Scott Aniol

This article is an attempt to flesh out this ancient idea of lex orandi, lex credendi by clarifying both the nature of lex credendi, religion, and lex orandi, liturgy, constructing a framework for understanding the dynamic formative relationship between the two. After doing so, the article briefly surveys this relationship through the course of church history, noting the importance liturgy plays in both forming and revealing the Christian Faith. Finally, it highlights the necessity to recover a lost understanding that worship involves more than simply expressing devotion to God through songs Christians enjoy; rather, worship forms the very core of who Christians are.

This article is an attempt to flesh out this ancient idea of lex orandi, lex credendi by clarifying both the nature of lex credendi, religion, and lex orandi, liturgy, constructing a framework for understanding the dynamic formative relationship between the two. After doing so, the article briefly surveys this relationship through the course of church history, noting the importance liturgy plays in both forming and revealing the Christian Faith. Finally, it highlights the necessity to recover a lost understanding that worship involves more than simply expressing devotion to God through songs Christians enjoy; rather, worship forms the very core of who Christians are.

This paper examines the role of worship philosophy and practice in both dividing and unifying Protestant denominations. I am using the term “denomination” in its more broad sense of an informal collection of common beliefs and/or practices rather than a structural entity. With this in mind, I focus my attention primarily upon groups in the United States categorized by similar distinctives, which I will suggest center at least in part on matters related to worship. First, I will demonstrate how worship philosophy and practice is a central denominational divider. Second, I will evaluate the role traditional psalmody, hymnody, and liturgy have played in providing appropriate unity across denominational lines. Finally, I will reveal two recent developments in evangelical worship that blurred denominational distinctives: the Praise and Worship Movement and the Church Growth Movement. I will show that traditional hymnody and liturgy unifies Christians while preserving appropriate denomina...

ISSN: 1937-9056 Copyright © 2015 Answers in Genesis. All rights reserved. Consent is given to unlimited copying, downloading, quoting from, and distribution of this article for non-commercial, non-sale purposes only, provided the following conditions are met: the author of the article is clearly identified; Answers in Genesis is acknowledged as the copyright owner; Answers Research Journal and its website, www.answersresearchjournal.org, are acknowledged as the publication source; and the integrity of the work is not compromised in any way. For more information write to: Answers in Genesis, PO Box 510, Hebron, KY 41048, Attn: Editor, Answers Research Journal. The views expressed are those of the writer(s) and not necessarily those of the Answers Research Journal Editor or of Answers in Genesis. Abstract Many have noted that the worship practices of Israel share elements in common with nations around them, including a sacrificial system, a sanctuary, and priests, leading secular scho...

The missional church movement has significantly influenced evangelical churches in recent years, especially through its philosophy of evangelism and worship. Missional advocates argue that the church is part of the missio Dei—the mission of God—and thus it must see its ministries as fitting within that mission. Essential to the accomplishment of that mission is embedding the church in its target culture, which missional authors call “incarnation.” In order to evangelize a culture, they argue, churches must contextualize the message of the gospel in the culture. According to the grandfather of the missional movement, Lesslie Newbigin, contextualization is “the placing of the gospel in the total context of a culture at a particular moment, a moment that is shaped by the past and looks to the future.”2 This thinking influences the missional philosophy of worship as well. While missional advocates reject the “attractional worship” model of the church growth movement, they nevertheless i...

This article argues that corporate worship is one of the primary means of making disciples through the ritual formation of spiritual virtue. It explains that a disciple is formed not only through transmission of doctrine, but also through cultivating the heart's inclinations. Christian disciples are not only “knowers”; they are “doers,” observing everything Christ has commanded. Since people act primarily according to their hearts’ desires, pastors who wish to make disciples must concern themselves with the heart's inclinations. Such inclinations are shaped most significantly through habitual behavior in community, an apt description of corporate worship. This leads, then, to a discussion of the power of corporate worship liturgy–habitual behaviors done in the context of corporate worship–to incarnate biblical values and transmit them to the worshiper/disciple. When the liturgies of corporate worship are reenactments of what God has done in the gospel, these liturgies help t...

Dispensational premillennialists have long been charged with cultural retreat, yet despite the rhetorical extremes of some dispensationalists, dispensational premillennialism does not necessitate withdrawal from cultural engagement; rather, it actually provides a theological basis for equipping Christians as they are active in society. By surveying dispensational thought concerning the kingdom, the church, and the church's role in society, this article demonstrates that dispensationalists view the church’s exclusive mission as one of discipling Christians to live sanctified lives in whatever cultural sphere to which God has called them. This is the extent of the church’s so-called “responsibility” toward culture, and anything more than this threatens to sideline the church’s central mission.

