of God in psalms and songs, as well as praising God Most High in Revelation. The Catholic Church is concerned with the quality of liturgical music through a number of recommendations and requirements defining the pieces that may become a part of the liturgy. Liturgical choir singing is a special form of common prayer. The aim of the present paper is to examine the effect of prayer by choral singing on human flourishing. The aim was achieved by analyzing recommendations of the Church on liturgical music, presenting the assumptions of the theoretical model investigating the effect of art on human flourishing, and then conducting empirical studies. Sixteen in-depth interviews were carried out with members of fourteen choirs. There were four groups of respondents according to their gender and family status. All obtained codes were organized into five main themes with four subcategories. They confirmed the assumptions of the model presented in the theoretical part and made it possible to identify the effect of choral singing on the performers’ health and the improvement of their skills. In addition, they showed a direct relation between prayer and spiritual well-being when singing in a choir, a coherence of activities with values as well as the striving for happiness. Full article

The liturgy is one of the most important places in which people are formed theologically through components such as prayers, music, visual art, and preaching. Yet, depending on the theology that is expressed, the liturgy can be a place that heals or harms. Because LGBTQIA2S+ and nonbinary people are often excluded and made invisible in Christian worship, this article focuses on the importance of Christian congregational song and how—drawing from Nathan Myrick’s work—it can be ethical for LGBTQIA2S+ and nonbinary people when it contributes to their flourishing. First is an articulation of a theology of “both/neither” which (1) acknowledges that LGBTQIA2S+ and nonbinary people exist, (2) is based on a sexually polymorphic reading of Genesis 1:27 and asserts that LGBTQIA2S+ and nonbinary people are made in God’s image, and (3) celebrates difference, diversity, and multiplicity. Next is a discussion of how enacting a theology of “both/neither” in the liturgy creates liturgies of livability for LGBTQIA2S+ and nonbinary people, whereas when it is not, it inflicts liturgical violence. This article concludes by exploring examples from Christian congregational song that support liturgies of livability through their expression of a theology of “both/neither.” Full article

Among the early medieval authors, Amalarius of Metz (8th–9th century) is one of those who discussed the impact of religious music and song on the body and soul. In his main work: the Liber Officialis, listening and singing liturgical music are depicted as having a corporeal effect that generates sensations of an intense sensory and emotional character. In Amalarius, living the musical religious phenomenon not only coincides with the idea that music can evoke emotions but there is something that goes further. What Amalarius emphasizes is a particular emotion: a “spiritual state” of the nakedness of the heart, almost a weakness of those who are capable of tears and sensitive to God’s voice. During the patristic era, especially in the East, “penthos” (compunction) was used to describe the experience of tears in prayer or meditation; however, Fathers of the Church described liturgical music as an obstacle to compunction. For this reason, an evolution of that compunctory doctrine emerges from the exposition of Amalarius. In this context, it is not a question of crying for one’s sins but of exploiting a natural power (vis) of music. By simply listening to music, a person would seem capable of being moved and reaching a particularly “receptive state” to welcome the Word of God and make it bear fruit. What Amalarius describes in religious music seems to be the natural experience that one feels when, just listening to a melody, a tear spontaneously falls. This physical reaction is connected to a spiritual transformation that seems to pass through the flesh (carnalia) of our humanity. The result of this singular experience, strongly connected to musical ethics, is the conversion to good action and the possibility to dispose human beings to attentive, deep, and fruitful listening. Full article

In the recent study of Contemporary Praise and Worship (CPW), many studies have focused on musical repertory, including its text, music, and performance, as the foundational text(s) for theoretical analysis. In particular, scholars have relied on lists of the most popular songs that have been reported to Christian Copyright Licensing International (CCLI). This essay points out several critical weaknesses in the current overreliance on this methodology and instead contends for two underutilized methodologies—liturgical ethnography and liturgical history—that need to be developed in the scholarship. The essay argues that such a cultivation of methodology will enable the burgeoning scholarship on CPW to gain richer insight into the range of theological meaning expressed in CPW contexts. Full article

