CHAPTER 2

The role and function of Church music in liturgy

Church music as liturgical music

Liturgical singing (und ultimately the free song) can never be studied apart from its context,
namely the worship service and liturgy. Strydom formulates it thus:
Liturgiese sang is onvervreembaar verweef met, en wesenlik deel van die
totale liturgiese gebeure van die kerk van Christus [...] Waar dit nie gebeur
nie, waar liturgiese sang as ‘n selfstandige entiteit an sich gehanteer word,
lei dit to allerlei skeeftrekkings: òf ‘n oorbeklemtoning en ongesonde
verestetisering van kerksang, òf ‘n eensydige, ongesonde minimalisering
van die belangrikheid en waarde van liturgiese sang.

(Strydom 1991:33)

More and more it is realized that music is not only the “integral mode by which the mystery is
proclaimed and presented” but liturgy is “inherently musical” (Kubicki 1999:31). In order to
understand and consider the role of the free song in liturgy, one will have to consider and
understand contemporary liturgy.

Cilliers (2009b:167) rightly remarks that we are presently going through a phase of
“homiletical and liturgical experimentation as never before, with a tendency to develop in
(superficial) width, but not in (theological) depth.” Although most theologians and pastors
would agree that one sees much liturgical experimentation, there would be no consensus
about the width and depth of this process. Janse van Rensburg (2004:45) summarizes the
situation thus: “The current debate on a reformed liturgy is driven by opposition. On the one
hand, some protagonists for renewal embrace anything new that works, while on the other
hand traditionalists reject attempts to renew the liturgy, arguing that such efforts go against
the reformed liturgy. The question, however, is raised: What is a reformed liturgy?”

This chapter aims at understanding the essence of and motives for liturgy; biblical principles
and guidelines for liturgy and consequently the role and function of liturgical singing
(including the free song) within liturgy.

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1. THE WORSHIP SERVICE

A lot has been said and written about the worship services in the last couple of decades and
years. Not only in theological books and articles, but also in secular magazines and radio
programs much talking and writing about worship services has been done. Not only
theologians but also people of all occupations and sectors of life joined the debate,
sometimes with much aggression and boiling emotions. But what are worship services?
What makes a worship service a worship service and why are there so much criticism on the
way worship services are done? Nowadays everybody is talking about renewal and
especially renewal of worship services, but what are worship services? What are the basic
elements? What role does song and music play in die event of worship services? What role
could the free song play in the worship service?

1.1 Latreia:

The word λατρεία were used only five times in the New Testament (Louw & Nida 1988/9):
 John [Link] accusative, singular, feminine
 Romans [Link] nominative, singular, feminine
 Romans [Link] accusative, singular, feminine
 Hebrews [Link] genitive, singular, feminine
 Hebrews [Link] accusative, plural, feminine
It is also used in another form in various other verses (Mt 4:10, Lk 1:74, 2:37, 4:8, Jn 16:2,
Ac 7:7, 7:42, 24:14, 26:7, 27:23), indicating “to worship”. The word λατρεία could have the
meaning of “ministration of God, that is, worship: - (divine) service” (Louw & Nida, 1988/9). It
could also have the meaning “to perform religious rites as part of worship” and could be
translated as “to perform religious rites”, “to worship”, “to venerate”, “to treat with reverence”,
and “worship” (Louw & Nida, 1988/9). In Romans 12:1 it is used in widest sense, indicating
not only the worship service but also the whole life as a service of worship to God. In
Romans 9:4 λατρεία is used in the narrower sense of the worship service, indicating the
worship service or parts thereof. This study will mainly mainly deal with λατρεία in the
narrower sense, that is the worship service.

Martin (1982:4) defines worship as “the dramatic celebration of God in His supreme worth in
such a manner that his “worthiness” becomes the norm and inspiration of human living.”
Neuhaus (1979:105) warns that “the activity called worship is not true worship if it can be
done legitimately in any other context [...], worship, if done in response to anything other

51
than the mystery of God in Christ, is idolatry.” Martin (1982:5) continues that the chief aim of
worship is God Himself. Thus the chief aim of the worship service is also God Himself.

Through the ages different viewpoints on the worship service were taken by different people
in different times. Barnard (1981:384) rightly says that Scripture must be the starting point
when talking about the worship service. Barnard (1981:385-387) says that in the past
twenty centuries the worship service was seen in one of five basic ways:
 As drama where the history of salvation is dramatized each Sunday (cf. Theron
2004:10) and the congregation sees and experiences this drama (Greek-Orthodox
church). Mowinckel (2004, cf. Barnard 1981:80) saw the cult as a drama. Theron
(2004:10) warns against the danger of a liturgy without the Spirit (“geeslose
gestalte”).
 As law where bread and wine are substantiated into the Body and Blood of Christ
when all the elements of the liturgy were done in the correct way and procedure
(Roman Catholic Church).
 As experience where the whole worship service is an experience of the work and
presence of the Holy Spirit and all kinds of techniques are used to facilitate this
experience (Pentecostal churches).
 As thoughts and acts where humankind with its thoughts and reason stands in the
center of the worship service (activist groups)
 As conversation where the whole worship service is seen as a conversation between
God and humankind and humankind and God (cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:7-8). God
speaks and the congregation answers; humankind speaks and God (in His grace)
answers (Reformed churches). Beukes (1987:17) identifies two moments in the
dialogue between God and humankind namely the speaking and acting of God
through His visible and invisible word, and the reply of the congregation through
confession, prayer and singing.

Although there’s some credit in all of these viewpoints on the worship service, the main
focus in this study will be on the worship service as a conversation between God and man.
In this conversation, symbols and rituals play a most important role (cf. Barnard 1994:177,
Vos & Pieterse 1997:107-138) . Barnard (2000:5) understands liturgy as “het geheel van
christelijke riten en symbolen”. Although the worship service is mainly seen as conversation,
elements of all the other views are also present. Since the liturgical renewal movement in
the 1960’s, more and more of the other elements (like drama, experience, et cetera) have
become part of the Reformed worship service (cf. Beukes 1987:3-8, Long 2001:15,42,85).

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1.2 Liturgy

In order to continue this discussion, the meaning of the word liturgy needs to be clarified.
Liturgy could refer to the science of Christian rites and symbols (Vos 2009:5, cf. Barnard
2000:5). It could also refer to the order of the worship service, in other words the order of
rites and symbols in the Christian worship service. For the purpose of this study, the
meaning of “liturgy’ must be clarified. What is the difference between liturgy and latreia?

The Greek word leitourgia (from the verb leitourgein) derives its meaning from two words i.e.
ergon (“work”) and litos (“belonging to the people”). Literally translated it means the “work of
the people” (Adam 1985:3, Müller 1990b:113, Vos & Pieterse 1997:4). It thus means to do
something for the good of the people (leitos/laos). The word leitourgia was often used for
public services (like financing a choir) and liturgy was thus the service of a king for his
people (cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:4). From the second century it became a cultic term as well.
The Septuagint uses this word for the service done by the priests and Levites in the temple,
often referring to the service of sacrafices. It could also mean “worship of God” as in Acts
13:2 (Adam 1985:3). The service of Christ in the tent (Heb 8:2) is called “liturgy”. In the time
after the apostles the word leitourgia was used in both ways; for service of God and service
of the community (Adam 1985:3). Vos & Pieterse (1997:5) identifies four uses of the term
leitourgia in the New Testament:
 The Old Testament service in the temple (Lk1:23)
 Personal acts of love (charity) to other people (Phlp 2:17)
 Service to Christ (Rm 15:16)
 The gathering of the disciples in order to pray (Ac 13:2).

The word “liturgy” was utilized by the church in the West only from the sixteenth century
onwards, where it included all of Christian worship (Adam 1985:4, Vos & Pieterse 1997:5).
Adam (1985:5) indicates that “the purpose of liturgy is the sanctification of human beings”.

As with the word latreia (as indicated above), liturgy could either refer to the liturgy of life,
including all events in the life of a Christian. In narrower context it could only indicate all the
events of the worship service, including prayer, reading, confession, et cetera. In the
Liedboek van die Kerk, all songs are grouped in two main groups, named “liturgy”, “liturgical
year” and “liturgy of life”. In this study, the word liturgy will be used in its narrower sense,
meaning the liturgy or content of the worship service. In that sense it will be used as a

53
synonym for the worship service, although they are not exactly the same. When referring to
the meaning “liturgy of life”, the term liturgy of life will be used. Adam (1985:5) gives the
following definition: “Liturgy is the joint action of Jesus Christ, the high priest, and his Church
for the salvation of human beings and the glorification of the heavenly Father.”

Wepener formulates a working definition of liturgy thus:

Liturgy is the encounter between God and man in which God and man move
out towards one another, a movement in which God’s action has primacy, so
that in a theonomic reciprocal fashion a dialogical communication in and
through rituals and symbols is established in which man participates in a
bodily way and can in this way reach his highest goal in life, namely to praise
God and enjoy Him forever.

(Wepener 2009:21)

Müller (1990a:107, cf. Kruger 2007:18) adds: "By wyse van spreke het ‘n kerkgebou twee
vensters: een na Bo gerig en een na buite gerig. As een of albei hierdie vensters verdof,
kan dit wat daar binne gebeur nie meer liturgie in die ware sin van die woord wees nie."
Thus liturgy is more than the order of a worship service – its is the interaction between God,
humankind and all of creation.

Barnard describes liturgy as follows:

Die liturgie omvat al die woorde en handelinge van die volle erediens, met
insluiting van die preek (nie die inhoud van die prediking nie) en die
Nagmaal; sowel as ander handelinge soos die doop, die openbare
belydenis van geloof, die bevestiging van die ampsdraers; ook van ander
dienste soos gebedsdienste, Bybelstudie deur die gemeente, huweliks- en
begrafnisdienste; dan ook die fundering en vormgewing van die erediens,
die gebede, liturgiese formuliere, die kerklied; die geskiedenis van die
erediens; die verskillende elemente van die erediens afsonderlik en in
samehang, die kerklike jaar, die kerkgebou, die kerklike kleed; die hele
dinamiek van die erediens en soos dit in lewende wisselwerking staan tot
die daaglikse godsdiens en daaglikse lewe.

(Barnard 1981:52, cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:118-120)

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2. ROOTS OF THE WORSHIP SERVICE

2.1 Old Testament

Barnard (1981:66-67, cf. Beukes 1987:9) states that for many years the roots and origin of
the Christian worship service were seek in die Hellenistic world, especially the Greece-
Roman culture. In the last couple of decades a revolution took place and more and more
the origin of the Christian worship service is found in the Jewish religion and practices of the
Old Testament, especially those of the Temple and Synagogue, (Herbert 1956:6). Barnard
says:
This means that we must take account of Israel’s distinctive faith, if we are to
do justice to Israel’s worship [...] the peculiarities lie not so much in the
practice [...] If, then, we are to appreciate the worship of ancient Israel, we
must know Israel’s faith. Moreover we must seek to understand not only
what Israel believed about God, but how they come to hold that faith, and
how that faith was maintained and modified through the thousand years of
Old Testament story.

(Barnard1981:67)

Wegman (1976:21,23) states: “Israël staat aan die wieg van de christelijke gemeente”.

The roots of the Christian worship service can be traced back to the earliest parts of the Old
Testament. From the first moment God met His people, and His people brought gifts and
offerings to Him. The earliest meeting dates back to the Garden of Eden when God came
down in the afternoon to spend some time with His people (Gn 3:8-9). In Genesis 4 Cain
and Abel brought offerings to God, and God accepted or rejected these offerings. In
Genesis 9 God met Noah and made a covenant with Noah where after Noah brought an
offering to God. In Genesis 12 God met Abram and made a covenant with Abram; Abram
reacted with an offering (Gn 12:7). Time after time God reached out to humankind to meet
them, and humankind responded to God’s appearance with offerings.

During the stay in and travel through the desert the Tent and the Ark of the Covenant played
an important role in the worship of the people of Israel. During their stay in Canaan, the
sanctuaries or holy places were often used as the venue for worship. Fensham (1985:270)
states that “meeste van die heiligdomme was verbind met die Kanaänitiese godsdienste,
maar sommige van hulle was by tye in gebruik van die Israeliete”. In this regard one can

55
think of the places where the patriarchs worshiped, that is Shechem, Bethel, Mambre and
Beersheba (De Vaux 1984:289). Later Gilgal, Shiloh, Mipah in Benjamin, Gibeon, Ophra,
Dan and Jerusalem were utilized as places of worship. It was in Jerusalem that David
installed the Ark (the symbol of the Divine presence) and erected an altar on the site where
the temple would later be built by Solomon. By transferring the Ark to Jerusalem and
building the altar there, Jerusalem became the religious center of Israel.

2.1.1 The Temple

David first dreamed about the Ark being placed in a building and not a tent. The prophet
Natan prophesied that David’s son would build the temple and not David himself (2 Sm
7:13). But David had to plan and prepare everything: “He was responsible for the plans of
the Temple and the inventory of its furnishings, he collected the materials for the building
and the gold ingots which were to be used for the sacred objects; he assembled the teams
of workmen, and fixed the classes and functions of the clergy (1 Ch 22-28)” (De Vaux
1984:312). But it was Solomon who built the temple in the fourth to eleventh year of his
reign (1 Ki 6:37-38).

The temple was the religious center of Israel even after the split into two kingdoms. But
what was the significance of the temple to Israel? De Vaux (1984:325) states the
significance as follows:
 The Temple was the seat of divine presence.
 The Temple was a sign of the election of Israel.
 The Temple was seen as the center of the world.
 The Temple was built because Israel wanted it and not because God needed it.
After the building of the temple was completed, the whole cult was centralized to the Temple
and Jerusalem.

The worship in the Temple was centered around God Himself. He was known and
worshiped as the Almighty God who created heavens and earth (Gn 1-2). But He was also
known and worshiped as the God who dwelled amongst His people. The Tabernacle or
Tent was the sign and symbol that He dwelled with them. In the Tent God talked with Moses
face to face (Ex 33:11). Anyone who wanted to consult God went to the Tent. De Vaux
(1984:295) indicates that the Hebrew word for the dwelling of Jahweh in the Tent, mishkan
was used for the “temporary dwelling of a nomad”, that is a tent. The Priestly tradition chose
this word to indicate the temporary dwelling of Jahweh with His people.

56
The God who dwelled among them was a Holy God (Lv 22:32) and ordered His People to be
holy as well (Lv 19:2). The Ten Commandments were given to Moses on the mountain of
the Lord as basic instructions for a holy life. But day by day the Israelites discovered their
own unholiness when they measured themselves against the laws God gave. Often they
discovered their own wickedness and their constant need to be reconciled to the holy God.
That made reconciliation a basic part of their cult and religion. They came into the
presence of God with confession of sins and offerings. Barnard (1981:73, cf. Beukes
1987:10) rightly says that the main characteristic of worshiping at the Temple was the
bringing of offerings. The whole religious life was expressed in different offerings. De Vaux
(1984:451) states that sacrifice “is a prayer which is acted, a symbolic action which
expresses both the interior feelings of the person offering it, and God’s response to this
prayer.” De Vaux (1984:451-452) indicated that sacrifice was in the first place a gift to God,
but also “a quest for union with God.” In the third place it had an expiatory value in the
sense that it was something valuable offered to God as quest for forgiveness and
reconciliation, atonement and redemption. Multiple furnishings in the temple indicated the
central place of offerings in the temple: the altar of incense (1 Ki 6:20-21), the table of
showbread, the altar of sacrifices, also called the altar of bronze (1 Ki 8:64), et cetera. The
offerings were probably always accompanied by words, prayers (vocal prayer) and liturgical
texts (Barnard 1981:78, cf. Beukes 1987:10).

In the latter (words, prayers and liturgical texts), the priest played an important role. They
taught the Torah and interpreted the Scriptures. In pre-exile days the teaching of the Torah
was confined to the temple. The Christian church expanded this emphasis on the Law to the
teaching of Scripture. After Jesus fulfilled the practice of offerings with His unique offer, the
Christian church moved the emphasis from offerings to the Word.

The people of God came to the temple to meet God. But this meeting was different from all
the other meetings: a distance remained between God and man in this meeting (cf. Beukes
1987:9). Although they came to the temple, they were not allowed in the holy and holiest
part of the temple; that was the privilege of the priest and the high priest. In this meeting the
priest played an important role in facilitating the meeting and the offerings brought to God.
Barnard (1981:75) concludes that the meeting consisted of three parts:
 Offerings
 Prayers
 Song, often conducted by the temple choir and/or musical instruments.
In the center of this meeting stood the greatness of God for which He was worshiped.

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Herbert (1959:10-11) emphasizes that the worshiper thought of God as “locally present”.

The celebration of the things Jahweh did in the past played an important role in the worship
service. Often Israel was reminded to remember all the things Jahweh did. The whole
concept of remembrance stood at the heart of their worship.

Song and music had an important role in the temple worship. Authors differ on the exact
role and place of music and especially the Psalms in the temple service (cf. Schuman
2008:189). The Gattungforschung tried to estimate the relation between the Gattung of a
Psalm and its common place. Westermann (1967:16) focused on the Sitz im Leben of the
Psalms and saw the worship service (“Gottesdienst”) of the Israelites as “Ort des Enstehens
der Psalmen” (Barnard 1981:81), where the Psalms were sung and prayed for a long time
whereafter they were written down. Rowley also (1974) situated the Psalms in the worship
service. Barnard (1981:81) concludes that the Psalms must have played a role at the feasts
as well as in the cult. Strydom (1991:34) says that, already from an early stage, the Psalms
were part of the music at the Temple. Wilson-Dickson (1992:27) clearly states that the
Psalms were not the only songs sang at the Temple. The congregation often reacted to the
singing of the singers and choirs with responses like amen and halleluiah (Strydom
1991:35).

Schuman (2008:189) remarks that one cannot speak about the temple in general – one must
distinguish between the first temple (before exile) and the second temple after exile. He
argues that one does not know which psalms had a liturgical setting in the first temple.
Some psalms (24, 48, 82, 94, 81, 93 and 92) and possibly others like the Hallel (113-118)
and the psalms pilgimages sang on the way to the temple for Pentecost or the Feast of the
Tabernacles (120-134) had a fixed setting within the temple liturgy (cf. Vos 2009:5). Many of
the other psalms had a liturgical setting much later. Psalm 72 was sung before the Sabbath
morning (Barnard 1985:583, Vos 2009:5).

Although scholars differ on the detail of singing and music, they greatly agree on the
fact that singing and music were part of the worship service at the temple.

The priests were also responsible for the blessing of the people. They stood on the stairs of
the holy part of the temple and said the words of blessing (Num 6:24-26). Wilson-Dickson
(1992:32) concludes: “The temple had developed a type of liturgy which, with its hierarchy,
its sacrificial cult, and its rigid organization, entered a sharp distinction between the officers
of the ritual and the community of the faithful, the latter being almost passive bystanders”

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Barnard (1981:84) concludes that the worship service in the Temple influenced the Christian
worship service in the following ways:
 Classifications of days, regular gatherings, et cetera.
 Taking over of major motives like the worshiping of God
 Formulating of prayers and use of Psalms
 The main correlation was that Jesus fulfilled everything that was done in the Temple

2.1.2 The Synagogues

There is no indication of when the synagogues came into existence and use in Israel (De
Vaux 1984:343), but it is probable that the need for synagogues could be dated back to the
Babylonian exile (Fensham & Oberholzer 1985:307, De Vaux 1984:343, Beukes 1987:10).
Mowinckel (2004:4, see also De Vaux 1984:343) remarks that “[t]he earliest mention of a
synagogue is found in an inscription from Egypt from a time after 247 B.C. and all the
evidence shows its introduction to have been later in Palestine than in the Dispersion”. In a
time that the temple was far away, there was a need for a local place of worship.
Synagogues came into existence in many places, even in Jerusalem and existed alongside
the Temple. Synagogues are mentioned in the books of Acts in Damascus, Antioch, Athens,
Philippi, Corinth, and others. Although the worship service at the Synagogue took a lot from
the Temple, there were remarkable differences as well. Barnard (1981:86) calls the worship
service in the Synagogue the spine of the Jewish Religion in- and outside Israel.

The synagogue was a place of gathering (= ) for the congregation (cf. Roloff
2003:45). Women sat apart on a gallery or place reserved for them. Fensham & Oberholzer
(1985:308) remarks that there are two things or places that one would always find in the
synagogue:
 The holy ark where the scrolls of the Law (five books of Moses) were kept
 The high place (bema) where the Rabbi will stand while reading from the Scriptures
(Scrolls).
In contradiction to the Temple, the Synagogue was not a sanctuary but more a place or
house of assembly where the people gathered to pray. Schuman (2008:189-190) warns not
to speak of the Synagogue worship service in general, as the meetings before the
destruction of Jerusalem were mainly “huizen van ontmoeting en religieus onderricht, niet
zozeer van liturgieviering in striktere zin”. There were great differences between the
different synagogues due to various streams within Judaïsm.

59
The Scriptures are not really read but rather chanted to the metre of the text. The passages
are interpreted and explained by the Rabbi. The teaching of the Law is alternated with
prayers expressed by the cantor and congregation. De Vaux (1984:344) summarizes that in
the Synagogue the Law and the teaching of the Law became just as important as the
prayers.

Barnard (1981:87, cf. Beukes 1987:10) distinguishes the following characteristics of the
worship service in the Synagogue:
 The word synagogue has the meaning of congregation in the Septuagint. The word
proseuche is used sometimes, indicating prayer.
 It was a worship service without all the offerings of the Temple.
 The main focus was on prayer.
 The teaching of the Law had an important place and knowledge of the Law became
important. Priests were replaced by rabbis.
 The proclamation of the greatness and uniqueness of God.
 Regular worship services during the feast as well as on the Sabbaths. Daily services
were also held.
 The worship service in the Synagogue was not opposed to the worship service in the
Temple but complimentary to it until the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.
 It was a strong bonding force in the Jewish community.

The Synagogue stood at the center of the Jewish prayer system where prayer at regular
intervals was of utmost importance. Twice a day (mornings and evenings) people came to
pray at the Synagogue (Dt 6:5-7). The confession that God is One (Dt 6:4) was expressed
at both occasions by all men from and above the age of thirteen (Barnard 1981:91). In
course of time a system developed whereby three sessions of prayer were conducted daily
at the Synagogue (Da 6:11, Ps 55:18). The Schema (sjema) was prayed at the morning and
evening session (cf. Wegman 1976:31), followed by the Tefillah or personal prayers. During
the afternoon session only the Tefillah was prayed.

The morning and evening prayers formed the basis of the worship service at the Synagogue.
The Schema and Tefillah (eighteen blessings) were expanded to larger prayers. According
to the Mishna (Megilla IV:3-6) the worship service of the Synagogue had the following five
elements (Barnard 1981:94, cf. Schuman 2008:190):
 Schema
 Tefillah

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  Reading of Law (Torah)
 Reading of the Prophets (Hanabi)
 Interpretation of Scripture (Targum)
In the third century two main parts could clearly be distinguished, namely the Law and the
Word (Barnard 1981:94). It is clear that the worship service in the Synagogue moved away
from the offering of the Temple towards a worship service where Law and Word became
prominent.

Song and music had an important role in the Synagogue, although it was different from the
Temple (cf. Strydom 1994:9-16). Barnard (1981:99) indicates that the Psalms were also
sung in the Synagogue. Schuman (2008:190) differs from Barnard and emphasizes that
different periods must be distinguished from each other with regards to the synagogues, and
that a number of psalms (not all of them) found a fixed setting within the synagogues only
from 200-600 AD. Mowinckel (2004:4) concludes that “[t]he synagogue service was in
ancient times always songless” and that the Psalms were never sung as hymns. Strydom
(1994:16), on the other side, concludes that singing was part of the worship service in the
synagogue, but the singing was unaccompanied. The great difference in the synagogues
was that singing was no longer conducted by “professional” choirs and priests, but by
the congregation itself. The singing of the congregation asked for another way of singing
where untrained people could take part in the singing. A form of chanting (Müller
1990a:36) was used where the text and prayers were chanted to the metrical form of the text
in a sort of cantillated, recitative speech. The congregation took part in the singing by
means of antiphons and responsorial singing (cf. Strydom 1994:16). Barnard (1981:99) is of
opinion that no musical instruments were used in the Synagogue as accompaniment to the
singing while Van Rooy (2008:15) states that “[d]ie sang in die erediens het met begeleiding
plaasgevind”. It is clear that there are great differences and uncertainties regarding singing
in the Synagogue.

Barnard (1981:101-102, cf. Müller 1990a:36-37, Beukes 1987:10) summarizes the influence
of the Synagogue on the Christian worship service as follows:
 The habit of gathering on regular intervals on the Sabbath as well as during the
week.
 The gathering had a specific order where offerings were not present.
 The importance of prayer as well as elements and formulations of prayer were taken
over in the Christian worship service.
 Certain exclamations like “amen” and “Hallelujah” were taken over from the

61
 Synagogue.
 The singing of Psalms as well as regular singing (cf. Schuman 2008:189-190).
 Regular reading and interpretation of Scripture.
 Fixed times of prayer
 The approach of the Synagogue as house of assembly where the people can take
part.
 The central place of the reading and interpretation of Scripture.
The Synagogue service had an immense influence on the worship service of the Christian
church and became the model on which the Christian worship service was built.

2.2 New Testament

As with the Synagogue, there isn’t much information about the worship service in the New
Testament (cf. Wegman 1976:25). In the different texts one rather finds little fragments of
information giving only a glimpse on some of the things that happened in some of the
worship services in a given time slot. Foley (1992:5) rightly summarizes that “sources about
worship in the first three centuries of the common era are quite fragmentary”. Roloff
(2003:45) rightly states that “[d]er christliche Gottesdienst ist keine völlige Neuschöpfung”,
but greatly formed an influenced by the jewish worship sevice. The New Testament worship
service was mainly influenced by three factors, namely that of the Temple, the Synagogue
and the Jewish customs. Roloff (2003:45-46) identifies two major streams (“Grundformen”),
namely the Temple worship service and the synagogue worship service. And all of these
existed alongside one another for many years. Jesus and His followers went to the Temple
at times but they also visited the local Synagogues.

Although Jesus went to the Temple, He did not take part in everything at the Temple. Often
He made strong statements about the Temple. He said that He would rebuild the Temple in
three days (Jn 2:19-22); that a time would come that people won’t go to the Temple to pray
but they would pray to God in the spirit and in truth (Jn 4:23-26). When Jesus was nailed to
the cross, the Temple that He referred to was indeed broken down. In His death and
resurrection the age of the Temple and the Synagogue was fulfilled. The old era of the
Temple and Synagogue came to an end with Jesus’ death. The church that arose after
Jesus’ resurrection and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit had some continuity with the
“church” of the Temple and Synagogue; at the same time it was totally new and different.

There were two major traditions that formed the New Testament church (Strydom 1994:17,

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Barnard 1981:108). The one was the Synagogue, the other the Upper Room. From the
Synagogue came the tradition to read and interpret the Scriptures as well as the emphasis
on prayer. The summaries of the first congregations in Acts show that the “Apostles’
teaching” as well as “prayer” was part of the life and being of the Early Church (Ac 2:42).
This emphasis on Scripture and prayer was taken over by in the Christian worship service
from the Synagogue. From the Upper Room came the tradition of the Eucharist or the
Lord’s Supper (Mk 14:14-15, Ac 1:13). The Eucharist is embedded into multiple other
elements of preparation, praise and prayer. In the early Christian church the influence of the
Synagogue and Upper Room came together in a new combination of Scripture, prayer and
Eucharist where Scripture and prayer were part of the preparation for the Eucharist.
Wegman (1976:42) refers to “[d]e eerste peiler van die maaltijdviering [...] de lezing van ‘de
Schriften’” and “[d]e tweede peiler is de dienst aan tafel, met daarin als kernstuk het
amnetisch gebed”. The latter was called the Eucharist prayer and had its roots in the Jewish
berakah. Scholars differ on which of the two (Scripture or Eucharist) were more prominent
(cf. Barnard 1981:108-110). Wegman (1976:26) concludes that “[d]e kern hiervan is de
lofprijzing van God, een erfenis van de Joodse erediens (berakah)”.

Scholars differ on whether both influences were combined in one worship service or different
worship services. They also differ on whether the reading and interpretation of Scripture or
the serving of the Eucharist stood in the center of the New Testament worship service. From
some texts it seems as if only Scripture was read (Ac 3:12-26, 10:34-43). Other texts seem
to imply that they often came together only to break the bread (Ac 20:7). They probably ate
together where after they celebrated the Lord’s Supper. Whether one can conclude from
these texts that the elements of Word and Eucharist stood separately remains in question. It
would be just as questionable to conclude that all the different elements were always
combined in one worship service as Barnard (1981:110) does. These texts are just not clear
enough about this.

The major difference between the Synagogue and Temple worship of the Old Testament on
the one side and the New Testament worship service on the other was that the person and
work of Jesus Christ became the main focus of the worship service (Barnard 1981:111-
117). No longer did the Law and the prophets stand at the center of the proclamation but
the life, death and resurrection of Jesus became the central theme. In Him all the
prophecies of the Old Testament were fulfilled. He was recognized and worshiped as the
One to come. He was the Messiah the world had been waiting for for centuries. He was the
perfect offering, bringing an end to all the other offerings. No other offering would be
necessary again. He died on the cross, reconciling man with God (cf. Barnard 1981:112-

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113). Strydom (1994:17) adds that, because of the work of Christ, various New Testament
elements were added like readings from the New Testament, the confession of a triune God,
the Maranatha-exclamations, the Christ hymns (“Christus-himnes”) and the “soen van
Christelike broederskap”.

Through Christ believers became children of God and they can call God their “Father” (Gl
4:6). All people believing in Him and following Him became part of His family. God is their
Father and they are brothers and sisters of one another. So a new community with a new
ethos is brought about. Many words are used in the New Testament to describe this new
community: chosen people, royal priesthood, holy nation, and people belonging to God (1
Pe 2:9). The community of believers is the new temple of God where He lives (Barnard
1981:114).

As a new community in a new relationship with God, a new prayer is introduced. Believers
pray to God as their “father” (Mt 6:9). Jesus was the first One to call God “Abba” (cf. Roloff
2003:47). Although Jesus’ followers are invited and taught to call God their father, they do
not stand in the same close relationship with God as Jesus did. Jesus spent much time in
prayer. Prayer was an essential and vital part of the ministry of Jesus. Barnard (1981:115-
116) indicates the important role of public and corporate prayer in the ministry of Jesus. In
this regard Jesus taught His disciples how to pray in Mt 6:9-14. Their prayer should be a
simple prayer without a repetition of words, knowing that their Father in heaven hears them
and listens to them.

In the New Testament one finds four instructions with regards to the worship service
(Barnard 1981:117-118):
 The instruction to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ
 The instruction to baptize
 The instruction to celebrate the Lord’s Supper
 The instruction to pray without cease
It’s interesting that Barnard omits the instruction to drive out demons, speak in tongues, and
to heal the sick (Mk 16:15-18). One can say that the Bible does not say that these things
must be done during the worship service. Equally one can say that the Bible doesn’t say
that baptism must take place during the worship service.

In short: At least till the destruction of the temple in 70 AD three different traditions stood
next to one another and influenced one another: the Temple, the Synagogue and the house

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churches (cf. Foley 1992:69) that were assembled in houses everywhere. Elements of the
Temple and Synagogue were taken over by the house churches and combined into a new
kind of worship service with a unique liturgy (cf. Foley 1992:73). The main shift was a shift
from the Law and the prophets to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He was (in
His person) the fulfillment of the promises of the Old Testament. While there was a lot of
continuity with the traditions and customs (liturgies) of the past; it was also a totally new era
in the church that asked for new liturgies, songs and celebrations.

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WORSHIP SERVICE

The Reformers brought the following insights in the worship sevice (Beukes 1987:13):
 The worship service is the work of God and humankind. God speaks and humankind
answers.
 The sermon (proclamation) became the center of the worship service.
 The Eucarist was served regurarly.
 Throughout the worship service Christ is present through the Holy Spirit.
 God’s people are partakers in the worship service and not spectators.
 The worship service is conducted in the vernacular.
 The following elements could be found in the worship service of most reformers:
Opening prayer, confession of sin, proclamation of grace, singing, prayer, Scripture
reading and sermon, blessing, confession of faith, offerings and the reading of the
Law (sometimes omitted).

Barnard (1981:384-485) states a few characteristics of the essence of the worship service.
A few must be mentioned:
 God and His congregation: A worship service is not just a meeting; it is an official
meeting (Laubscher 1990:40, cf. Smit 2007:143) between God and His people. A.
Kuyper said it is a well-constituted meeting of the congregation with a pre-generated
agenda for acts (Barnard 1981:388, De Klerk 1990:15).

 Center of the worship service: The character and being of God, the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit stands at the very heart of the worship service. The work of God found its
highlight in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The worship service centers
on the work of this God.
 Gathering: A worship service is the gathering of the people of God with and around
God. They come together to meet Him and meet one another. He calls them

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 through His Word and Spirit and they are gathered in His Name, which means in His
presence. Laubscher (1990:40) adds that they are gathered on His command. His
offer on the cross is the deepest reason for this gathering.

 Work of God and work of men: In the worship service, God is speaking and man is
answering. But then man is speaking and God is answering. The whole worship
service is a dialogue between God and man, opus Dei and opus populi. Thus the
worship service is the work of God but man takes part and acts in this worship
service (Vriezen 1966:277). The acts of God and the acts of man are so closely
interweaved so that one can hardly say when man is acting and when God is acting.
But at the end even this interweaved process is act of God (actio Dei).

 Partakers in worship service: In the worship service God is the Subject that takes the
initiative and acts. But the congregation (office of believer) is also partaking in the
service (Müller 1990b:114). They gather, sing, read, pray, proclaim, confess, et
cetera. Brown (1967:211) warned: “The very word ‘liturgy’ is a lie unless all of the
members of the body take an active part in the divine-human dialogue.” In the third
place the special offices take part in the worship service. They act on behalf of the
congregation and on behalf of God. They preach, serve, rule, organize, et cetera.
But in the fourth place the world is part of the worship service in the sense that they
are invited to the worship service. The service is also aimed at the world.

 Presence of Christ in the worship service: Although Christ is present everywhere in

creation, one can experience His presence in a very special way in the worship
service. He is not only the One that the church speaks about, preaches about and
sings about; He is present in the worship service (cf. Smit 2007:144) and He is the
One meeting His people. The presence of Christ in the worship service is not
something that the church causes or deserves, but a presence by His own grace (cf.
Botha 1998:62, De Klerk 1990:16, Pieterse 1990:31, Vos & Pieterse 1997:91-
92,102). Kloppers (2005a:193) adds that “God is outonoom en bepaal self sy
teenwoordigheid”.

 Meeting: The worship service is a meeting between God and man and man and God
(cf. Smit 2007:143). In this meeting God reveals Himself. He reveals His Name -
that is His person and ultimately His being. Kloppers (2005a:193) adds that “[d]ie
‘gans ander gemeenskap’ kan net biddend wag op die ontmoeting met God”.

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 Dialogue: The worship service is a conversation between God and man and man
and God (Laubscher 1990:41, Vos & Pieterse 1997:7-8). The conversation takes
place in the form of a dialogue where God speaks and man listens to Him, and man
speaks and God (by grace) listens to Him. This dialogue does not only take place
through words, but also through singing, thinking, reflecting, silence and ultimately
through the sacraments (cf. Botha 1998:63, Pieterse 1990:31,36).

 Mediating the gifts of Christ: The worship service is not just thinking about things that
happened and celebrating those things. In the worship service Christ is actively
present as the Mediator, mediating all the wonderful gifts that He as in store for His
people (Pieterse 1990:33). In the worship service He mediates forgiveness of sins,
righteousness, new life, grace, freedom, et cetera. And all these gifts are received
through faith.

 Communion with God: In the worship service believers do not only receive the gifts
that Christ gives, but they already experience the new (renewed) communion with
God and with other people. They meet God, not as the God who wants to punish
them for their sins, but they meet God as a Father who forgave them and loves them
and brought a new relationship between man and God. And because of this new
relationship, they forgive others and experience the forgiveness and love of others.

 Worshiping and praising God (cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:9, Beukes 1987:19-20): The
essence of the worship service is to worship God. He is the One that forgave
believers’ sins, set them free, gave them new life and took them into His service. In
the worship service the congregation bows down before God, bringing Him all the
glory and thanksgiving for what He has done. Worshiping God includes thanking
God for what He has done. And the ultimate way of thanking God is by giving
yourself to God. That is the offer God approves and accepts.

De Klerk (1990:17, 20; cf. Barnard 1981:544-546) stresses the importance of the Law within
liturgy. The whole liturgy as covenantal act is build around God’s law, summarized as love
for God and love for God’s people. Laubscher (1990:41, Pieterse 1990:33, cf. Beukes
1987:21, Barnard 1981:492-493) adds that the worship service has a specific structure and
order and takes place “onder leiding en toesig van die besondere ampte”. Beukes (1987:22-
23) adds that nobody is excluded from the worship service, and that one should feel at home

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in the worship service.

Botha (1998:62-65) sees the following as characteristics of the Reformed worship service:
 An intense realization of the presence of God in the congregation
 A commitment to the confession of faith
 The dialogical nature of the worship service (cf. Beukes 1987:17, Smit 2007:147)
 The central role of the covenant
 The unity (“Twee-eenheid”) of Word and Table
 The didactic, pastoral and missional character of the worship service.

4. THE WORSHIP SERVICE AND DAILY LIFE

What is the relevance of liturgy or the worship service? Is there any relation between the
worship service (liturgy) and daily life? Barnard (1981:61) describes the worship service as
the center of the life and labour of the congregation. Zimmerman (1993:viii) frames the
situation like this: “What we celebrate in liturgy is none other than what we live as Christians
committed to entering into the ongoing redemptive work of the Risen Christ. What we live is
the content of what we celebrate.” That explains the title of her book “Liturgy as Living
Faith”. Zimmerman’s understanding of liturgy offers a model whereby liturgy could be
explored. The following motives are important in Liturgy:

4.1 Liturgy as a meeting of God’s family

Although Zimmerman uses the comparison of a family gathering, she never emphasizes the
liturgy as a family meeting. It is argued that it’s of utmost importance to start the discussion
on liturgy with an emphasis on the nature of the gathering.

The gathering (worship service) of any given congregation forms part of a long tradition
where God meets His people. In Genesis 12 God made a covenant with Abraham and all
the generations after him to be the God of Abraham and the God of the descendants of
Abraham. God was the One who took the initiative. He created everything, and He chose to
make a covenant with His people (Israel). Preuss (1995:250) asks the question: “Where
does YHWH dwell?” and rightly states that YHWH dwells in heaven (Is 6:1) and that only the
the train of His robe filled the temple. On the other side God dwelled with His people, Israel
(Preuss 1995:250-258). He met them in special ways on mount Sinai, in a burning bush, in
the tabernacle and later in the temple. The Ark, the Tent of Meeting and the Temple were

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symbols of His dwelling with them. In Solomon’s speech at the inauguration of the temple (1
Ki 8:12-13), Solomon describes the temple as the dwelling (sakan = “to dwell”) of YHWH.
Strydom (1991:188) speaks in this regard about the covenantal importance of the worship
service.

In the New Testament God sent His Son Jesus to live (dwell) among His people. Later He
died for them on a cross and rose again after three days. Forty days later He went back to
His Father where He sits at the right hand of the Father until the second coming. After His
ascension into heaven His people (the people who believed in Him and followed Him)
gathered daily to remember everything He had said and done, and to celebrate His victory
over death (Ac 1:12-14, 2:43-47).