Based on the fervor and devotion of the Virgin of the Girdle of Tortosa—which gained a strong establishment from the 17th century onwards—this article explores the possibility of a cause-effect relationship between the apparition of the Virgin in the cathedral in 1178 and the Marian appendix contained in the troper-proser E-TO 135 (c. 1228–1264). By comparing the narration of the miracle and the sequences in this appendix, we can verify the existence of an early and incipient veneration—both inside and outside the walls of the cathedral—that would predate what was previously believed. Full article

This article seeks to shed light on the doctrinal meanings of the closed garden included in some Renaissance paintings of the Annunciation. To justify the iconographic interpretations that we will give of these paintings, we will base them on the analysis of many medieval liturgical hymns that poetically designate the Virgin Mary through the metaphorical expression hortus conclusus (closed garden) with which the Husband or Bridegroom requisites the Wife or Bride in the Song of Songs. We will divide our article into two parts as a strategy for analysis. First, we will analyze an extensive series of fragments of liturgical hymns that repeatedly praise Mary through this biblical metaphor. In the second part, we will examine some artistic representations of the Annunciation that, in the Italian Renaissance, depict a closed garden in the scene. From this double comparative analysis, textual and iconic, we will conclude that, in direct and essential correlation, those hymnic texts and those paintings clearly illustrate that the hortus conclusus is an eloquent symbol of the virginal divine motherhood of Mary and her perpetual virginity, as well as the excellence and fullness of her supernatural virtues and privileges. Full article

The CCLI charts may not reflect it, yet one thing many Christian churches discovered as the pandemic raged across the world (and violence at home and abroad) was the need for songs of sacred lament. Unfortunately, many churchgoers, especially those who identify as practitioners of contemporary Christian worship, have cultivated a gap between the biblical give and take of praise and lament revealed most poignantly in the book of Psalms. This chasm between praise and lament is a problem, as a liturgical discourse about disastrous events is weakened. Churches sing congregational songs of praise in the church, the chorus of ‘what ought to be’. Meanwhile, outside the church, artists in genres as diverse as folk and rap sing the chorus of what frankly ‘is’. For the church to be transformative, it must be grounded in what is (lament) and aiming toward what ought to be (praise). This is the value of the cycle of praise and lament in the church’s liturgy. This article explores the impact of CCM (contemporary Christian music) and praise and worship culture as it laments the loss of lament in Christian worship. The essay articulates the missing sense of ‘Truth’ in contemporary congregational music, as defined by Don Saliers’ Worship Come to Its Senses. The article closes by amplifying emerging Christian songwriters reintroducing lament to contemporary worship. Full article

The main goal of this article is the research of different genres of spiritual music in the Ukrainian baroque era. This music is decisive for an understanding of Ukrainian culture. In order to achieve this, research following methods was used: comparative-historical, sociocultural, structural, genre-stylistic. Baroque appears as an intermediate between the Renaissance and Age of Enlightenment. Features of the broader character of the Ukrainian civilization explain its cruising between different cultures, correlating between Western culture and Eastern Orthodox culture. The cultural dimension of Ukraine was crossed by different religions: Orthodox, Catholic, Greek-Catholic, and different paths of Protestantism. This fact specified a music of this age. Two basic directions feature specific of spiritual singing of the Ukrainian baroque: partsong (“High baroque”) and spiritual song (“Middle baroque”). Partsong is represented by liturgical and paraliturgical (concerts) genres. This direction was unique because it was a synthesis of Eastern-Christian and Western-Christian tradition (mostly by Catholic musical tradition as multi-chorus composition, musical rhetoric). At the same time, partsong of the orthodox tradition was formed by liturgical tradition. A large influence on the Greek-Catholic church was a catholic music tradition, in which polyphony is not performed “acapella”, but with instrumental accompaniment. Spiritual song was more linked with the catholic tradition and less with the protestant one. It did not have any canonical orthodox genres, but was borrowed by text–music forms formed in Europe in the Age of late Renaissance and early Baroque period. Greek-Catholic tradition was more linked with catholic one. Therefore, this music had a sacred character, becoming a genre of liturgical music. Palimpsest in its confessional dimension became a distinctive feature of the Ukrainian Baroque and created a unique face of the Ukrainian liturgical music. Full article