Different names are used in the Bible for the followers of Jesus Christ. They are followers,
disciples, believers, Christians and children. Often the followers of Jesus are compared to a
family. God is the Father; Jesus is the Son. Jesus said that everyone who believes in Him
is His brother and sister (Mt 12:50). Paul writes to the congregation in Rome (Rm 8:15) that
believers are not slaves but children of God. Paul calls the believers of God that he writes
to, the “family” of God (Eph 2:19, 1 Tm 3:15). Luke 15 uses the comparison of a father who
waits for and receives his son. Jesus taught believers to pray to “our Father” (Mt 6:9).
Believers become brothers and sisters of one another (Mt 12:50). It’s clear that the
comparison of a family is one of the strongest comparisons in the New Testament.

If believers of Jesus really become a family, then the worship service has much in common
with a family gathering. The worship service is the official meeting of the family of God,
where they do not only meet one another, but most of all they meet Him.

4.2 Liturgy as remembering

Cilliers (2009a:26) states that “Remembrance forms a characteristic part of all religions;
religion has always had a memorial aspect” and continues that “the Christian religion could
also rightly be called a religion of remembrance”. Often, when a family meets, they tell and
re-tell the stories of the past. By telling the stories the events are kept alive. The tradition is
passed on to the next generation. When God’s family meets, they remember all the things
that happened, from creation until now. And they tell the stories, of Abraham, Moses, David
and Jesus. It’s more than story telling. It’s a process of keeping the stories alive - passing it
on. It’s not only a process of remembering the events; it’s a celebration of the events; thus
remembering and celebrating.

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“Remembering” is an important part of Christian faith and liturgy (cf. Cilliers 2009a:29).
Aerts (2002:154) refers to “Actualiserende herinnering”. The recurrence of “remembering”
(zkr) in the book of Deuteronomy is striking (Zimmerman 1993:5). Not only were they
constantly reminded to remember that they were slaves in Egypt, but because they were
slaves themselves they had to remember “the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.”
(Zimmerman 1993:6) She builds on Von Rad’s thesis (cf. 2001:230-231) that “the main
features of a cultic ceremony - that of a covenant renewal (see Dt 31:10-13) - can be
recognized in Deuteronomy.” (Zimmerman 1993:8). Von Rad (2001:231) describes it as “the
offer of ‘life’” and “she is offered present salvation on exactly the same terms as before...”
The word zkr is often used in the situation (Sitz im Leben) of the cult where the covenant had
been renewed. “Remembering the Lord’s kindness and mercy establishes a cultic milieu for
the paranetic prescription to keep the covenant.” (Zimmerman 1993:9). “Especially because
remembering is a cultic event in Deuteronomy, it serves to actualize the tradition.”
(Zimmerman 1993:13). The implications are clear: remembering was part of the cult and the
liturgy. Israel had to remember what Jahweh did, and therefore they had to remember the
downtrodden.

Vos & Pieterse (1997:102-103) refers to the memoria Christi. An important part of the
worship service is to remember the things Christ has said and done. When celebrating the
Lord’s supper (1 Cor 11:23-25), God’s people had to remember what He has done:
23 For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord
Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread,
24 and when He had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my
body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is
the new covenant in my blood: do this, whenever you drink it, in
remembrance of me.”
Vos & Pieterse (ibid) emphasize that the remembering was a “lewende herinnering”. This
remembering led to hope.

Cilliers (2009a:39) rightly warns against an liturgical over-estimation of the past as well as a
liturgical under-estimation of the past. In this regard Cilliers (2009a:30) notes that “this past
is often strangely absent from our liturgies”. It is argued here that the past should never be
absent in the worship service. The story of the contemporary church and the local
congregation is inextricably connected to the history of the Christian church in general. The
contemporary church or local congregation remembers and celebrates God’s historical acts:
creation, His election of Israel, the Covenant, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ,

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et cetera. They cannot exist without the historical events, and they will not continue to exist
without these events. It is just as important for the congregation to remember who they are:
what they did, how God provided for them; how God forgave their sins and how God called
them. But God is not only the God Who acted in the past; He is present and He acts and
provides and reigns at present. Remembering is thus of utmost importance for liturgy,
although it is not the only function of liturgy.

One of the functions of church singing and music will thus be to facilitate remembering by
telling the story of God’s endeavour with mankind. The contemporary church cannot only
sing about their experience of God at present; they have to sing about the things God has
done in the past. They cannot only sing about contemporary issues; they must re-tell
and remember God’s salvation through ages. In an era where more and more emphasis
is on the local narrative (as would be indicated in the chapter on culture), the meta-narrative
must deliberately be remembered and celebrated. The challenge of church singing is to be
faithul to the past and the present; to remember as well as to observe.

4.3 Liturgy as diakonia

Liturgy does not only have a vertical dimension and direction; it is also horizontally directed.
In this sense, liturgy has a diakonical function. Vos & Pieterse (1997:8) describes the liturgy
as a liturgy of service with two sides. In the first place it is part of God’s service to
humankind and especially to His children. In the worship service, He speaks to them,
forgives them, reconciles them, loves them and ultimately saves them. But the worship
service is also the service of God’s people to Him. They praise Him, worship Him, glorify
Him and proclaim his Name. It is argued here that there is a third dimension to the service,
namely the service of God’s people towards one another and the world. More and more
there is a realization that the worship service does not only have a vertical dimension, but
also a horizontal dimension. Long (2001:13, 35) identifies nine characteristics of “[v]ital and
faithful congregations”; the second being that these congregations “[m]ake planned and
concerted efforts to show hospitality to the stranger”. In the worship service God’s people
reach out to one another in words, prayers and action. They love, forgive, accept and enjoy
one another. These are not limited to members of the congregation but to anyone who joins
the worship service.

4.4 A liminal liturgy?

Victor Turner (1969; 1974) developed a theory of social drama for the understanding of

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transitional times (figure 4). He identifies three phases surrounding transition. First there is
a phase where society is well-structured (cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:131) and they feel in
control of their situation. A societas is characterized by institutionalization. Israel
experienced a societas under King David. When a crisis occurs, society moves into a
situation of communitas. The latter is a phase of transition and uncertainty (cf. Burger
1995:26) and a loose structure or even structurelessness or “anti-structure” (cf. Vos &
Pieterse 2001:133). Israel’s stay in Egipt as well in the desert are examples of the
communitas phase. Burger (1995:27) remarks that “’n Communitas-situasie vra gewoonlik
om die herrangskikking van verhoudings, reëls, ordes, gedragskodes”. Eventually a
communitas phase leads to a new societas with a new structure coloured by the experiences
of the communitas phase. The communitas phase could be described as a liminal phase or
a situation of liminality “waar nuwe vorme van gemeenskap, nuwe reëls en ‘n nuwe
samelewing ontwikkel” (Vos & Pieterse 1997:132). As such liminality is a in-between phase.
Rituals play a great role in a liminal phase. Burger (1995:74) argues: “Die punt is dat rituele
en simbole ter aanvuling van die Woord en die amp ons – veral in oorgangstye – kan help
om sinvoller en meer konstruktief met God te leef”.

Figure 4: Societas & communitas (cf. Burger 1995:30)

A communitas phase or liminal phase could be of great value and release a lot of energy.

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Burger (1995:105) argues that liminalty (communitas) is part of all people’s lives. It is a time
of growth which often leads to a better societas afterwards. Burger (ibid) indicates that a lot
of new energy and creativity is released in the communitas phase. Burger (1995:31)
identifies four sources of energy in a communitas phase:
 A new search for deepened relations
 A deepened spirituality
 Creative border experiences
 A new reflection
Vos & Pieterse (1997:133) sumarizes: “Dit is ‘n fase van kreatiewe soeke na oplossings en
‘n manier van lewe (modus vivendi) wat weer oopgebreek en geskep word. Dit kan lei tot ‘n
herintegrasie in ‘n stabiele, veranderde, maar nou leefbare samelewing waaraan ons almal
aan die skepping daarvan ‘n deel gehad het.”

Cilliers (2009b:168, cf. Burger 1995:103) says that the church in South Africa has entered a
transitional state, which he calls a “liminal space”, which calls for a rethinking of the way the
church worships. Such a liminal space implies an intermediate phase between two other
phases, and represents a very creative phase or space where combinations of new forms
and relations are possible. Burger (1995:102, cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:132) identifies three
phases within liminality, namely a breach phase or phase of separation, a phase of liminatlity
and a phase of re-integration or reaggregation.

Cilliers (2009b:169) summarizes that “in the liminal space one experiences both the fullness
and emptiness of presence and absence”. Three metaphors are used to describe
something about the liminal space: the tomb, the wilderness and the exile. Cilliers
(2009b:171) then constructs a model indicating graphically that a liminal liturgy has three
components or dimensions:
 Liminal liturgy as lament: Cilliers describes lament as “a voicing of suffering of
individuals or a community within the community of believers, in the presence of
God”. On the one side the church celebrates the things that have already come; on
the other side the church laments the things that have not yet come. Bosman &
Müller (2009:193, cf. Westermann 1980:29) remarks that the “Community Psalms of
Lament” can help one in writing liturgies, which give expression to the experiences of
people.
 Liminal liturgy as re-framing: In times of liminality, the church’s God-images are
challenged. Liminal times ask for new God-images, which emphasizes
characteristics of God that the church often forgets or bypasses. This is a process of

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 re-framing.
 Liminal liturgy as anticipation: In the liminal space, one does not only lament the ‘not
yet’ and the past; one looks forward with hope to what could be. This is called
anticipation, or, in biblical terms, hope. Metaphors play a great role in talking (and
dreaming) about unseen realities.
This model clearly illustrates that liturgy in South Africa, with its unique context of apartheid
and unrighteousness, needs to fulfill unique functions in a liminal time and space. Unique
situations requires unique liturgies. In an intermediate process, a church needs an
intermediate liturgy. This also emphasizes the close relation between liturgy and the
(cultural) context. Within this model and situation, liturgy also has the function of lamenting,
re-framing and anticipation.

It is argued that the church is not only in a liminal space due to political changes in South
Africa. The church is also in a liminal space or communitas due to other factors, like the
paradigm shift from modern to postmodern with all the implications thereof. With regards to
church singing, the church moved (or is busy moving) from a societas to a communitas –
thus implying that the church is in a phase of liminality at this moment. The previous
societas was characterised by an institution, control over every aspect of liturgical
singing and a well structured order for liturgical singing. In the communitas phase
one experiences a crisis with a lack of institution, control and structure. The church
is growing towards a new societas of which the outcome (with regards to liturgical
singing) is unknown at this moment.

4.5 Implications

The worship service is a meeting of God’s family where remembering and diakonia plays an
important role.
 As a meeting of God’s family liturgical singing is family-singing, going out from the
love and care of God the Father.
 Liturgical singing must facilitate the act and process of remembering. Through
liturgical singing the narrative (story) is re-told. Therefore liturgical singing is closely
related to the past and especially salvation history. Both an under-estimation and an
over-estimation of the past threaten liturgical singing.
 Liturgical singing has a serving (diakonia) function or motive. Through liturgical
singing God serves His people; they serve Him and they serve one another.
 Liturgical singing is noy only aimed at the family of God. It invites outsiders to come

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 in and become part of the family of God. Through liturgical singing the congregation
serves and reaches out to the world.
 A communitas-phase requires a liminal liturgy. A liminal space implies an
intermediate phase between two other phases, and represents a very creative phase
or space where combinations of new forms and relations are possible. Due to
different reasons (as discussed above), the church (DRC) is experiencing a liminal
phase. Congregations are experimenting with different kinds of music, singing,
genres and accompaniments which will sooner or later lead to a new societas. At
this stage the outcome is unknown.

5. MOTIVES FOR WORSHIP SERVICE

Schelling (1989:16) distinguishes four different aspects (“takken van kerkewerk”) namely
upbuilding (gemeentebou), missionary, pastoral and diaconate (diakonaat). Strydom
(1981:182-311) takes the principles of the Gereformeerde Kerken in Nederland as point of
departure and arrives at four theological motives by which one can look at the worship
service. It is argued that a fifth and sixth motive needs to be added, namely the motive of
reconciliation as described by Wepener (2009) as well as a missional motive (Wepener
2008a:206).

5.1 Scriptural motive

 Scripture gives no complete liturgical order (Vos & Pieterse 1997:29, Müller
1990b:110, Vos 2009:5); even Paul’s directions to the congregation in the city of
Corinth were not meant to be an eternal prescribed order for the worship service.
Vos (2009:5, see also Barnard 1985:66-383; Strydom 1994:9-144) rightly remarks
that “[d]uring the ages, however, a living Christian tradition came into being from,
among others, the primal sources of the Old and New Testament and the later
traditions of the Church”.
 Scripture gives important guidelines: The essence of 1 Corinthians 12-14 is that
everything in the worship service must lead to the building up of the whole
congregation.
 Scripture is the final test for liturgy: The whole worship service and its liturgy have to
be tested against the principles derived from the parts of Scripture that speak about
worship services and liturgies. Thus all prayers, songs, and music must be
compared to the principles from Scripture.

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Covenant and Liturgy: The whole worship service takes place as a wandering in the
presence of the Almighty, Majestic, Awesome God of the covenant (De Klerk 1990:14-15).
Heyns (1978:200) stated that “[d]ie verbond is die inwendige grond van die kerk, en die kerk
is die kultus-liturgiese gestalte van die verbond.” But the covenant relation was also marked
with the sins and iniquities of the people of Israel. In Israel the whole cult was “‘n liturgiese
ontmoeting met Jahwe binne ‘n verbondsverhouding wat gekenmerk is deur ‘radical
personalism’” (Strydom 1981:192). Thus God was radical different from His people. In the
Baäl-cults the radical otherness of their gods had been lost. Often the prophets had to warn
Israel of the same dangers in their cult or religion. The God of the covenant is a God that
takes the initiative in His relationship with humankind. He is also the God who brings
salvation to humankind. The Bible reveals the God of the covenant as God who is at the
same time Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It was the God of the covenant who sent His Son to
die for His people; through His death they receice all the promises and blessings of the
covenant (Gal 3:14-16, Lk 1:72-73). In the worship service the God of the covenant meets
His people. They answer by gathering and thinking about the great things He had done.
They confess their faith in the God of the covenant and pray to this God. They worship Him
and praise Him. They celebrate the new life and bring their offerings to God. As a covenant
meeting the worship service is a huge dialogue between God and His people. But it is also
a koinonial gathering where the covenant people reach out to one another. In the last place
this gathering has an eschatological character, as the people of the covenant await the
returning of the Covenant God.

Strydom (1991:207) places all the acts of man in the answer part of the covenantal acts:
meditation, confession, prayer, worship, praise, celebration, offerings, et cetera. By doing
this, liturgical singing is diluted to a mere response on the great deeds of God and no more
than man’s answer to God’s deeds. It must be agreed with Müller (1990:42) that “die ou
siening dat die lied alleen aan die antwoordkant van die erediensgesprek kan staan, gaan
nie op nie. Sang kan die boodskap van die evangelie soms meer effektief oordra as die
gesproke woord.” Singing could also be part of God’s speaking in church, either to
ourselves or to one another. Singing is not only one of the ways by which the church
confesses her sins; sometimes it’s one of the ways by which He announces and proclaims
His forgiveness and grace.

5.2 Ecumenical motive

Outgoing from John 10:16 the focus is placed on the one Shepherd with one flock. The
worship service is much more than a social meeting of a group of people; it is part of the

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meeting of the universal church or body of Christ all over the world, with one intention, and
that is to obey God.
In its worship, the church is never merely a group of people whose thoughts
and acts are sociologically determined; the people worship as members of
the community of faith, including the community of the past, as well as the
universal body of Christ in the present. The catholic motif demands that
Christians of any time or place in the past or present ought to be able to
recognize the church’s worship as Christian worship. We do not worship, we
do not come before God’s face first of all as nationals, or moderns, or
denominations, but as Christian people.

(CRC 1976:22)

One can never think about the worship service or liturgy apart from the tradition that came
over centuries. “Respect for tradition in liturgy is a fence against individualism and
sectarianism.” (CRC 1976:23). On the other side Von Allmen (1965:97) rightly warns that
“the cult is not a museum”. Respect for the past and the tradition does not exclude proper
renewal.

The desire for ecumenical relevance and importance does not exclude the importance of
one’s own, unique identity and dogma. The CRC (1976:21) states that “...throughout the
church’s history a liturgical structure has endured [...] this structure was altered by Zwingli
and the Dutch Reformed tradition [...] The underlying question of our liturgy is whether we
can truly recapture the enduring structure of the liturgy of the Christian church, and thus
become more Calvinistic and more catholic, at the same time”.

At the center of Christian worship service one will find basic elements in all different
traditions.
 Two parts, namely the service of the Word and the service of the Table.
 Reading from Scripture
 Confession of faith
 Prayers
 Liturgical singing: Psalms, Ordinarium pieces and free church songs (hymns,
sequences, et cetera).
 The church year: Although different passages in the Bible speaks in a negative way
about the celebration of certain feast days, and a reformer like Calvin tried his best to

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 stop the celebration of these days, the tradition of a church year grew over ages as a
way of structuring the worship service.

5.3 Confessional motive

The worship service also has a confessional motive. As Stevenson (1986:232) states: “it is
the worship that builds up belief, and not vice-versa”. The worship service is the main
means by which most believers are equipped. The worship service forms the basic faith of
the believer. The confessional motive keeps the ecumenical motive in balance and reminds
one constantly of the importance of the worship service as a means of forming the own
identity and confession of the believer and the congregation. In the worship service the
focus is not only on the ecumenical truths of the universal church, but also on the way the
church understands and interprets those truths in and for its own time and situation. It is the
local congregation’s dogma, proclaiming how they understand the greater truths. And in the
worship service, these truths are conveyed and taught to the people in that specific church.
Barnard (2004b:8) rightly says: “Psalms, and other parts of Scripture as well, get new
meanings in different Theological, anthropological and cultural contexts.” It is argued that
this is not only true of the texts of the Bible; it is also true of the text or lyrics of a given song.

To over-simplify: the worship service does not only emphasize the local church’s unity with
the universal church; it also emphasizes the local church’s unique place and role in the
universal church, thus their unique understanding of the Word of God. These two
(ecumenical and confessional) must be in balance. This implicated balance has major
implications for liturgical singing and the use of the free song in liturgy.

5.4 Pastoral motive

The worship service is not only a service by people, but also a service aimed and directed at
people (Strydom 1994:193, Botha 1998:64, cf. Smit 2007:150). Whereas the other motives
depart from faith in God, this motive departs from love for God’s people. Just as God cares
for His people, so God’s people must care for one another. And in this process, people are
changed and renewed. The whole worship service is therefore not only an act of
proclamation, but also a pastoral act. The worship service functions as pastoral care
(Willimon 1979:47, cf. Janse van Rensburg 2004:52). Thus the pastoral care of the
congregation happens while the congregation is worshiping and celebrating God in the
liturgy. Janse van Rensburg (2004:52) notes that the worship service (liturgy) must be
planned in such a way “dat daar iets pastoraal in die gemoed van die aanbidder plaasvind.”

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Strydom (1981:240) is correct when he summarizes that “die kerk se basiese pastorale taak
blyk dus te wees dat hy hom sal beywer vir ‘n kerngesonde liturgiese lewe”. To establish
this “our worship must restore again its contact with life, with the ordinary daily life of man”
(Vajta 1970:72).

Through the worship service the believers must be strengthened, encouraged, taught,
healed, and uplifted, et cetera (cf. Smit 2007:150). Strydom (1994:194) emphasizes that the
pastoral motive or dimension of the liturgy must be based on worship “through the Spirit and
in truth” as indicated in Jn 4:23, where Spirit refers to the person and work of the Holy Spirit,
in contradiction to the worship service as a mere spiritual matter. Strydom (1994:196)
indicates that this is the foundation for liturgical pastorate.

Strydom (1994:196) remarks that, in order for mutual pastorate to take place, the worship
service must be characterized by:
 A koinonial atmosphere (“koinoniaal-korporatiewe verkeer”)
 An attitude of servitude (“wedersydse diensbaarheid met die oog op die opbou van
die gemeenskaplike geloof”)
 An ordered liturgical course (“ordelike liturgiese verkeer, wat gestempel is deur
vrede, liefde en evangeliese vryheid - dus spontaneïteit en soepelheid te midde van
liturgiese dissipline”)
 The bracing of the present in the past as well as the future (“die verankering van die
hede beide in die verlede (die heilshistoriese anamnese) en in die toekoms (die
eskatologie)”)
 A disposition of offering as well as a willingness to offer (“‘n offergesindheid en
offerbereidheid”)
In this regard Strydom (1994:197) emphasizes the importance of a Biblical-oriented
spirituality and a worship service closely related to life. Müller (1990b:112) rightly says
that the pastoral dimension of liturgy forces the liturgist to be contemporary in liturgy and to
be serious about contemporary humankind in contemporary time and context. In this
regard Müller (1990b:112) emphasizes the importance of silence for people living in a noisy
and busy world, as well as the importance of informality with regards to language, clothing,
music, et cetera. The church could be more informal without sacrificing an atmosphere of
devotion.

5.5 Reconciliation motive

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The unique situation in South Africa in the post-apartheid period led to a new discovery of
and emphasis on the motive of reconciliation in liturgy. In this regard Janse van Rensburg
(2004:51) says that “[d]ie liturgie moet koinoniaal van aard wees”. Wepener (2009:4) rightly
states that “it seems as if rituals can serve as route markers and channels in moving towards
reconciliation, which is a process without beginning or end.” Ritual, as part of liturgy, is only
a small element in this process. Hay (1997:203), with reference to the South African
situation, concludes: “Rituals will need to be found to help victims and communities mourn,
heal, confront the past, exorcise the evil of the past, forgiveness, et cetera. Perpetrators will
need rituals to express repentance, remorse, contrition, et cetera. Rituals will be needed to
express justice, reparation, reconciliation, hope, human dignity and honour.”

The “foundation and primary stimulus and motivating factor” (Wepener 2009:7) is not the
need for reconciliation in South Africa or the churches in South Africa, but mainly the
reconciliation God brought about between God and man through the death and resurrection
of Jesus Christ. This reconciliation is given as a task or calling to the church of Jesus Christ
(2 Cor 5:18). In the process of communicating the ministry of reconciliation, ritual and liturgy
can play a major role.

Whenever a breach has occurred, reconciliation is necessary (Wepener 2009:43).

Reconciliation aims at restoring relationships and building new relationships. Hay (1997:4-6,
cf. Wepener 2009:43) distinguishes two types of reconciliation, namely personal
reconciliation and social reconciliation. Personal reconciliation aims at restoring the
individual’s dignity and honour while social reconciliation aims at restoring the dignity and
honour of the community. Hay (1997:180-183, cf. Wepener 2009:44-45) identifies possible
subjects in the process of reconciliation: victims, offenders, bystanders, those who were
victims and offenders, the dead, future generations, international neighbours and God.

Wepener (2009:46-49) mentions important themes in the process of reconciliation:

 Remembering: In the process of reconciliation, remembering the sins and iniquities of
the past is of utmost importance. The past must be remembered and retold.
 Naming: In order to reconcile, the sins and mistakes of the past must not only be
remembered but also named in order to be specific about the mistakes that were
made.
 Reparation: Just remembering and naming is not enough; there must be reparation.
Stolen goods must be returned. There needs to be some kind of compensation.
 Safe space: Reconciliation requires a safe space where sins could be confessed.

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  Process: reconciliation is an ongoing process.
 The Grace of reconciliation: reconciliation is the result of the grace of God. People
that experience His forgiveness and reconciliation can forgive one another and
reconcile with one another.

As indicated above, Cilliers (2009b:168) says that the church in South Africa has entered a
transitional state, which he calls a “liminal space”. Liturgy in such a liminal space needs to
have three components or dimensions:
 Liminal liturgy as lament
 Liminal liturgy as re-framing
 Liminal liturgy as anticipation
The first dimension (liturgy as lament) corresponds with what Wepener (2009:46-49) calls
“remembering”. In this way, a liminal liturgy could also be of great value in the liturgical
process of reconciliation.

The challenge of liturgy and ritual is to create a space where this process of reconciliation
could take place. Liturgy will need to help people remember and give them the opportunity
to name the sins and iniquities they committed. Liturgy will also need to help in the process
of reparation and restoration. It must create a safe space where people can admit and
confess in a context of confidentiality and respect. Liturgy will have to facilitate an ongoing
process of reconciliation, stretching over years and even generations. But most of all, liturgy
will have to be filled with the grace and love of God, so that people could receive and
experience the reconciliation that God obtained for them through Jesus Christ and entrusted
to them as a ministry of reconciliation.

5.6 Missional motive

Liturgy does not only facilitate a meeting between God and His people (church); liturgy is
also aimed at the outsider. In this sense Strydom (1994:212) calls it an open meeting.
Although it is mainly aimed at the people of God who has already been reached by the
Gospel, it is also directed at the outsider (cf. Smit 2007:152). It thus have an evangelizing
motive (cf. Botha 1998:65). Paul refers to this dimension of the worship service in 1 Cor
14:23-25, saying that even outsiders and visitors must be able to understand the
liturgical communication (cf. Strydom 1994:212). Müller (1990a:107) emphasizes the
missional dimension of liturgy and remarks: “Tussen erediens en wêreld moet daar ‘n
wisselwerking plaasvind. Uit die landerye, uit die fabrieke, uit die strate, van oral oor moet

81
almal kan instap in die erediens en kan tuis voel. En dan moet hulle weer uitstap uit die
erediens, geïnspireer en toegerus vir die taak in die wêreld.”

Liturgy is not only a celebration only for those who have found the truth and the life; it is also
an invitation to all outsiders to join and hear and celebrate. Nel (1990:172) remarks that
more people are leaving the church to the world than people leaving the world for the
church. He concludes that the church often becomes so otherworldly that outsiders don’t
feel welcome in the church and especially the worship service.

5.7 Conclusions

It is argued here that the structure of the Canadian Reformed Church (CRC, 1984), going
out from four motives in the worship service, together with a fifth and sixth motive from the
work of Wepener (2008a:206), could be of great value for the conversation on church music.
In church singing or liturgical singing, as part of the worship service and of liturgy, one will
have to consider at least these six motives as motives for liturgical singing as well. In the
conversation about church music, reasoning must be done from:
 A scriptural motive
 An ecumenical motive
 A confessional motive
 A pastoral motive
 A reconciliation motive (especially in a South African context)
 A missional motive
These motives will now be discussed in detail, as they provide a thorough basis for the
discussion on church music.

6. MOTIVES FOR LITURGICAL SINGING

6.1 Scriptural motive for liturgical singing

6.1.1 Singing and music is an integral part of Scripture.

The Bible often refers to music and singing from different perspectives. Although the Bible
provides stacks of information about singing and music, it does not provide the criteria for
liturgical music (cf. Barnard 1994:357). Thus the Bible does no prescribe some form of
singing as a blueprint for all churches and congregations.

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[Link] Part of the worship of Israel

Music and singing were part of the worship of Israel. The people of Israel, like all the other
religions around them, used singing as a way of communicating with God. Singing was an
integral part of their worship. Whenever they met, they sang. Whenever something great
(good or bad) happened, they sang. Whenever they worshiped, they sang. After the
Israelites were rescued from Egypt and the Pharaoh’s army, the children of Israel sang a
song of praise to God (Ex 15). When Moses came down from the mountain, he heard the
sound of people singing to a golden calf (Ex 32:18). After the victory of Deborah and Barak,
the Israelites sang a song of praise to God (Jdg 5:3). With the returning of the arc to
Jerusalem, the Israelites sang (1 Chr 16:7). At the inauguration of the temple, the Israelites
sang songs of praises with a multitude of singers and instruments (2 Chr 23). In the time of
the exile, the people of Israel sang songs of lament (Ezk 27:32, 32:16). When Jesus and
His disciples gathered for the last time before He went to the Mount of Olives, they sang a
“hymn” (Mk 14:26). While in prison, Peter and Silas sang songs of praise (“hymns”) to God
(Ac 16:25). The intention of this study is not to give a detailed exegesis on these texts -
there are many more. The verses are referred to show how important singing was for the
Israelites, and what an integral part singing played in their worshiping of God.

[Link] The Bible contains some songs

A second important observance is that the Bible contains the text of various songs: At
different places in the Bible one finds the words of songs that the people of Israel sang to
God. Schuman (2008:190) refers to “psalmachtige texten” like Exodus 15, Deuteronomy 32
and Jonah 2. With reference to the latter, Human (2008:227, 234) refers to an “individuele
danklied” and “individuele dankpsalm”. Unfortunately the Bible does not and cannot contain
the melodies of these songs, and even if it did, it would have been a different kind of melody
as the melodies that modern people are used to. Mowinckel (2004:9) concludes that it was
more “a sort of a recitative” than a tune. In a certain sense, the Bible does contain the
melodies, for the metrical form of the text were used to structure the melody, and the
metrical form of the text is immanent in the texts; often one does not have the knowledge
and feeling that the people of Israel had to read and recognize the melody. Here are some
examples of songs found in the Bible:
 Exodus 15
 Judges 5:3
 1 Chronicles 16:7

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  Job 33:27-28
 Isaiah 5:1-2
 Revelation 5:9

The Bible also contains other songs like “die lofzangen van Maria en Zacharia” as well as 1
Corinthians 13, Ephesians 5:14 and Philippians 2:6-11 (cf. Schelling 1989:23).

[Link] Some parts of the Bible are written in the form of a song.

The Bible does not only contain songs of the people of Israel; it actually uses the form and
structure of a song in communicating with humankind today. Schelling (1989:22) says: “Het
merendeel van de bijbelse teksten is poëzie. Teksten die naar hun aard en structuur
voorgedragen, gezongen of opgevoerd dienen te worden. De bijbel is een liturgisch boek:
dit boek wil eerder gezongen dan gelezen worden.” So the songs are not only given as
information or examples; they are part of the body and message of the Bible today. Often
the whole passage is written in the literary form of a song:
 Psalms
 Song of songs
 Luke 2
 Colossians 1
 Philippians 1
 Schelling (1989:22) mentions the Psalms as well as Obadiah as examples of
liturgical passages where songs are used in the composition of the book.

[Link] The Bible contains verses that give information about the way singing was
done in Biblical times.

 The Israelites sang about what happened in their lives.

 They praise God that He rescued them from the Pharaoh (Ex 15).
 They sang “psalms” (Jdg 5:3; 1 Chr 16:9)
 Songs were directed at God, and sometimes at fellow men or fellow believers (1 Chr
16:8)
 The main focus of singing was praising God (1 Chr 16:7; 23:5)
 Singing often had the intention of proclamation (1 Chr 16:23)
 Singing is not only the task and calling of the people of God; the whole world/earth
was summoned to praise God (1 Chr 16:23).

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  A multitude of instruments were used in singing and praising (2 Chr 23:13; Ps 150;
Job 21:12)
 Sometimes people used singing as a means of confessing sin (Job 33:27).
 Singing was often accompanied by offerings (Ps 27:6)
 A distinction was sometimes made between singing (Shiyr) and psalm singing
(Zamar) (Ps 57:7; 68:4-5, 32; 105:2). It is always used in the order of singing first
and then psalm-singing. There could be different reasons for this:
o Either singing was the general form and psalm singing a more specified form
of singing, meaning then that one must sing and more than that: one must
psalmsing! In this sense it would be an intensified form of singing. In the
NASB Psalm 57:7b is translated as follows: “I will sing, yes, I will sing
praises!”
o Or it could refer to the content of what was sung, namely one must sing
songs, and not only songs but one must sing a specific song, and that is a
psalm.
o The second imperative (psalm singing) is often translated with “making
melody” (cf. [Link]
18 Aug 2010). Holladay (1971:89) indicates that the meaning of the second
imperative could be translated as “play an instrument”, “sing” or “praise”.
 “Singing” is sometimes used as a personification for nature, indicating its gladness in
good times (Ps 65:13-14).
 Singing was done “to the glory of God” (Ps 104:33).
 Singing was identified with Israel and with the temple. The Israelites could hardly
think of singing their songs in exile in a hostile country (Ps 137).
 Singing was often done with accompaniment like the lyre or other instruments (Ps
147:7).
 The theme of singing often was the redemption that God gave/brought (Ex 15; Jr
20:13)
 In times of trouble or punishment for sin, the Israelite sang songs of lament (Ezk
32:26, Am 5:16).
 The “repertoire” of their singing was “psalms, hymns and spiritual songs” (Eph 5:19;
Col 3:16)

From these passages one gets important information about singing in Biblical times. There
are many more texts that one could list here. The intention of this study is not to give a
complete list with detailed exegesis on these texts. The intention here is to indicate that lots

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of information are available about singing in Biblical times. It’s important to emphasize that
these pieces of information are informative and not prescriptive (cf. Barnard 1994:357).
Hendriksen (1981:163) concludes that “Paul’s purpose is not to lay down detailed rules and
regulations pertaining to ecclesiastical liturgy”. One cannot, as is done in so many
discussions on the topic of liturgical music or singing, take one or two passages from
Scripture and make them prescriptive with regards to singing in church today. These texts
are primarily informative and one can draw broad guidelines or principles from them, being
cautious not to make them something they are not. Thus the Bible does not give clear
instructions on church singing: it rather gives as some information from which some
conclusions could be drawn (cf. Van Wyk 1985:27).

[Link] The Bible gives guidelines on singing (in the worship service).

There are mainly three passages that are used in the discussion about church singing.
Wolmarans (1981:10) uses these three passages namely Colossians 3:16-17, Ephesians
5:19 and 1 Corinthians 14 and then arrives at the following principles (translation provided:
CJC):
 Christians ought to sing Psalms, hymns and other spiritual songs.
 Christ must be at the center of all songs.
 Everything (church singing included) must help in the building up of the congregation.

It is argued here that Wolmarans’ three conclusions or principles are not all one can take as
principles from these three passages. Although one must agree that one cannot treat these
verses as prescriptive for singing in church today, there are a various guidelines that one
can get from the above-mentioned verses (cf. Hendriksen 1981:163). In this regard Barnard
speaks about the “gees en gesindheid van die Skrif” (1981:589). Due to the fact that these
verses are often quoted and referred to in hymnological studies, a more detailed exegesis of
the verses will follow in order to draw principles from these verses.

[Link].1 Colossians 3:16-17

  
teaching with all wisdom

  
and admonishing one another

  
with psalms hymns spiritual songs with thanks

  
singing with your very being86to God
This verse could be translated as: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom
teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with
grace in your heart to the Lord.” (WEB)

This verse was translated in Afrikaans as: “Laat die woord van Christus ryklik in julle woon in
alle wysheid. Leer en vermaan mekaar met psalms en lofsange en geestelike liedere, en
sing in julle hart met dankbaarheid tot eer van die Here. En wat julle ook al doen in woord of
in daad, doen alles in die Naam van die Here Jesus en dank God die Vader deur Hom.”
(OAV)

[Link].1.1 Guidelines from Colossians 3:16-17

“Psalms () and hymns () and spiritual songs ( ”. O’Brien
(1982:208) links the whole phrase together so that the mutual instruction must take place “by
means of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs”. The word psalmois stems from the word
psalmos indicating a “song of praise”, most likely indicating the psalms of the Old Testament
(Lohse 1971:151). The congregation responds to the preaching of the gospel with singing.

It is possible that the word psalms here indicates the Psalms of the Old Testament (cf. Lk
20:42; 24:44; Ac 1:20 and 13:33). Lohse (1971:151, cf. O’Brien 1982:209) says that the
members of the community were prompted to “express their thankful rejoicing in newly
coined songs of praise which could also be called “psalm” (cf. 1 Cor 14:26). Fourie
(2000:32) notes that the book of Psalms was finalized only in the third century; thus the
whole book of Psalms was not compiled when Paul wrote to the congregation in Colossians.
He continues to say that many more Psalms were written and some of them have been lost.
Other Psalms were taken up in other books of the Bible, like 1 Samuel 2, Jonah 2, parts of
Isaiah 40-66 and parts of the book Job. It’s not possible to estimate what Paul precisely
meant when he wrote “psalms” in Colossians 3:16. Hendriksen (1981:162) remarks that
“psalm” could indicate an Old Testament Psalm (cf. Lk 20:42, 24:44, Ac 1:20, 13:33); it could
also indicate another kind of song (cf. 1 Cor 14:26). Due to its associations with “pluck
[hair]” it could also refer to singing with a harp or stringed instrument (O’Brien 1982:209).

The term hymn is more problematic because it is only found twice in the Bible; in Colossians
3:16 and in Ephesians 5:19. It could refer to “a song with religious content” (Louw, J P &
Nida, E A 1989). Lohse (1971:151, see also O’Brien 1982:209) describes a hymn as “the
festive hymn of praise” (cf. LXX Is. 42:10).

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The word odais refers to “a particular melodic pattern with verbal content” (Louw, J P & Nida,
E A 1989). Hendriksen (1981:162) refers to “a poem intended to be sung”. In Revelation
15:3 it refers to the song of Moses, but in Revelation 14:3 this word is used in combination
with kaine, indicating a new song or a song with new words. Hendriksen (1981:162)
concludes that “[t]hese are not Old Testament Psalms”. Lohse (1971:151) describes odais
as “the song in which God’s acts are praised and glorified”. The addition of “spiritual”
classifies odais as sacred songs. Hendriksen (1981:162) concludes that “psalms has
reference, at least mainly, to the Old Testament Psalter; hymns mainly to the New
Testament songs of praise to God or to Christ; and spiritual songs mainly to any other
sacred songs dwelling on themes other than direct praise to God or to Christ.”

With Lohse (1971:151, cf. Wright 1986:145, Hasper 1987:12, O’Brien 1982:209) one must
conclude that “[i]t is impossible to differentiate exactly between these three terms ‘psalms’,
‘hymns’ and ‘songs’”. Lucas (1980:155) rightly remarks that since the time of Jerome these
terms had been debated but that it is still unsolved. With Du Toit (1990:98) one must
conclude that ‘psalms’, ‘hymns’ and ‘songs’ refer the song in its variety and abundance.
 “teaching and admonishing one another”: In this text singing is mentioned (and
commanded) as a way of speaking to one another and admonishing one another,
and not in the first place as a means of praising God. Psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs are also ways of admonishing one another, thus a pastoral
application!
 “singing to God”: The ultimate aim of singing is to praise God. Singing is one of the
ways by which one can praise God.
 “singing with thankfulness”: The WEB combine “thankfulness” with “in your heart”
saying you must sing to God with “grace in your heart”. The OAV combines it
differently, saying you must sing to God in your heart with thankfulness. That could
be something like an unspoken prayer; a song not sung aloud? It could also indicate
that song had to be sung with a spirit of thankfulness (Lohse 1971:152).
 “singing in your heart”: Wright (1986:145) understands “in your heart” as the location
of the gratitude and not the location of the singing. Lohse (1971:151) sees this as a
Semitic expression indicating that the praising should not only be done with the lips,
but also with the heart – the entire man is involved in the songs of praise.

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[Link].2 Ephesians 5:19


 






This verse could be translated as “...speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual
songs; singing, and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” (WEB) The same words are
used here, and in the same order as in Colossians 3:16-17.

The verse was translated into Afrikaans: “Spreek onder mekaar met psalms en lofsange en
geestelike liedere; en sing en psalmsing in julle hart tot eer van die Here” (OAV).