In the gardening world, potting refers to the cultivation of plants by cutting, layering, and replacing nutrients-depleted soil with new soil in larger pots to accommodate the growth process. This understanding seems helpful in describing ecumenical worship. There are two perspectives about this phenomenon. On one end of the liturgical practice spectrum, it is perceived as a “least-common-denominator” worship form where contested expressions are cast aside and replaced by elements that are acceptable by everyone. As a result, ecumenical worship is held up as a product of complex negotiation but displays a remarkable lack of spiritual depth in its outcome. On the other end, there is the World Council of Churches—a fellowship of 350 churches that is regarded as the epitome of ecumenism in practice particularly its worship celebration. The assembly, convened every eight years, is seen as a “best practice” showcase for ecumenical worship. In fact, many of the “global songs” being sung by our congregation were premiered in this ecumenical setting. How might we make sense of these perceptions? To that end, this article seeks to describe a suitably appropriate method in planning ecumenical worship and to identify elements that this worship genre needs to consider in its rendition. The efforts of the 2022 assembly worship planning committee of the World Council of Churches serves as the case study. Theo-liturgical principles that define this worship design are examined and discussed. By this, insights may be garnered to help local congregations appreciate this distinctive liturgical form that has its raison d’etre as an expression of Christian reconciliation and unity and to understand what is needed to successfully design such services. In so doing, the work of congregations may be strengthened to face the resurgence of racism and xenophobia in their local contexts. Full article

This essay examines the flow of music associated with orisha—anthropomorphic deities—across networks defined variously by art, scholarship, folklore, and religion, all of which overlap and nourish each other. Transmitted via oral tradition, written texts, and multimedia technologies, a handful of orisha-themed songs are analyzed as case studies in the subtle nexus of liturgy and cultural authenticity. Taken together, the songs shed light on a broader phenomenon in which creatively-minded, ostensibly-secular iterations of culture play a significant role in the dissemination and ongoing codification of ritual orthodoxy. Orisha music traditions are analyzed as a fertile ground for a multitude of devotional and/or artistic expressions, many of which have a particularly ambiguous relationship to the concept of religion. In this context, the fluid movements of orisha music between ostensibly sacred and secular contexts can be usefully understood as not only common, but as a conspicuous and characteristic aspect of the tradition. The essay’s structure and rhetorical strategies offer distinct layers of cultural and historical commentary, reflecting a multi-vocal tradition of exchanges among orisha music scholars, artists, and ritual experts. The essay’s historical analysis of orisha music further suggests that a host of subtle, seldom-discussed phenomena—multilingualism, liturgical ambiguity, and transmission via multimedia technologies—are not necessarily aberrant or irregular, but rather vital themes which have resonated clearly across the Afro-Atlantic for at least a century. By obligating us to attend to both musical meaning and cultural context, the essay’s case studies of orisha music shed light on the mingling and synthesis of elements from varied historical sources, languages, and cultural idioms, each of which represent distinct notions of tradition, creativity, religiosity, and secularism. Full article

At Turkey’s first national worship conferences in 2011, a passionate debate arose on whether Western music or indigenous Turkish music was most appropriate for worship. Some Turks felt that the Western missionaries were imposing indigenous musics on Turks as a type of “reverse colonization”. They felt that the current Western musical styles were best for worship. One Turk stated, “the saz is being forced down our throats”. Other Turks felt liberated to sing and play songs in traditional Turkish musical styles. The debate at the conference highlights the desire of missionaries and Turks to see renewal in congregational hymnody. Nevertheless, the Western vs. indigenous Turkish music debate reduces complex historical, musical, and liturgical issues into a divisive binarism. Using hymns sung in corporate worship in Turkey as a source, I will analyze here the quantity of musical localization in Turkish Protestant worship seeking to present musical localization as a lens to examine Turkish Christian liturgical identity. Full article