The following must be noted: In Ephesians 5:19 one finds nearly the same words,
terminology and even order as in Colossians 3:16-17. It’s as if Paul writes exactly the same
words to two different congregations. The following phrases are used in both passages:
 “Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs”
 “speaking to one another in….” (cf. Heil 2007:237)
 “singing and making melody with your hearts”
 “to the Lord”, indicating Lord Jesus (cf. O’Brien 1999:397, Schnackenburg 1991:238)
 “singing in your heart” (“from the bottom of your heart”, cf. Schnackenburg 1991:238)
It is argued here that the fact that these terms are used in Ephesians 5 as well as in
Colossians 3 emphasizes that the words used here were not just grabbed from a multitude
of words; they were carefully chosen to convey some important guidelines for singing in
church. O’Brien (1999:394) observes that three (speaking with psalms, hymns and songs;
singing and making music) of the five particles used in Ephesians 5:19-21 have to do with
singing. O’Brien (1999:394) sees the verse as a parallelism (through a chiastic relation, cf.
Schnackenburg 1991:238) where “Speaking in Psalms and songs” is the same as “singing
songs and making music”. Heil (2007) identifies fifteen larger chiastic units in Ephesians.
O’Brien (1999:394) concludes that “the apostle is not referring to two separate responses of
speaking in songs (v. 19a) and singing (v. 19b), but is describing the same activity from
different perspectives”.

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Schnackenburg (1991:238) rightly remarks: “The concentration on worship filled by the Spirit
as a contrast to the non-Christian world with its false intoxication means that we do not have
a complete picture of worship at Ephesus.”

[Link].2.1 Guidelines from the Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5:

The following guidelines are drawn from Colossians 3 and Ephesians 5:

 Singing and praise sprang from a heart filled with the Holy Spirit (Eph 5:17).
 Singing had a double direction: it was directed at God (vertical), praising Him for all
He has done. But singing also had a pastoral motive (horizontal), directed at fellow
believers, teaching them and admonishing them (cf. O’Brien 394-395, Heil
2007:239).
 Not only the Psalms of the Old Testament were sung; all kinds of spiritual songs
with religious content were sung. Adam (1985:81, cf. Hasper 1987:18) concludes
that “the psalms in particular served as the ‘hymnal’ of the early Christian
communities. Alongside the psalms, however, there were many hymns inspired by
the Christian faith (psalmi idiotici, i.e., ‘homemade’ psalms), the character of which is
still attested by the Gloria and older part of the Te Deum.” With Lohse (1970:151),
referring to the three terms “psalms”, “hymns” and “songs”, one must conclude that
“they describe the full range of singing which the Spirit prompts” and “it is impossible
to discern whether ‘psalm’ and ‘hymn’ refer to two types of song which can be
distinguished with respect to their genre”. Hendriksen (1981:163) draws to principles
from these verses, namely 1) that psalms should not be neglected in the worship
service and 2) that hymns should be addressed to God (in contradiction to subjective
and sentimental songs). This is a forced interpretation of the text.
 Müller (1990a:6) rightly adds that the singing which these passages referred to was
“[p]ratende sang, sang as praatvorm of singende getuienis”. It was translated in the
OAV as “spreek onder mekaar met psalms, lofgesange en ander geestelike liedere”.
Thus the emphasis of these pericopes is on the witnessing as outcome of being
Spirit-filled.
 Either singing sprang from thankfulness in the heart, or it was sung in the heart, but
there was some kind of close relationship between singing and one’s heart. With
Lohse (1971:151, cf. O’Brien 1999:397) one can conclude that singing was not only
done with the lips; it involved the heart and the whole human being.

Müller (1990a:7) concludes that singing done with the whole heart emphasizes the element

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of praise that is characteristic of the whole worship service.

[Link].3 1 Corinthians 14:26










This verse could be translated as “How is it then, brethren? When ye come together, every
one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an
interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying” (KJV). The American Standard Version
(1995) formulates: “What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has
a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things
be done for edification.”
The Afrikaans translation reads: “Hoe staan die saak dan, broeders? Wanneer julle
saamkom, dan het elkeen van julle ‘n psalm of ‘n lering of ‘n taal of ‘n openbaring of ‘n
uitlegging—laat alles tot stigting geskied”. (OAV)

This verse is part of the bigger unit of chapter 14 with the theme “Tongues and Prophecy”
(Conzelmann 1975:232). Soards (1999) places 1 Corinthians 14:26 within the unit of 1
Corinthians 14:26-33a and calls it “Protocol for Practicing Spiritual Gifts”. In this passage
Paul is rebuking the congregation in Corinthians. Their ‘gifts’ became so important that Paul
had to remind them that it’s all about the church and not the gift of the individual member.
These gifts included “a psalm”, “revelation”, “tongue” or an “interpretation”. Conzelmann
(1975:244) suggests that the order of these gifts is arbitrary; the emphasis is on edification”
in verse 12. It is not clear what “psalm” means in this passage. An early description of
Christian worship (in the letter of Pliny the Younger; 62-c.113 AD) stated that "on an
appointed day […] they meet before daybreak, and to recite a hymn antiphonally to Christ,
as to a god…." (Bettenson 1999:3-4). The word  in this passage could have been a
song (whether it be an Old Testament Psalm or a newly composed song) they wanted to
sing during the worship service. It is important to note that the believers sang; that they
sang a hymn, and the singing was done antiphonally. O’Brien (1982:209) suggests that
such a song of praise “will include free compositions as well as repeated liturgical fragments
…, and also new Christian songs (which may well have been modeled on the Psalms of the

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OT and later of Judaism…), such as we know from the wording of the various songs of Rev.”
Smith (1989:307) suggests: “The earliest Christians sang the traditional psalms and soon
also composed new hymns for use in their celebrations (Acts 16:25; Eph 5:14; Col 3:16; Rev
5:8-10; 14:3)”

[Link].3.1 Guidelines from 1 Corinthians 14:26

 Singing (with or without accompaniment) was part of the worship service.

 Like all other charismata, singing in the worship service had to be orderly.
 Singing in the worship service must be to the profit and strengthening of the whole
congregation.
 Singing in the worship service must never be an exhibition of personal gifts or
charismata.
 There was room for the personal contribution of individual members through “a
psalm”, “revelation”, “tongue” or an “interpretation”. With regards to “a psalm”, it
could have been an existing song (Psalm or hymn) or it could have been a newly
composed song that the Spirit has blessed someone with, just like all the other gifts.

[Link].4 James 5:13

κακοπαθει τις εν υμιν προσευχεσθω ευθυμει τις ψαλλετω

In the English translations, this verse reads as follows:

“Is any among you suffering? Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praise.” (ASV)
“Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? Let him sing psalms.” (KJV)
The Afrikaans translation (OAV) reads: “Is daar iemand onder julle wat ly? Laat hom bid. Is
iemand opgeruimd? Laat hom psalmsing.” (OAV)

[Link].4.1 Guidelines from James 5:13

In some translations, psalms are translated and interpreted as hymns. The verse has two
parts, each with an indicative and an imperative. The first part could be understood as a
question and the second part as a command. Thus it reads: “Is any among you suffering?
Let him pray. Is any cheerful? Let him sing praise.” The Greek word (ψαλλω or ψαλλετω)
could indicate the following (Thayer & Smith 1999):

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  to pluck off, pull out
 to cause to vibrate by touching, to twang
 to touch or strike the chord, to twang the strings of a musical instrument so that they
gently vibrate
 to play on a stringed instrument, to play, the harp, et cetera.
 to sing to the music of the harp
 in the NT to sing a hymn, to celebrate the praises of God in song
It could thus refer to singing with a stringed instrument (cf. Pss 33:2,3; 98:4-5; 147:7; 149:3)
or it could refer to singing without instruments (cf. Pss 7:17; 9:2, 11)(Martin 1988:206). It is
possible that James is telling his congregation not to forget God in good times. It could also
indicate that God must be praised (with or without accompaniment) in good times.

It must be admitted that the meaning of ψαλλετω in this text is not very clear. What one can
conclude from this passage, is that there is a close relation between being glad or cheerful
and “singing psalms” (whether it be the singing of psalms or the making of melody or both of
them).

[Link] Conclusions:

The content and aim of Liturgical singing must be in line with the principles of the Bible
concerning singing (Barnard 1994:340-342). Barnard (1981:589) states: “Daarom mag daar
nie maar enige lied in die erediens gesing word nie, maar alles moet noukeurig getoets word
aan die norm van die Skrif” referring to the “gees en gesindheid van die Skrif”. Barnard
(1994:345-347) identifies four ways of using the Biblical texts in liturgical songs:
 Singing the vernacular text in its original form
 Singing the text in translated form
 Rhyming of the Biblical text in strophic form (“Beryming van Bybelse teks”)
 Using the content or meaning of a text, pericope, chapter or part of the Bible in the
form of a free song (hymn).

It must be emphasized that the guidelines from Scripture are only guidelines, and
unfortunately often very vague. Schnackenburg’s conclusion on the Letter of Ephesians
(1991:238) that “… we do not have a complete picture of worship at Ephesus” is true of the
other congregations as well. Scripture does not provide an inclusive picture of liturgical
singing. In the debate about singing in church, even Barnard’s principle of the “gees en
gesindheid van die Skrif” is not so clear and in the past led to major differences concerning

93
singing in church. The issue of hermeneutics often remains problematic as illustrated in the
debate on the translation of the Psalms in the GKSA (cf. Van Rooy 2001:55, 60-61). It is
important to note that even the singing of the texts of the Psalms is based on a translation of
the Biblical text and thus subjected to a certain hermeneutics. In the current situation in
South Africa, there are different opinions as to whether the texts of Totius or the texts of T T
Cloete should be used (cf. Salomons 2004, Van Rooy 2006, Van Rooy 2008:2-3) in Psalm-
singing within the Reformed churches, indicating the complexities with regards to texts and
hermeneutics. Van Rooy (2006:55) summarizes in the abstract: “This new Psalter was
welcomed by many churches, but some persons had severe criticism of this new Psalter […]
and criticism related to matters of principle, such as the messianic character of certain
Psalms and the theology of the new Psalter”. The relation of church singing to Biblical text
remains problematic. It must also be admitted that Scripture does not give answers or even
guidelines to practical matters like musical genres and associations.

Martin (1982:17-19) offers two main motives for worship. The first is “the theocentric nature
of worship” and the other “the claim laid upon the worshiper to offer what is his best”. (The
problem is that it remains difficult to decide what is best within another culture or form of
spirituality; sometimes even within another genre of music). It is argued here that a third
motive needs to be added, namely the edification of the congregation and the church. All
texts in the Bible speaking about or referring to worship could be boiled down to these three
principles. And in the end, it is argued that these three principles must be the major
scriptural principles in this study. All singing must be focused on God and every
worshiper, cantor, musician and culture must offer his/her best (cf. Viljoen 1992:4), while the
congregation (and ultimately the whole body of Christ) is edified by the singing in the
worship service.

6.1.2 Liturgical singing and the Covenant

Boiling down to one central motive, the close relation between liturgical singing and the
covenant must be emphasized (cf. Strydom 1991:188). The worship service is in its
essence a meeting or gathering between the God of the Covenant and the people of the
Covenant. Although every meeting and gathering is new and surprising, it is part of a long
relationship between the God of the Covenant and His people. That means that all liturgical
singing is in the true sense covenantal singing.

The whole worship service is embedded in the Covenant (cf. Barnard 1981:480). Strydom
(1994:176) summarizes the covenant thus: “Die verbond is die verhouding van liefde en trou

94
wat daar bestaan tussen God en die mense, individueel en kollektief, op grond van sy
genadebemoeienis.” God made this relation visible by creating a community between
Himself and the people He redeemed. Vos & Pieterse (1997:6) refers to the “samekoms”
(sunergesthai/sunagesthai) of the congregation.

In this meeting, God takes the initiative. He meets His people. Strydom (1994:177-187)
describes God in this meeting as follows:
 He is the King of the Universe
 He is the God who created everything
 He is the God of redemption
 He is the God who takes the initiative
 He is Father, Son and Holy Spirit
The amazing part is that God in all His glory comes down to humanity and meets humanity
in its lowliness, smallness and sin. Right through the Bible sounds the good news that this
God dwells amongst His people. The Tabernacle and Temple were proof and example
hereof.

God speaks to His people by means of the Word and the Sacraments. The people (church)
hear God’s Word and respond to that. In this regard Strydom (1994:189) mentions the
importance of liturgical responsibility and liturgical integrity characterized by loftiness,
simplicity, truth, self-control and soberness and lastly depth.

The congregation reacts to God’s revelation and Word with praise, worship, confession of
sins, confession of faith, remembrance, celebration, commitment and prayer. In the liturgy
there is a reciprocity between God and His people; there is a dialogue between God and His
people and simultaneously a dialogue between the God’s people and God. The whole
process of action and reaction or word and answer is much more complicated than reflected
in a liturgical structure of word and answer. Often the same elements of the liturgical
structure are part of God’s service to the church as well as the church’s service to Him.
Liturgical singing is singing to God but, at the same time, it is also God’s Word to the
church and ultimately the world.

The close relation between liturgy and covenant has definite implications for liturgical
singing. Liturgical singing becomes more than liturgical singing or singing in the context of
the liturgy: it becomes singing in the context of a covenant relationship between God and
man. In mankind’s singing, God remains:

95
  The King of the Universe
 The God who created everything
 The God of redemption
 The God who takes the initiative
 The Father, Son and Holy Spirit
The people of the Covenant come to Him in their lowliness, smallness and sin. This
relationship must be the point of departure in all liturgical singing. All liturgical song and
music must somehow give expression to the covenant-relation between God and
man.

6.2 Ecumenical motive for liturgical singing

Liturgical singing does not only depart from a Scriptural motive. Although Scripture is one’s
main motive and source of revelation, there are other motives as well. The Apostolic
Confession of faith declares that “we believe in one, holy, catholic, church”. When one
thinks about liturgical singing, one needs to remember that believers are part of the body of
Jesus Christ, and that there is an ecumenical motive to liturgical singing and music as well.

The Bible uses different words and terminology to describe the body of Christ. John speaks
about the Good Shepherd who has “one flock and one shepherd” (Jn 10:16b). Jesus prayed
for His disciples in John 17 that they would be one just as He and His Father are one (John
17:11, 21). Paul wrote to the congregation in Ephesians: “There are one body and one Spirit
- just as you were called to one hope when you were called - one Lord, one faith, one
baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph 4:4-6). If
the ecumenical motive has implications for liturgy in the Christian church, then it must surely
have implications for liturgical singing as well.

Just as liturgy never stands in a vacuum, but is part of a long process and tradition of liturgy
in the church and body of Christ over centuries, so liturgical singing has a long tradition from
the time of the Temple and the Synagogue until today. In the process of thinking about
liturgical singing, the past and the future church must be taken into account.

Strydom (1991:227-235) mentions the following ecumenical common grounds for the
worship service:
 Same basic form for the worship service (service of the Word followed by the service
of the table)

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  Scripture readings
 Confession of faith
 Prayers
 Liturgical singing
 The church year

With regards to liturgical singing, the following elements are found in most traditions and
churches (Strydom 1991:230-231, cf. 65-70):
 Psalms
 Ordinary of the Mass (Ordo Missae), consisting of five pieces
([Link] 23 May 2009).
 Kyrie eleison (“Lord, have mercy”)
 Gloria (“Glory to God in the highest”)
 Credo (“I believe in one God”)
 Sanctus (“Holy, Holy, Holy”)
 Agnus Dei (“Lamb of God”)
 Free songs

In the past 2000 years different traditions and churches tried in different ways to manage the
balance between the different elements of liturgical singing. Psalm-singing has always been
an essential part of the singing and the music corpus of the Christian worship service (ibid).
Often attempts were made to help the congregation in this process by means of other
melodies, musical genres and accompaniments in order to promote and stimulate the
singing of Psalms. In some of the newer traditions (e.g. the Pentecostal tradition) the
custom of psalm-singing was neglected and even discontinued in favor of free songs. In
some traditions the different parts of the Ordinary of the Mass were emphasized over and
above the singing of Psalms or free songs. Schuman (1998:166) refers in this regard to the
“Alleen Psalmen, Geen Psalmen, dè Psalm”. The ecumenical motive of liturgical singing
reminds the church that they are part of a long tradition of liturgical singing and need
to maintain a certain balance between the different elements of liturgical singing.

But the ecumenical motive must also be interpreted from another side. Not only do they
stand in a relation to the traditions and churches of the past, but they also stand in a relation
to all the Christian traditions and churches of their day, including the Roman Catholic, the
Greek Orthodox, the Protestant, the Pentecostal and Charismatic and even the African
churches. Therefore the church will have to seek new ways to give expression to their

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unity - as different traditions - in Christ. The church can learn a great deal from the
Protestant tradition concerning the singing of Psalms. The Roman Catholic and Greek
Orthodox tradition can help the church in finding the place and function of the Ordinary of the
mass and the different elements thereof. But the church can also learn great lessons from
the Pentecostal, Baptist, Charismatic and African traditions concerning the use of free or
ecstatic songs in church as a contemporary way of worship.

The ecumenical motive reminds the church (a certain denomination like the DRC) that they
are part of the wider tradition (Reformed) and part of an even wider tradition (the Christian
Church as a whole). In any congregation there will have to be songs that give expression to
their existence as a denomination or community of faith; there will also have to be songs that
give expression to the wider relation, that is the Reformed tradition; but there will have to be
songs also that give expression to their relation the the Christian church and tradition in
general.

6.3 Confessional motive for liturgical singing

Stevenson (1986:232) states: “it is the worship that builds up belief, and not vice-versa”.
Müller (1990a:40) agrees that church singing and music are means by which a church or
congregation expresses its confession of faith. He adds that the content of what is sung is
of utmost importance because that is the way the church expresses its faith and confession.

The newly found liturgical “freedom” has led to an often reckless dealing with liturgical
singing in many ways. Often the only motive for using a certain song or a certain genre of
song is the pragmatic motivation that “it works” or that the people or youth “enjoys” it. The
confessional motive reminds the church that the content of the church’s songs forms
the beliefs and dogmas of tomorrow. In the search for new and contemporary forms of
church music, the church will have to be serious about the truths they convey with and
through their songs. In that sense the focus remains on the content (lyrics) in the first place
and then on the musical genre and style in the second place.

6.4 Pastoral motive for liturgical singing

In short, liturgical singing will have to be Scriptural, ecumenical, confessional and pastoral. It
is a question whether all songs could or should be Scriptural, ecumenical, confessional and
pastoral at the same time. There is no doubt that all songs should be Scriptural. As Barnard
suggested: “Daarom mag daar nie maar enige lied in die erediens gesing word nie, maar

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alles moet noukeurig getoets word aan die norm van die Skrif” referring to the “gees en
gesindheid van die Skrif” (1981:589). Different traditions, churches and denominations will
differ on whether a specific song or text or genre of singing is true to the “gees en
gesindheid” of Scripture. Often songs will not succeed in being ecumenical and
confessional at the same time, as the confessional song will try to emphasize the unique
truths of the specific church or tradition whereas the ecumenical song will try to emphasize
the truths different denominations or Christian churches have in common. The pastoral
motive emphasizes the ability of a song to contain “either general admonition, instruction or
consolation, or directions for behaviour in particular circumstances”
([Link] 19 July 2010).
In that sense a pastoral song will be a song with less confessional truths, focusing on a
specific truth in a specific situation, often on a more horizontal level.

Shelling (1989:19) conducts a whole chapter to the discussion of music and the up-building
of the congregation. Paul writes to the church in Corinth (1 Cor 14:26-33a) and reminds
them that there psalms should be sung for the strengthening of the church, referring to the
congregation. Thus all singing must contribute to the building up of the congregation,
emphasizing the pastoral motive of liturgical singing. In the introduction to this study, it was
indicated that liturgical singing and music are often the cause for much conflict in
congregations. It’s a pity that the ‘gift’, which was given to build up the community or the
congregation, is often the cause for divisions within the local congregation and the wider
church.

Liturgical singing is often perceived as humankind’s answer to God‘s speaking through the
Word (cf. Van Rooy 2008:592, 598). But liturgical singing is more than the congregation’s
answer. It is also Gods speaking to the congregations by encouraging them, rebuking them,
teaching them, et cetera. Liturgical singing could also be the congregations speaking to one
another by encouraging one another or rebuking one another. The song “Voel jy soms of
die Here te vèr is” (LBK 518) is a good example of liturgical song with a strong pastoral
motive, directed at fellow-believers.

6.5 Reconciliation motive for liturgical singing

Closely related to the ecumenical and pastoral motive is the motive of reconciliation (cf. Smit
2007:203-205). In the context of the DRC in South Africa, with its history of apartheid and
everything associated with that, one will have to consider singing in the liturgy from the
perspective of reconciliation. The perspective of reconciliation could be seen as part of the

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pastoral perspective on liturgical singing; it could also be seen as a separate perspective.
Because of the unique situation of the DRC in South Africa in a time of post-apartheid, the
perspective of reconciliation will be dealt with separately.

In 1857 the Synod of the DRC decided that, because of the weakness of some, the Lord’s
Supper would be ministered separately and in separate buildings to different groups of
people. This was one of the main factors that led to the birth and co-existence of different
churches for different racial groups in South Africa. At political level, there were even more
separation and conflict. It is not within the aim and scope of this study to indicate all the
factors that led to the policy of apartheid. But from a post-apartheid scope it is important to
emphasize the necessity for reconciliation in a country and church damaged by apartheid
inside and outside the church. Wepener (2009:3) refers to the statistics on crime and
violence in South Africa and implies that reconciliation has not yet been arrived at. There is
not only a need for reconciliation on political level but also within the church and especially
the DRC family (DRC, DRCA, URC and RCA). De Klerk (2002:54) refers to the African
Renaissance, which requires an internal transformation and says that the internal
transformation will find expression in the way believers worship and practice liturgy,
individually or collectively.

One of the key elements in the liturgy is the confession of sin towards God and man,
followed by the good news that God has set them free and forgiven all their sins (De Klerk
2002:57). This is an important moment in the liturgy as a conversation between God and
man. But confession and penitence do not only have a vertical dimension; it also has a
horizontal dimension. God does not only ask His followers to love Him; they must also love
their neighbors (Mt 22:37-39). God forgave them their sins, but then they must also forgive
one another (Mt 6:14, 18:21-35). In this regard, liturgy has a major role to play in the
process of forgiveness and reconciliation (cf. Smit 2007). In this regard, Vos (1999:1994)
distinguishes “tydsonthou, ervaringsonthou en omgewingsonthou” in African context where
time remembrance recalls the story of guilt, experience remembrance recalls the painful
experiences of the past and environment remembrance recalls the confessions of sin and
guilt that were made.

In a study on liturgical singing in the DRC in South Africa at this specific point in history and
in this specific context, one will have to consider the reconciliation motive for liturgical
singing (Smit 2007). In local congregations, liturgical singing often led to greater conflicts
and diversities even between members of the same race. Thus liturgical singing could be a
source of conflict instead of unification in the local congregation as well as the broader

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church. Liturgical singing will have to include songs that tell the story of the
reconciliation in a conflict-driven society. The repertoire of songs will have to include
songs that the different people of this country can sing (and enjoy) together. Within a
rainbow-nation where congregations are increasingly becoming rainbow-congregations,
there will have to be songs that make provision for the new identity of the congregation.
Songs from African soil could be of great value.

6.6 Missional motive for liturgical singing

Nel (1990:176) remarks that the songs in the hymnals of the church constantly reminds the
church that God is also God of this world. Therefore the worship service is always aimed at
the world. Strydom (1994:285) emphasizes the missional or evangelizing function of
liturgical music. It is important to note that liturgy is not only aimed at all the believers in the
congregation; it is also aimed at the outsider and the visitor. Niemandt (2007:91, cf. Keifert
1992:58 & 86, Morgenthaler 1995) indicates that emerging churches have a “[o]penheid en
gasvryheid teenoor vreemdelinge”. He identifies practices whereby strangers and visitors
could be welcomed and included in the congregation:
 They invite strangers
 Hospitality is one of their characteristics
 They show hospitality towards outsiders
 They conduct worship services as well as the Lord’s Supper not only on Sundays
 Hospitality means to sacrifice
 Hospitality means to be a home for outsiders

A missional church is thus not only aimed at the church members and regular church
attenders, but also at outsiders and the visitors. These could include non-Christians as well.
Liturgical singing, as integral part of the liturgy, needs to be missional liturgical singing.
Thus it needs to be attractive to the outsider; inviting him/her to take part. Liturgical singing,
which is only singable, consumable and enjoyable to members of the tradition, is exclusive
and not aimed at outsiders – it is not missional liturgical singing. In an era where the
missional dimension of church and liturgy has been re-discovered, one will have to re-
consider the implications for missional liturgical music. The purpose of liturgical music is not
only to verbalize the praise, worship, confession and dogma of the local community of
believers; it must also attract, invite and address the outsider. The question is not only
which genres or songs will address the active and loyal member of the congregation;
the challenge is also to attract and reach the outsider.

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6.7 Implications

Liturgical singing has a Scriptural, ecumenical, confessional, pastoral, reconciliation and

missional motive. In the discussion on church music for the 21st century, all these motives
will have to be taken into account.
 Scripture remains the first and final measure for liturgical singing. Litugical singing
must in all facets be worthy carriers of the text and message of the Bible.
 Liturgical singing must give expression to unity with the universal body of Christ,
which includes various Christian traditions.
 Liturgical singing must give expression to the unique identity and understanding of
Scripture within the given tradition and denomination.
 Liturgical singing has a pastoral motive and must include pastoral songs intended for
the pastoral care in/to the congregation.
 Liturgical singing has a reconciliation motive and must facilitate reconciliation
between people of different races, cultures, languages, and denominations. Songs
crossing traditional borders are needed to fulfill this calling.
 Liturgical singing has a missional motive and is therefor not only aimed at the
member but also the outsider. The liturgical song must have the ability to attract, be
sung, understood and enjoyed by the outsider as well.

7. LITURGICAL SINGING AS RITUAL

Müller (1990b:111, cf. 1987:35, Barnard 2000:5) notes that liturgy belongs the context of
rites and the rituals. Rituals are part of day-to-day life. Rituals are more than repeated
actions. Rituals are closely connected to culture and give expression to common identity
(Vos & Pieterse 1997:121). It is closely linked to the social processes within a given
community or congregation (ibid). Vos & Pieterse (1997) describes rituals in the worship
service as follows:
Iedere Sondag herhaal ons die elemente van die wet van die Here, ons
skuldbelydenis en die vryspraak uit die Woord op grond van Christus se
verdienste. Ons aanbid Hom iedere Sondag weer met lofgesange,
verskillende gebede met verskillende doeleindes, en met die offer en
oorgawe van ons lewens in Sy diens. Iedere Sondag slaan ons die Bybel
oop en luister na sy Woord. Sy Woord is bepalend vir al ons handelinge in
sy Naam en die aard en vorm van ons liturgie en lewe. Die sakramente van
die doop en die Nagmaal word met vaste reëlmaat herhaal in die erediens.

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 Net so herhaal ons iedere jaar die die hele siklus van die kerkjaar in ons
herinnering, aanbidding en viering van Christus se verdienste uit genade vir
verlossing. Die wyse waarop ons hierdie rituele uitvoer in ons liturgie is
inderdaad die gesig van ons kerk met sy belydenis en teologie.

(Vos & Pieterse 1997:121)

Barnard (2000:10) refers to the revolution in church from a “verbale en cerebrale liturgie naar
een eredienst die alle zintuigen en kernvermogens aanspreekt” and mentions “[c]antorijen,
stola’s, antependia, beeldende kunstmanifestaties, dans, bloemschikking, kinderprojecten”
(ibid) as examples of the the rich repertoire of symbols and rituals in protestant tradition. In
following Guardini (1923), he remarks that “[d]er Mensch muss wieder symbolfähig werden”.
In this regard, the protestant tradition needs to re-discover the power and impact of symbols.

Verhoeven (1999:67) argues that the main intent of rituals is not to achieve something but
rather to express something. One ‘does’ rituals when one doesn’t know what to do. The
annual commemoration of the dead serves as example: it is not a “rationele, doelgerichte,
handeling” but “een machteloos herkauwen van een onverteerbaar veleden” and “het
ritmiseren van de eigen machteloosheid” (Verhoeven 1999:68). Rituals often express
mankind’s (the church’s) own powerlessness in contrast to mankind’s own rationality. In this
sense, rituals represent another approach to the reality, where the focus is expressive
rather than cognitive. In this regard Müller (1990b:111) remarks: “Die herhalende ritueel
gee die versekering aan die deelnemers dat ‘n bepaalde ervaring, in hierdie geval ‘n
geloofservaring, ‘n werklikeid was en weer kan terugkeer.” Barnard (2000:5) indicates that
there are many similarities between the symbols and rituals in church (liturgy) and culture
(like national commemorations). Müller (1987:35) warns against the danger of ritualism,
where the rite or ritual is conducted without meaning.

Wepener (2009:24) states: “Traditionally ecclesial authorities formulated the rituals or the
liturgy of churches, which was then usually collected in one authoritative book, for example
The Book of common prayer, the Missal or Handboek vir die erediens” and continues to say
that “the rituals as prescribed in these books can nonetheless sometimes become separated
from the people who enact these rituals”, thus impying that rituals can become outdated. A
ritual can never be seen apart from the people (or congregation) who conduct the ritual.
Every ritual is closely connected to a situation and culture where the ritual is conducted (cf.
Vos en Pieterse 1997:121). Barnard (2002b:12) makes a distinction between cult and
culture where cult “bedoelt op de liturgie, opgevat als een symbolishe orde” and says that

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the word cult could be a good substitute for the word liturgy due to the obvious relation to the
word culture. The word cult is often used in stead of liturgy indicating a symbolic order
(Barnard 2002b:19). This term also emphasizes the prominence of cultural anthropology in
liturgical studies (cf. Barnard 2000:7). Vos & Pieterse (1997:3-4) differs and notes that the
term cult with its associations to the Old Testament cult and offerings is “te skraal om die
volheid en rykdom van die Christelike erediens aan te dui”. It is argued here that ‘liturgy’ is
not identical to the Old Testament ‘cult’.

When does a certain act or conduct (or liturgical act) become a ritual? What makes a ritual a
ritual as such? Grimes (1990:14, cf. Wepener 2009:34) formulates a list of ritual qualities:
 Performed, embodied, enacted, gestural (not merely thought or said);
 Formalized, elevated, stylized, differentiated (not ordinary, unadorned, or
undifferentiated);
 Repetitive, redundant, rhythmic, (not singular or once-for-all);
 Collective, institutionalized, consensual (not personal or private);
 Patterned, invariant, standardized, stereotyped, ordered, rehearsed (not improvised,
idiosyncratic, or spontaneous);
 Traditional, archaic, primordial, (not invented or recent);
 Valued highly or ultimately, deeply felt, sentiment laden, meaningful, serious (not
trivial or shallow);
 Condensed, multilayered (not obvious, requiring interpretation);
 Symbolic, referential (not merely technological or primarily means-end oriented);
 Perfected, idealized, pure, ideal (not conflictual or subject to criticism and failure);
 Dramatic, ludic [i.e., playlike] (not primarily discursive or explanatory; not without
special framing or boundaries);
 Paradigmatic (not ineffectual in modeling either other rites or non-ritualized action);
 Mystical, transcendent, religious, cosmic (not secular or merely empirical);
 Adaptive, functional (not obsessional, neurotic, dysfunctional);
 Conscious, deliberate (not unconscious or preconscious).
Barnard (2002b:19, cf. Barnard 1994:190, 1990:5, Lukken 1997:136, Barnard 2000:5)
defines a ritual: “Een ritueel is een complex van symbooltaal, symboolhandelingen en
symbolen. Anders gezegd, een ritueel is een symbolische orde”. Lukken (Wepener
2009:35) distinguishes ten dimensions of ritual.

Wepener (2009:36) works with a ritual-liturgical approach with emphasis on the

anthropological dimension and defines rituals as follows: “Rituals are often repeated, self-

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evident, symbolic actions, that are always interactive and corporeal, sometimes
accompanied by texts and formulas, aimed at the transfer of values in the individual or the
group, and of which the form and content are always culture, context and time bound, so
that the involvement in the reality which is presented in the rituals remains dynamic.”
Barnard (2002b:19) states that “in een ritueelkritische benadering worden de politieke,
ethische en esthetische implicaties van een rituele orde bloot gelegd” and the purpose of the
ritual-critic approach is to improve the ritual praxis through a process of re-contextualization.

Within this framework the whole concept of inculturation is very important. Barnard
(2002b:15) states: “inculturatie en contextualisatie zijn kernwoorden in de hedendaagse
vakbeoefening.” Often a process of adaptation in stead of inculturation was followed in
mission history where theology (and liturgy) was transplanted into other cultures (De Klerk
2002:51, cf. Barnard 2002b:15). In other instances a process of acculturation was followed
where an exchange of cultural elements took place. Liturgical inculturation “entails a critical-
reciprocal interaction or enrichment between cult/liturgy and culture in such a way that a
whole new entity comes into being, namely an inculturated liturgy” (Wepener 2009:39).
Barnard (2002b:15) observes that in protestant as well as in catholic studies there is a new
emphasis on the cultural-anthropological dimension of liturgy. Wepener (2009:39) rightly
summarizes that “such an approach makes it possible to rethink, reformulate and live anew
the Christian faith in each human culture, and for the Christian liturgy this means that its
rituals and symbols can be an adequate expression of people’s praise without fear of
consumerism or succumbing to ‘benevolent paternalism’.”

Wepener (2009:40) goes a step further by saying that not only a process of inculturation
needs to be followed, but also a process of interculturation where different theologies could
be in a multilateral conversation with each other. This interculturation conversation will keep
theologies from becoming too self-centered while celebrating its own unique theology.
There is no eternal liturgy, and in the process of interculturation churches can learn from one
another’s liturgy. There needs to be not only interaction between different liturgies, but also
“true interaction and exposure to one another’s form of worship” (Wepener 2009:41). It is
clear that liturgical interculturation needs dialogue and interaction with other cultures and
liturgical forms. In conversation and interaction with other churches, true inculturation could
take place. Wepener (2009:42) formulates a working definition for liturgical inculturation:
“Liturgical inculturation is a continuous process of critical-reciprocal interaction between cult
(liturgy) and culture so that a totally new entity comes into being, namely an inculturated
liturgy.”

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The question is whether liturgical singing could also be classified as a ritual in liturgy?
Gelineau (1978a:83) remarks: “Liturgical music has always had ritual status.” If it does, and
if music and songs do have ritual status, then the conversation on music and liturgical
singing will not only be occupied with the musical style and genre, the words, the melody
and the association of the song, but also with the ritual status, place and meaning of the
song. That would also imply that songs used in liturgical singing could not be studied
or evaluated apart from the congregation and context where they are sung. That
would also imply that there could be no objective study on a specific liturgical song, but that
a certain song can only be studied in the context of the congregation where the song is sung
– emphasizing anew the role of culture. As such the same song or genre of music could
have different meanings within different cultures.

Barnard (2002b:20) rightly indicates that Western culture changed or developed from a
hierarchical-based culture to a network-based culture. The worldwide web is a good
example of an era where the hierarchical structure disappeared and all participants are
equal. This led to the equalization of all systems of meaning. The Bible and the church do
not automatically have a dominant position over and above other systems of meaning. In
the context of liturgy and ritual, this led to a unique situation where every participant in liturgy
and ritual produces a new meaning for specific rituals. Thus the meaning of rituals does not
only differ from culture to culture or situation to situation; it also differs from individual to
individual. Subjectivity made a way for particularity (Barnard 2002b:21). In this regard
Barnard (2002b:21) refers to Schleiermacher and states that “zij (culture and liturgy: CJC)
zijn immers geen statische entiteiten met vastliggende betekenissen, maar worden
permanent individueel of groepsgewijze toegeëigend, dat wil zeggen gedifferentieerd in
nieuwe betekenissen.” Barnard (2002b:25) mentions that the dynamic character of liturgical
rituals always stands in tension with the view of liturgical rituals as a static entity. Rituals are
context-bound and therefore subjected to change. De Klerk (2002:59) mentions in this
regard that symbols inherent to the African culture must be used in liturgy in African context.

Barnard (2002b:16, cf. Kubicki 1999:98-99) distinguishes two different perspectives with
regards to symbols and rituals. The first perspective is that of symbols as “re-presentatief”
where a symbol represents something in another world or reality without making that reality
present. The other perspective is that a symbol is “presentatief”, making the world or reality
it symbolizes present in the present world. Most often the protestant churches tend to
choose for the first perspective, where emphasis is placed on the symbolic value of the
ritual. In this perspective, all emphasis is placed on preaching and proclaiming the Word.
The sacraments remain inferior to the Word. In most Roman Catholic circles, the second

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perspective will be dominant, where symbol and ritual presents another reality in this one.
God is present in bread and wine.

Minatrea (2004:67, cf. Wepener 2008a:206) states: “Worship is not the learning about God;
it is encountering God.” If liturgical singing is a ritual as al the other rituals in liturgy, one will
have to consider the current practice of liturgical singing within the DRC. Is liturgical singing
learning and singing about God (representative) or is it encountering God (presentative)?
Do the songs and music in the DRC only represent something of the other greater reality
(God), or is God really present in liturgical singing? Can one say that representative
liturgical singing will be more cognitive, factual and sober while presentative singing
will be more spontaneous, celebrative and ecstatic?

A study on the role of the hymn in the church, with specific focus on the DRC in South Africa,
will have to consider the ritual place and value of song and music in liturgy. A study that
focuses only on the words (lyrics) and theology on the one hand and the musical genre on
the other, will not satisfy. In this regard one must remember that in rituals the music is
more important than the text (lyrics), and the meaning of the text is influenced and co-
determined by the music (Vernooij 2002:102). Therefore the music has to be very close to
the specific culture where the ritual is conducted. Some questions need to be investigated
and if possible, answered:
 Does liturgical singing have symbolic and ritual meaning and importance?
 Is liturgical singing and music representative or presentative?
 What influence does Western culture with its move towards networking instead of
hierarchies have on liturgical singing, especially the granting of meaning to song and
music?

Gelineau (1978a:83) implies that liturgical music has lost some of its ritual status through the
focus on aesthetics instead of the ritual value of the song or music. It must be admitted that
in contemporary society less room is left for the ritual role and function of music within the
Reformed tradition. Within Western culture much more emphasis is placed on the beauty
and effect of a song than on the ritual value of the song. On the contrary, the new discovery
of rituals and symbols within postmodern culture (as would be indicated later), leads to a
new valuation of the ritual value of liturgical elements likes music. It must also be argued
that church music did not only lose its ritual status; it also made way for new and often
contemporary kinds of music and instruments, receiving new levels of ritual status.

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Vernooij (2002:102) writes about music as a “ritual teken” where the music of the song itself
plays a greater role than the text of a song. The meaning of the text is influenced and
sometimes determined by the nature and tone of the music. Vernooij (2002:102) states that
“in magischen rituelen ‘werkt’ meer de klank dan de text.” In this process the expressive
meaning of different forms of music is co-determined by tradition. He concludes that: “Het
zijn geluidsiconen, waarvan de symboolbetekenis met woorden amper kan worden geduid,
maar in hun klanksignaal alomvattend spreken” (Vernooij 2002:103). In this regard Vernooij
(2002:104) refers to Psalm 29:3 where the voice of the Lord is over the waters, implying that
He is already present in His voice without the detail of the message.

Not only does ritual play an immense role in the expressive function of music, but also in the
impressive function of music (Vernooij 2002:100, cf. Martin 1982:45-46). “Naast haar
expressieve betekenis wordt ook de impressieve werking van muziek vaak bepaald door
gewoontewerking en ritualiteit.” (Vernooij 2002:100). But on the other end: ritual does not
only have an influence on music; music also has an influence on ritual. Ritual music needs
to be familiar as well as repetitive. In this regard ritual music or music as ritual can easily
become passive music and a deadly (lifeless) routine. Wilson-Dickson (1992:30) states with
regard to the Old Testament Temple, that “in its latter days the music became part of a ritual
which seems to have left little room for spontaneity. Instead, it acted more as a symbol.” In
this context trumpets symbolized God’s power while cantillation of Scripture symbolized the
sanctity of Scripture. Wilson-Dickson states the importance of the two functions of music,
namely to possess and to symbolize, must be kept in balance.

7.1 Implications

It is argued here that liturgical singing, like all the other elements of liturgy, serves as a ritual
within the worship service. The same songs are often sung over and over, from Sunday to
Sunday, liturgical year to liturgical year, often in the same slot within the worship service.
This will have the following implications:
 Rituals are closely connected to culture and give expression to common identity.
Liturgical singing within a certain congregation thus gives expression to the unique
identity of a given congregation and the bigger denomination. Like any other rituals,
liturgical singing will differ from culture to culture, or congregation to congregation.
This would explain why members of a given congregation would sing,
accompany, and respond to a certain kind of music the way they do. This may
differ greatly from congregation to congregation. It is also argued that the ritual value
of a song differ from congregation to congregation, due to the close relationship

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 between liturgy and culture.
 Just as the rituals as prescribed in liturgical books can sometimes become separated
from the people who enact these rituals, liturgical singing could become
seperated from the people (members of a congregation) who enact in the
singing. Something that had ritual meaning within a certain culture, could become
meaningless within a new or other culture. It is argued here that songs, melodies,
lyrics, genres of music or accompaniments of music could become seperated from
the 21st century congregation who sings those songs.
 Within the ritual, the focus is more on the music (beauty and effect of a song) than on
the lyrics. Sometimes the most beautiful (and theological correct) lyrics will not
become part of the living ritual of liturgical singing within a given congregation,
because the music (melody or accompaniment) did not succeed in receiving ritual
status. This could be one of the reasons why so many Psalms in the Liedboek van
die Kerk (cf. Van Rooy 2008) are unsuccessful.
 It is lastly argued that rituals like culture, are not static but in ‘n continuous process of
change. Therefore new rituals with new (or older) forms of music were continiously
born throughout the history of the church. With regards to church singing, this could
imply not only new songs (lyrics) but also new genres of songs, new
accompaniments of songs as well as a new role of liturgical singing. New rituals
(including new liturgical music) must be born continuously.

8. LITURGICAL SINGING AS SYMBOL

Verhoeven (1999:119, Barnard 1994:190) describes symbols as “een samenvatting van

betekenissen; het sluit de betekenissen van het tot symbool geworden ding in zich op en
reserveert die”. A symbol serves as a veil to a hidden reality – it protects the reality behind
the symbol, but it also protects man. It unveils and it veils (Vos & Pieterse 1997:123). As
Verhoeven (1999:140) phrases: “Het breekt de dodelijke straling van de werkelijkheid tot
een gedempt licht”. Verhoeven (ibid) sees art (music, philosophy, poetry, et etera) as well
as cult as veils that transform the veiled matter or object to a symbol, giving it maximum
meaning. Symbols, in conrast to metaphors, do not have linguistic roots (Vos & Pieterse
1997:123). Like dreams, they have multiple possible meanings – the possibilities are
endless. An element of mistery remains (ibid).

There are various symbols in a Reformed worship service, like the cross as symbol of the
death of Jesus Christ; the dove as symbol of the outpouring of the Spirit; bread and wine as

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symbols of body and blood; water as symbol of baptism and new life; the table as symbol of
the Eucharist; the baptismal font as symbol of baptism; the pulpit and pulpit Bible as symbol
of the Word and the centrality of the Word; et cetera (cf. Vos & Pieterse 1997:12).
Corporeality in the worship service is also part of the symbols in the worship service (cf.
Barnard 1994:218-223, Vos & Pieterse 1997:125-131). It is argued here that liturgical music
and singing is also one of the symbols of the Christian church. The act of singing or the
sound of the song alone serves as a symbol of another reality. Certain kinds of music are
not only associated with certain churches or denominations, but serve as a symbol of that
church or denomination. Liturgical music is more than words and melody – it serves as a
symbol to the listener and the partaker (singer). It symbolizes another reality. Therefore the
possible interpretations and meanings are endless.

Music is integral, ministerial and symbolic (Kubicki 1999:30). On the one side music does
something in itself: it expresses, it praises, it proclaims, et cetera. It is a form of art and thus
aesthetic (cf. Barnard 1994:356). On the other side music is also symbolic (Barnard
1994:228). It is part of something greater than itself. It is more than music and expression;
it is part of a symbolic universe and has the power to signify, indicated with words like
semiosis, semiotics and semiology. Signs could be verbal or non-verbal. C S Pierce (1839-
1914) identified three dimensions in the analysis of signs in semiotics, namely the semantic
(relation between sign and its context), the pragmatic (relation of sign to interpreter) and the
syntactic (relation between signs) (Kubicki 1999:94-95).

Gino Stefani (Kubicki 1999:95, cf. Barnard 1994:177, Vos & Pieterse 1997:124-125)
concludes that “liturgy is an ensemble of signs” and “liturgy is an action whose dominant
value is situated in the order of signification”. Stefani further concludes that music (as part of
liturgy) is one of the symbols in the ensemble of symbols and that music making could be
described as a “symbolizing activity” (cf. Barnard 1994:228).

C S Pierce (1839-1914) distinguishes three different types of signs: iconic, indexical and
symbolic (Kubicki 1999:97). Barnard (1994:191) mentions different schemes for classifying
signs and symbols. The difference between a sign and a symbol is that the sign is iconic
and as an icon points to something beyond itself. A symbol also points to something beyond
itself, but participates in the reality it points to. Polanyi & Prosch (1975:70-73, cf. Kubicki
1999:98-99, Barnard 1994:186-189) illustrates the difference between sign and symbol as
follows:

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Figure 5: Signs

In the illustration, (S) signifies “subsidiary pointing” while (F) signifies “focal attention”. Thus
the “subsidiary pointing” points to the “focal attention”. The (-ii) indicates that the (S) lacks
interest while (+ii) indicates that (F) possesses interest. (S) has no meaning in itself and
receives its meaning from (F). (S) points to (F) and all the focus is on (F). There is a one-to-
one relationship between the sign and the focal point. On the other hand, Polanyi illustrates
symbol as follows:

Figure 6: Symbols

In this scheme, (S) has value in itself. The focus is on (S) and the observer (participator) is
pulled into (S). The observer puts him/herself and his/her own existence into the subsidiary
pointing or symbol (S). Kubicki (1999:99) explains: “A straight arrow cannot illustrate this
dynamic. Therefore Polanyi devises an arrow loop in order to illustrate the way our
perception of the focal object in symbolization also ‘carries us back toward’ and so provides
us with a perceptual embodiment of those diffuse memories of our lives (i.e., of ourselves)
which bore upon the focal object to begin with”. The symbol thus starts and mediates a
whole process of interaction between the symbol itself, the focal point, and a person’s whole
life or existence. As such a symbol is “a mediation of recognition which evokes participation
and allows an individual or a social group to orient themselves, that is, to discover their
identity and their place within their world.” Lukken (1999:20) explains: “Bij het symbool krijgt
het beperkte een oneindige ruimheid, iets bijna universeels. Het symbool is meerzinnig. Het
heeft een grensoverschrijdende brugfunctie. Het verwijst naar een diepere werkelijkheid,
een verdere horizon, een ruimer landschap”.

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If there is a one-to-one relation between music (musical properties or structures) and its
outcome or effect, then music acts as a sign rather than a symbol. In this case, music would
function as a sign that is indexical (Kubicki 1999:108). If music is a symbol, then it is more
than the “constellation of sounds with predictable referential properties” (ibid). Jean-Jacques
Nattiez (ibid), distinguishes an “endosemantic” as well as an “exosemantic” elements where
the first refers to the structure while the second to the outside world. Nattiez emphasizes the
prominent role of the “interpretant” in the symbolic dimension of music. He distinguishes
three dimensions within the symbolic function: “poietic”, “immanent” (neutral) and “esthesic”
where the immanent dimension interacts with the poietic and esthesic dimensions. Nattiez
illustrates it (from the perspective of the theory of the interpretant) as follows:

Figure 7: Symbolic dimension of music

“Trace” is the result of a very complex process (the Poietic process) of creation, which
includes form and content. On the other hand, “trace” is the starting point for a complex
process (Esthesic process) of reception, where the receiver must reconstruct the message
(trace). In this regard Blacking (1982:19, cf. Kubicki 1999:114) stresses the importance of
the context in the process of meaning. Not only the syntactic dimension (structure of music
and text) but also the Symantec dimension (context) contribute to the overall meaning of a
song. Thus the singer as well as the context of the singer contributes to the meaning of a
song. Kubicki (1999:115) concludes “a song, as an exhibitive art form, is greater than the
sum of its parts.”

With regards to rituals and symbols, Barnard (2000:5-6) emphasizes that “[o]ok de betekenis
die participanten aan de ritualiteit geven en de manier waarop zij met ritualen omgaan, is
essentieel” and continues that the tendency towards individualization is prominent in the
assigning of meaning to symbols or rituals. In the present cultural context meaning is not
only assigned by the culture or community (congregation) but also and especially by the
individual (member); not only the jedermann but also the jemand. Barnard (2000:6,11) uses
the metaphor of a spider-web, illustrating a unique network of meanings in the life of every
inividual. This web or network includes “’kerk’, ‘kerkdienst’, ‘kunst’, ‘museum’, ‘yoga’,

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‘fitness’, ‘vrienden’, ‘vrije tijd’, ‘werk’ of ‘collega’s’”. The individual assigning of meaning in
this network could best be illustrated by visits of individuals to a virtual cemetery like
[Link] (ibid). Barnard (2000:11) concludes that the worship service and
liturgy have lost their superior place; it is not any more a system of meaning that supersedes
or surpasses all other systems. “De versschillende systemen interferenen, tot in de
kerkdienst toe” (ibid).

8.1 Implications

 Liturgical singing has an expressive and symbolic function. It is not only a form of
expression but also a symbol of another reality. As symbol it presents the other
reality and facilitates an encounter with God.
 As a symbol liturgical singing cannot be evaluated or estimated outside its liturgical
context within the local congregation. The meaning of music lies within the social
and cultural milieu – “music is closely related to the institutional and societal context
where the musical works are created, presented and enjoyed” (Kubicki 1999:117). In
order to understand the music (as a symbol), one will need a certain amount of
knowledge of the cultural codes. Music as symbol emphasizes anew the close
relation with culture and context (cf. Barnard 1994:185). It is argued here that more
attention will have to be given to the symbolic dimension and meaning of different
forms of liturgical singing.
 As a symbol, music may have different meanings for different people (cf. Barnard
2000:5-6). Barnard, in following Frijhoff & Spies (1999), refers to a “a proces van
toe-eigening”. This process of appropriation gives certain dynamics to liturgy where
meaning is ascribed on a continuous base. The latter has massive implications for
liturgical music within the local congregation, where every congregation and every
member (singer) take part in the process of assigning meaning. It is argued here that
a certain song or form of music (which has much meaning to some congregations or
members within a given congregation), may have less or no meaning to other
congregations or even other members within the same congregation.
 As a symbol, music does not only unveil but also veils meaning. The metaphor could
serve an important function in the veiling and unveiling of meaning.

Often the value and meaning of a song (official song or free song) within liturgy is estimated
by evaluating the lyrics and the music only. The value of any song can only be estimated
within the community where the song is sang and the meaning the congregation (and

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members of the congregation) assigns to the song. Meaning is thus not only carried by
lyrics and music. Regarding the free song it must be noted that free songs are utilized in a
specific cultural context, and the meaning of such songs can not be evaluated without
understanding the context of the congregation. A congregational anthem could be
linguistically and musicologically of lower standard (as measured against the official song of
the church), but still fulfill an important symbolic function in the congregation.

9. LITURGICAL SINGING AS RITUAL SYMBOL

Driver describes religious ritual as follows:

Religion’s being danced out, sung out, sat in silence, or lined out liturgically,
with ideation playing a second role, is not something confined to religion’s
early stages but is characteristic of religion as long as it is vital. This does not
mean, of course, that ritual is mindless, not anti-intellectual. It means that its
form of intelligence is more similar to that of the arts than to conceptual
theology, just as the intelligence of poetry is a different order from that of
philosophy or literary criticism.

(Driver 1991:84, cf. Kubicki 1999:119)

Thus ritual is closer connected to the arts than to cognitive or conceptual reasoning. Ritual,
like art, is more exhibitive and therefore in closer relation to the music than to the theological
discourse. Rituals invite one to participate. The symbols within the ritual invite participation
in the realties to which they point. Through the ritual and the symbol, one can experience
the presence of God.

Through the ritual of singing, the singer is carried out of him/herself. “[R]itual song as
symbol puts us in touch with the power to which it points and opens up to us levels of reality
which might otherwise be closed to us” (Kubicki 1999:122). Through liturgical music the
sacred is proclaimed, realized and celebrated (ibid). As such it is a prophetic symbol,
transforming the lives of the participators and leading to new values. In has the power to
influence the community of believers and lead to a fuller life in Christ.

Langer (1967:153, cf. Kubicki 1999:124) distinguishes “simple emotion and a complex,
permanent attitude or deep emotion” and concludes that “the ultimate product of a ritual
repeatedly performed is an emotional pattern which governs the lives of individual subjects”.
Thus liturgical singing as ritual symbol creates this permanent attitude or deep emotion that

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ultimately forms and shapes the lives of the participators. Thus the liturgical singing of a
congregation forms that community over a period of time – they become what they sing.

Kubicki (1999:125-127) identifies and describes the music of the Taizé-community as a ritual
symbol, with regards to the following:
 The singing of chants in the Taizé-community involves all participators on physical
level by singing, playing an instrument, moving with the rhythm or listening.
 The physical participation leads to a deeper participation in the presence of God. In
the singing, a person’s whole life is brought in an encounter with God.
 In the singing, the community of believers is experienced.
 Through singing, Christian attitudes like faith, trust, praise, love, thanksgiving, et
cetera, are expressed.
 In the esthesic process, each participator is involved by assigning meaning through
composing, singing, playing, listening, interpreting, et cetera. All participators are
involved in the process of generating meaning.
 In the generation of meaning (the esthesic process), the experience-domain (context)
of each participator plays a great role.

9.1 Implications

These would be true of any congregation actively engaging in liturgical singing. Due to the
repeated nature of liturgical singing, it functions as a ritual symbol. This will have the
following implications for congregational singing:
 The physical participation through singing or accompanying the singing (with the use
of instruments or voices), leads to a deeper participation in the presence of God and
church members’ whole life is brought in an encounter with God.
 In the act (ritual) of liturgical singing, the community of believers is experienced.
 Through liturgical singing, Christian attitudes like faith, trust, praise, love,
thanksgiving, et cetera, are expressed.
 In the esthesic process, each participator is involved by assigning meaning through
composing, singing, playing, listening, interpreting, et cetera. All participators are
involved in the process of generating meaning.
 In the generation of meaning (the esthesic process), the experience-domain (context)
of each participator plays a great role. If liturgical music imitates the outcome, it can
never generate new meaning in the interaction with the experience-domain or local
culture.

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10 FUNCTION OF LITURGICAL SINGING

Gelineau (1978a:91-92) states that “[t]he first service that music and singing can offer the
liturgy is to give a ‘tool for celebration’” and the second “would be an inexhaustible source of
prayer, meaning and feeling.” Kubicki (1999:30-37) sees music in liturgy as integral,
ministerial and symbolic.

In preparing for this study, different churches were visited and many Sunday worship
services were attended. In all the different churches and denominations, they sang (cf.
Gelineau 1978a:85). Why does the church sing in liturgy? Why does the church incorporate
music in liturgy? Is singing only an extra to liturgy, or is it an essential part of liturgy? (cf.
Vernooij 2002:95). One can say that the church does not only sing in liturgy; rather they
sing liturgy (cf. Strydom 1994:285).

Selander (2001) argues as follows:

During the Middle Ages congregational singing was related to the experience
of seeing and adoring the holy Mystery of the Mass [...] In the Reformation,
congregational singing was part of the proclamation of the Christian
Protestant faith [...] In Protestant Orthodoxy and in early Pietism,
congregational singing first and foremost served as an instrument for
analysing the relation between the Christian member of the congregation and
the Gospel [...] in later Pietism and among the Moravians, congregational
singing often led to reflection and meditation.

(Selander 2001:202)

Thus the function of singing differs from time to time. Selander (ibid) illustrates that the
function of church singing was often influenced or even determined by time and context. It is
a good question whether the function of Reformed singing should forever be the same as
the function it had in the time of the Reformation. It is a good question whether the main
purpose of singing in the Reformed tradition, namely the proclamation of the Christian
Protestant faith, should still be the same in a postmodern era. Shouldn’t singing be more
ecumenical in an ecumenical age? Should’t church singing be more expressive in a
postmodern era?

Vernooij (2002:96) indicates that music is not limited to the cantory, the choir, the organist or
the cantor, but the elements of music are present in every aspect of liturgy. Schelling

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(1989:14) notes: “Op allerlei momenten, op hoogtepunten en dieptepunten, in
samenlevingsverband en in familiekring, werd gezongen en gespeeld. Lied en muziek
waren voor de bijbelse mens wezenlijke middelen om zich te uiten.” For the people of
ancient Israel, music was part of the content and experience of their faith.

What could be the reason why all churches have some kind of singing and music in their
liturgy? What is the function of liturgical singing? Martin (1982:6) rightly states that in the
puritan movement, the focus of the whole liturgy was placed on the sermon as the climax of
the Christian service. The whole service was conducted in a didactical way. Often all the
elements of liturgy were seen as a sort of prelude to the main moment when the preacher is
going to preach and explain the Word of God. In this process liturgical singing was part of
the prelude on the way to the main moment, thus nothing more than one of the stepping
stones on the way the pulpit. For many organists, liturgical singing created the opportunity
to show and exhibit their skills on the organ, thus a form of art music performed by an artist.

In contemporary times many preachers see liturgical singing as preparing the emotions and
creating the ‘right atmosphere’ (cf. Müller 1990a:33); Josuttis (1991:204) rightly remarks that
music within the Protestant liturgy also has the function of creating atmosphere. Strydom
(1994:285), on the other hand, rightly emphasizes that liturgical singing is much more than
underlining certain highlights; creating liturgical transitions; filling empty spaces; creating a
certain atmosphere or giving the congregation time to pause. On the contrary, liturgical
singing is “‘n volwaardige liturgiese handelingsvoertuig” and “‘n volwaardige liturgiese
kommunikasiemedium” (ibid).

Martin (1982:44, cf. Josuttis 1991:202-204) says that all experts agrees that the hymn
(singing in church, CJC), has two main functions:
 It plays an impressive role in worship by putting the worshiper in the right frame of
mind and heart.
 It plays a major expressive role in helping to express oneself in worship.

Strydom (1994:285) distinguishes the following functions for liturgical singing: (translation
provided: CJC)
 Proclamation
 An faith-answer
 Pastoral function
 Missional or evangelizing function

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  Individual function (the influence of singing on the person who sings)
The viewpoint that all music and singing must carry and proclaim the Gospel or biblical truths
(cf. Smit 2007:180), is not valid. The function of liturgical singing and music is much more
than proclamation as indicated by Strydom (above).

Barnard (1994:350-351) identifies various functions of the litugical song, namely faith and
confession; confession of sin and humiliation; thanksgiving and recognition of God;
lamentation and struggle; question and petition; liberation and joy; thoughts and
understanding; belief and confession; thanksgining and proclamation; work and witness;
conduct and celebration and lastly worship and praise. It is clear that liturgical singing can
not be reduced to one function of liturgical singing.

Schelling (1986:108) indicates that liturgical music has a variety of functions in the worship
service. He mentions the following:
 Music as accompaniment
 Music as praise (lofprijzing)
 Music as expression of emotions (cf. Wilson-Dickson 1992:29, Van Rooy 2008:16)
 Music as prayer (e.g. Nm 10:9-10, 1 Macc 3:54, 4:40, 5:31)
 Music as proclamation (e.g. Ps 40:4, 57:10, 68:12)
 Music as offering and reconciliation (1 Chr 29:27-29, Ps 69:31-32)
 Music as call to action
 Music as prophesier (2 Chr 3:11-19, 1 Sm 10:5)
 Music as “verdrijver van het kwaad” (Ex 2:35, Zch 14:20)
 Music as announcer of the future
 Music in times of mourning (2 Sm 1:17-27, Jr 9:19-20)
Thus music is not just another stepping-stone on the way to the pulpit. Music and singing
is part of the conversation between God and man. It is an essential part of the meeting
with God. It is part of the covenantal relationship between God and man. Through music
and singing humankind praises God, prays, proclaims, reconciles, announces and serves.
Through music and singing the members of the congregation express their emotions; more
than that: they express their faith in God. They sing about all the events of faith and
verbalize their faith or lack of faith.

Willimon (1979:58) states the fourfold motivation for worship:

 Worship as imitation: the church does on a small scale what God does on a large
scale.

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  Worship as placation or restitution: the liturgy becomes a means whereby one can
restore oneself through confession, et cetera.
 Worship as commemoration: in the worship service God’s people commemorate the
great events of faith.
 Worship as tribute: in the worship service the believer pays tribute to God for what
He has done.
Schelling (1989:19) distinguishes four functions of church music, namely the upbuilding of
the congregation, the role of music in the missionary church, the pastoral function of music
and the role of music in the diaconate (“diakonaat”) of the church.

Kloppers (1997:178-179) understands the function of liturgical singing as that it can bring
about an experience of faith, or it can serve as an expression of the experience of faith.
Liturgical music (meaning music which is used in the liturgy) is thus part of God’s
communication with humankind as well as humankind’s response to God. Kloppers
(1997:179) rightly explains: “Liturgical singing can function as conversation with God, as
answer to God’s Word, that is, as praise, thanksgiving, confession, prayer, lament, and so
forth. But liturgical singing can also function as God’s Word – that is where the singing
community can carry God’s word out as mission towards the outside world or proclaim God’s
Word towards one another.” The main function of liturgical singing is thus communication. In
this regard Kloppers (ibid) emphasizes the importance of “a big enough repertoire of hymns
and songs for every separate function”.

Minatrea (2004:67, cf. Wepener 2008a:206) says: “Worship is not learning about God, it is
encountering God.” Liturgical singing is more than just singing about God – it is an
encounter with the living God. When a certain congregation sings “Ons Vader wat woon in
die hemel” (LBK 266), it is not just a song to prepare believers for prayer or reminds them of
prayer or prepare the right atmosphere for the prayer of the liturgist - it is a prayer in itself. It
is an encounter with the God who created everything and provides for all of creation. And
when the congregation continues to sing “gee ons vandag ons dag se brood”, it is a prayer
for the providence of God. In singing “vergeef ons al ons skulde net soos ons vergewe”, the
sins of the congregation are confessed and according to the Bible, forgiven. Liturgical
singing is more than preparing the atmosphere or creating a certain atmosphere (cf. Strydom
1992:19); it is more than just “lekker sing” although is ought to be a pleasure; it is more than
just stretching legs before the long (and often exhausting) sermon of the pastor – it is an
encounter with God. It is a meeting with the Holy One, leading to a reaction like that of
Isaiah: “’Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among

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a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty’” (Is 6:5). Thus
liturgical singing is part of the whole conversation between God and man, and it includes all
the elements of this conversation.

10.1 Implications

The free song may never be reduced to only one or two functions of liturgical singing
like ‘praise’ and ‘worship’. The use of free songs must never lead to a reduced gospel
where only certain elements of liturgical singing are incorporated. Like all other liturgical
songs, free songs must consider all the various functions of liturgical singing. Free songs
can only be used within the consciousness of the inclusive functions of liturgical music.

It is argued here that there is great ignorance regarding the role and function of liturgical
singing in general. Therefore the following will have to be considered or re-considered:
 Training pastors in the role and function of liturgical music. At some seminaries and
universities Hymnology is reduced to an optional course in the curriculum of pastors.
As such it is considered a “nice-to-have”, but not essential for ministry. In some
cases only two lectures per annum in Hymnology are part of the training of pastors.
 Training of musicians: Often the musicians in congregations are only qualified in the
discipline of music, with no or only a little theological background. It is one thing to
play an instrument and to do a musical performance; it is another thing to lead people
in a worship service so that they can/may have the abovementioned encounter with
God. Often church musicians are well prepared for the music and poor-prepared for
leading participators in liturgical singing to an encounter with the living God through
music. If the musician himself/herself does not experience God’s presence in his/her
music, how can the congregation ever do that?
 Training of worship leaders. The term worship leader has become general in many
congregations of the DRC. Some congregations refer to “voorsanger” or
“voorsangers”. Sometimes this task is fulfilled by the pastor; often it is fulfilled by
another member of the congregation. The worship leader must be trained in the
theological dimension of congregational worship. It is more than announcing songs;
it is more than just quoting a text or giving instructions on whether to sit or to stand –
the worship leader must be trained to combine a sober Reformed theology with the
beauty of music and style.
 Training of members of the congregation. There is still much ignorance within the
congregation about liturgical singing. It is often perceived as ‘just singing’, ‘winning

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 time’ or ‘stretching legs’. It is also more than just ‘praise and worship’ as it contains
other elements like lament, confession, proclamation, teaching, et cetera. In this
regards Vos & Pieterse (1997:233) remarks: “In die lied weerklink die verlatenheid,
jubeling, klagte, bede en dank, hoop en verwagting dat die menslike sugte in die wye
skepping nie ongehoor sal bly nie”. Often members of a congregation will not really
know what they had sung. A great part of the congregation will sing a song of praise
without ‘praising’, or sing a song of confession without ‘confessing’ their sins. The
members of the congregation need to be trained with regards to the liturgical function
of music and singing.

Although music could also have the function of preparing or creating the atmosphere, it is far
more than an atmosphere-creator. It is praise, confession, benediction, proclamation and
worship as such.

11. INFLUENCE OF THE ECUMENICAL-LITURGICAL MOVEMENT OF THE

TWENTIETH CENTURY.

Liturgy is closely related to the tradition(s) and history of the Christian church. Although no
fixed order could be found in the known liturgies of the New Testament (Vos 2009:5, Vos
& Pieterse 1997:29), certain common elements could clearly be identified (Kloppers 2005:9):
 Acclamations like “Amen”, “Hallelujah”, “Abba” and “Maranatha”
 Doxologies and blessings (Rm 11:33-36, Eph 5:14, 1 Tm 1:17, 3:16)
 Songs like the Benedictus (Song of Zagariah), Magnificat (Song of Mary), Nunc
Dimittis (Song of Simeon).
 Confessions of faith (Rm 10:9, 1 Cor 8:6, 15:3-5)
 Gestures and movements (1 Tm 2:8, 1 Cor 16:20, Ac 21:5)
 The worship service in heaven (Book of Revelation).

Liturgy in the fourth century contained the following elements (Kloppers 2005:10):
 Readings from the Torah, Prophets, letters of the apostels, Acts, Gospels and letters
of the bishops
 Psalms and other songs (like Eph 5 and 1 Cor 14) as well as acclamations by the
congregation
 Sermons or lectures
 Litanies
 Greetings

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  Eucharist with various elements

These acts and elements form the catholica of the church. In these acts and elements the
earliest ecumenical roots of the Christian worship service could be found. Various liturgical-
renewal movements (The Oxford Movement in England (cf. Theron 2004:9), the “Liturgiese
Kring” in the Netherlands, the Second Vatican Council as well as movements within the
Reformed churches – cf. Strydom 1994:131) tried to re-establish the central role and place
of the acts and elements of the catholic liturgy (liturgy of the early church). The rise of the
Pentecostal and later the Charismatic movement strengthened the urge or the rediscovery of
the catholica in the liturgy. The rediscovery of the catholica, which were well-preserved by
the Greek Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Church and the
Lutheran Church, led to a new liturgical vitality (cf. Strydom 1994:133) and a much more
ecumenical and unifying liturgy in various churches. Theron (2004:9) describes the modern
liturgical movement as “‘n hoogkerklike beweging waarin groot klem geplaas word op amp
(apostoliese suksessie), tradisie, kerkorde en kultus”.

The two major elements or parts of the catholic worship service could be described as the
service of the Word and the service of the Table (cf. Kloppers 2005:10) The value of the
catholic service order (liturgy) could be summarized as follows (Strydom 1994:133):
 Liturgical unity of the service of the Word and the service of the table.
 The centrality of Scripture as primary means of proclamation (through the use of the
pericope system).
 The prominent liturgical place of prayer.
 Renewed perspective on the Eucharist as a communal meal with the risen Christ.
 Reinvention of the dialogical nature of the worship service through the active
participation of members.
 Rediscovery of the balance between teaching (dogma) and celebration.

The liturgical-renewal movement of the previous century aimed at the renewal of liturgy
(Barnard 2006:34) by re-establishing the central elements of the early church into
contemporary liturgy. Wolterstorff (1992:278) refers to the “enduring structure of the liturgy”
in this regard. The ecumenical movement and the liturgical movement walked hand in hand
and influenced one another greatly (Kloppers 2005:11); the World Mission Conference in
Edinburgh (1910) had a great impact on this. The ecumenical gatherings led to a process of
liturgical renewal where different churches interacted with each other and developed an
appreciation for each other’s liturgies. This in turn led to a renewal of one’s own liturgy. This

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process was greatly influenced and impacted by the Faith and Order commission of the
World Council of Churches, as well as the Lima-liturgy (1981/1982) (cf. Strydom 1991:148).
Although the Liturgical Movement led to greater similarities between the liturgies of different
congregations and churches, the liturgy of each church or congregation was unique.
Wolterstorff (1992:277) explains: “The actual liturgy of a given denomination today is the
outcome of a subtle interplay between its own liturgical tradition and the dynamic of
ecumenical catholicity. This must be seen in a positive light, as liturgy should not suppress,
but express our individual identities”.

Kloppers (2005:13) identifies three matters on which conclusion was reached within the
Liturgical Movement:
 The importance of a basic (catholic) form (ordo) of the worship service
 The importance of a local inculturation of this form (ordo)
 The importance of interaction between various inculturated forms of liturgy
(interculturation).

The great value of the ecumenical and liturgical movement is clear. Barnard (2006:33)
refers to “[h]et vreemde succes van de Liturgische Beweging”. The Liturgical Movement had
a great impact on the service order of the DRC in South Africa, as well as on the liturgies of
many other churches and denominations. The conversation on church music in South Africa
and especially within the DRC is greatly influenced by one’s own viewpoint regarding the
Liturgical Movement. Some scholars (eg. Kloppers 2005) use the Liturgical Movement as
the criterion for new forms of church music. Kloppers (2005:3, see also 2005a:192), for
example, states: “Die werk en doelstellings van die ekumenies-liturgiese bewegings van die
twintigste eeu en die invloed van hierdie bewegings op die kerklied, word bespreek. Die
uitgangspunte dien as maatstaf in die beoordeling van nuwe vorme wat ontsluit is, veral wat
betref die ekumeniese betekenis en invloed.” The question is whether the Liturgical
Movement still has the same impact than twenty or thirty years ago, and whether church
song and music can still be measured by the viewpoints of the Liturgical Movement of the
twentieth century. It is argued here to be negative.

12. LITURGY BEYOND THE LITURGICAL MOVEMENT

Het actuele liturgische veld is gelaagd, gedifferentieerd en complex.

Bewegingen en tegenbewegingen lopen door elkaar heen, wat zich als
vernieuwend presenteert is dikwijls tamelijk traditioneel en andersom,

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 realiteit en virtuele werkelijkheid zijn niet altijd te onderscheiden. Sluitenden
verklaringen en defnitieve interpretaties van nieuwe liturgische fenomenen
en ontwikkelingen zijn nog niet te geven. Dat mag niet betekenen dat we de
ogen dus maar moeten sluiten voor ontwikkelingen die zich voordoen, en dat
we ons moeten wentelen in het behaaglijke nest van een geconstrueerde
liturgie die vooral in (dienst)boeken te vinden is, maar in de realiteit
tenminste onder zware druk staat. Het minste dat we kunnen en naar mijn
overtuiging ook moeten doen, is waarnemen wat er gaande is.

(Barnard 2006:11)

Barnard (2006:9) observes that the Evangelical Movement had a great influence also on
congregations inspired by the Liturgical Movement. The influence of the Evangelical and
Charismatic christendom on the Christian worship service is obvious. More and more the
church is becoming a “liquid church” with a network of relations and communications. Many
people, especially youth, from the mainstream churches are attending other kinds of worship
services in a more relaxed atmosphere. Often worship services are held in specific contexts
like schools, workplaces, houses for elderly, et cetera. The liturgy and form of these worship
services are determined by the context and other kinds of music and singing are used than
the music used within the Liturgical Movement. More and more worship services are done
with freely-structured liturgies. Barnard (2006:10) notes that liturgy is mainly influenced by
tree factors:
 Context: All liturgies are closely related to context (culture). Liturgies develop and
exist within culture.
 Bible: Scripture is always interpreted Scripture. Scripture could be understood
differently by different people.
 Tradition: Tradition is a dynamic process and always in a process of change.
Therefore one should rather refer to traditions (plural) than tradition (singular).
Barnard rightly emphasizes that a tradition of the church could not be identified;
rather one must refer to different traditions in/of the church. Barnard (2006:16) rightly
remarks: “De Liturgische Beweging staat in een zekere traditie, maar er zijn op
protestants erf en daarbuiten ook nog heel andere tradities aan te wijzen”. This
stand in contrast to the claim of the Liturgical Movement to go back to the tradition of
the early church.
In this context, Barnard (2006:17) defines liturgy as “het geheel van christelijke riten en
symbolen”; thus including “special liturgies” within the concept of liturgy.

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Barnard (2006:21-31) uses the work and views of Paul Oskamp on liturgy to indicate the
following shifts in liturgy in the past four decades:
 1973: Protestant congregations were busy rediscovering the liturgical treasure of the
church through the ages where the church was still in need of a fixed form.
 1988: “...het tij is gekenterd, het enthousiasme geluwd, de dynamiek gestold, de
Entdeckers-freude getemd”. After 15 years all focus was on the consolidation of the
new liturgical insights in a world characterized by secularization. Congregations had
to concentrate more on themselves in order to survive.
 1998: Certain congregations of the church in a diaspora.
 2004: Most congregations are now living and ministering in a diaspora. The
dominant perspective at this stage is that of a congregation in exile. In this situation
there is a growing emphasis on liturgy in the dynamics of cult and culture where
liturgie is born in the dynamics between context and participators. Thus the fixed
form is not any more the point of departure; instead the situation or context
determines the form. The editio typica was replaced by ‘n liturgia condenda (See
also Barnard 2004a:2). Liturgy became liturgy in crisis. The Liturgical Movement of
the twentieth century has passed; the Liturgical Movement of the twenty first century
is waiting.
Barnard (2006:31) concludes by saying: “Een normatieve, vaste liturgische vorm is niet meer
dominant. We zijn de Liturgische Beweging voorbij.”

The viewpoint of Barnard (2006) stands in direct contrast to the viewpoint of Kloppers (2005,
2005a). This difference in viewpoint will have a direct and crucial influence on their view of
liturgy, the renewal of liturgy and ultimately the goals of liturgy. It will also have a major
influence on their view of church music, the renewal of church music, the use of different
styles of music, et cetera. It is argued here that some of the Reformed churches in South
Africa have moved beyond the Liturgical Movement. Within the DRC some congregations
work from the paradigm of the Liturgical Movement of the twentieth century which has a
major influence on the way they perceive church music. On the contrary, many
congregations are living in a diaspora and passed the Liturgical Movement of the twentieth
century. Within this situation the liturgy is mainly determined by the context and the
participators. The debate about church music within the DRC is closely linked to these two
viewpoints.

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13. CONCLUSIONS

The following conclusions are drawn:

 The worship service is the service of the people with the intention to worship God.
 The worship service could best be described as a conversation between God and
humankind and humankind and God.
 The roots of the Christian worship service can be traced back to the earliest parts of
the Old Testament. Two main roots could be distinguished, namely the Temple and
the synagogue.
 The worship service could be described as a meeting of God’s family where
rememberance (of the main events in salvation history) has a central place.
 The contributions of members of the congregation were accommodated within the
worship service (1 Cor 14); this could also have been a new song given by the Spirit.
 The element of diakonia is central to liturgy and the worship service.
 A liminal liturgy is required for a phase of communitas of liminality.
 There are different motives for the worship service: a scriptural, ecumenical,
confessional, pastoral, reconciliation and missional motive.
 Liturgical singing, and therefore the free song, has a Scriptural, ecumenical,
confessional, pastoral, reconciliation and missional motive as well.
 Liturgical singing, like all the other elements of liturgy, serves as a ritual within the
worship service. The same songs are often sung over and over, from Sunday to
Sunday, liturgical year to liturgical year, often in the same slot within the worship
service, making it a liturgical ritual.
 As a symbol liturgical singing cannot be evaluated or estimated outside its liturgical
context within the local congregation. The meaning of music is not dependent on the
lyrics and music alone, but also on the social and cultural milieu where the music
(liturgical singing) is conducted.
 Due to the repeated nature of liturgical singing as well as the symbolic power of the
liturgical songs as well as the act of liturgical singing, it functions as a ritual symbol
within the worship service, facilitating an encounter with God.
 The functions of liturgical singing have to be re-discovered. Liturgists, musicians and
church members must be trained and educated with regards to liturgical singing.
 The liturgical movement of the twentieth century had a great (valued here as positive)
influence on liturgy and the worship service, especially in re-discovering and
celebrating the ecumenical elements of liturgy.
 Some congregations of the DRC in South Africa are beyond the liturgical movement

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 while other congregations and musicians are still trying to restore the liturgical
movement. Some of the great differences with regards to liturgical music could be
described to this fundamental difference.
 Within a bricolage liturgy, elements from different traditions are cut and pasted (or
copied and merged) into the Reformed liturgy in the DRC. As discussed in the
introduction and theoretical framework, there are certain profits in the practice of
bricolage liturgy, but also certain dangers in an uncontrolled practice of bricolage.
But the growing tendency towards bricolage liturgy can’t be denied. This practice
has a major influence on the use of the free song in liturgy, and opened the door to
an even wider use of the free song within Reformed liturgy.

The implications of the study on liturgy has far-reaching implications for the use of the
free song in the Reformed worship service. The free song, as part of church singing in
the Reformed worship service (as would be indicated in chapter 6) and therefore part of
liturgical singing in the DRC, must be seen against the background of the role and function
of liturgy. Liturgy is the service of the people to God and to one another. Through songs
they enact in a dialogue with God and one another; singing is part of this dialogue. Their
songs are part of their gifts (1 Cor 14) and their contribution to the worship service. Through
their songs they also reach out to the world and envite them into the worship service and
ultimately into communion with God. Therefore their songs also have a missional (and
pastoral) function and have to be in genre and style attractive to the outsider. The song of
the church may never be a song which is only understood and appreciated by insiders.
Therefore the free song could have great value within the worship service in breaching the
gap between insiders and outsiders. The free song, like any other song in church, can not
be estimated only by evaluating the lyrics or the melody. As one of the symbols or ritual
symbols within the worship service, it conveys more than just the sum of lyrics and music.

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