The New Testament contains very little explicit information concerning singing in Christian churches, and yet debate about what kind of songs may be sung in worship is perhaps one of the most controversial matters facing churches today. For this reason, participants on all sides of contemporary worship debates look to two parallel NT passages as fodder for their views: Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16. Of particular note in interpretations of these passages are the three musical terms Paul employs: ψαλμοῖς (psalmois), ὕμνοις (hymnois), and ᾠδαῖς (ōdais). What these terms exactly mean has been a matter of disagreement since the church fathers, and worship warriors frequently use dogmatic, and often unsupported, assertions concerning their meaning to defend their arguments. The purpose of this paper is to examine popular and scholarly discussions of the terms in these passages to determine, if possible, their exact meaning and what implications for contemporary practice may be drawn...

This article is an attempt to flesh out this ancient idea of lex orandi, lex credendi by clarifying both the nature of lex credendi, religion, and lex orandi, liturgy, constructing a framework for understanding the dynamic formative relationship between the two. After doing so, the article briefly surveys this relationship through the course of church history, noting the importance liturgy plays in both forming and revealing the Christian Faith. Finally, it highlights the necessity to recover a lost understanding that worship involves more than simply expressing devotion to God through songs Christians enjoy; rather, worship forms the very core of who Christians are.

This paper examines the role of worship philosophy and practice in both
dividing and unifying Protestant denominations, using Reformation precedent as a foundation with which to evaluate contemporary Evangelicalism. First, I demonstrate how differences over worship philosophy and practice were central in preventing full unity among sixteenth-century Reformers, even while they were united in many
central theological convictions. Second, I evaluate the role traditional psalmody, hymnody, and liturgy played in providing appropriate unity across denominational lines.

I then use this framework established during the Reformation to
assess contemporary evangelical practice. I evaluate two recent developments in evangelical worship that blurred important denominational distinctives established during the Reformation: the Praise and Worship Movement and the Church Growth Movement. I
show that traditional hymnody and liturgy unified Christians while preserving appropriate denominational distinctives during the Reformation era and beyond, while Praise and Worship theology and seeker-sensitive worship philosophy contribute to minimizing
important doctrinal matters at least in part due to their elevation of musical style as central to church identity.

The New Testament contains very little explicit information concerning singing in Christian churches, and yet debate about what kind of songs may be sung in worship is perhaps one of the most controversial matters facing churches today. For this reason, participants on all sides of contemporary worship debates look to two parallel NT passages as fodder for their views: Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16. Of particular note in interpretations of these passages are the three musical terms Paul employs: ψαλμοῖς (psalmois), ὕμνοις (hymnois), and ᾠδαῖς (ōdais). What these terms exactly mean has been a matter of disagreement since the church fathers, and worship warriors frequently use dogmatic, and often unsupported , assertions concerning their meaning to defend their arguments. The purpose of this paper is to examine popular and scholarly discussions of the terms in these passages to determine, if possible, their exact meaning and what implications for contemporary practice may be drawn therefrom. The grammatical construction of the phrases in both Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 are nearly identical, 2 and thus I will treat discussions of the meaning of these terms without distinction between the two appearances. I will survey only recent treatments of these texts for two reasons. First, recent discussions will reflect the most current scholarship in biblical studies. Second, contemporary scholars will take into account and interact with any relevant older scholarship, so there is little need to specifically explore the older treatments. By examining the arguments for the predominant views of the meaning of these terms, I will show that ψαλμοῖς, ὕμνοις, and ᾠδαῖς in Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16 should not be taken as clearly defined categories of congregational song but should rather be seen as overlapping near synonyms.

This article argues that corporate worship is one of the primary means of making disciples through the ritual formation of spiritual virtue. It explains that a disciple is formed not only through transmission of doctrine, but also through cultivating the heart's inclinations. Christian disciples are not only " knowers " ; they are " doers, " observing everything Christ has commanded. Since people act primarily according to their hearts' desires, pastors who wish to make disciples must concern themselves with the heart's inclinations. Such inclinations are shaped most significantly through habitual behavior in community, an apt description of corporate worship. This leads, then, to a discussion of the power of corporate worship liturgy— habitual behaviors done in the context of corporate worship—to incarnate biblical values and transmit them to the worshiper/disciple. When the liturgies of corporate worship are reenactments of what God has done in the gospel, these liturgies help to make disciples, for by reenacting what they are in Christ, Christian worshipers become what they are.

This paper traces the relationship between worship music and denominationalism, with particular attention given to North American evangelicalism. The paper begins with an examination of differences in worship theology as key denominational distinctives, while demonstrating that psalmody and hymnody have traditionally provided appropriate unity across denominational lines. It then reveals two recent developments in worship music that blurred denominational distinctives: the Church Growth Movement and the Praise and Worship Movement. The thesis of the paper is that traditional psalmody and hymnody unifies Christians while preserving appropriate denominational distinctiveness, but seeker-sensitive worship philosophy and Praise and Worship Music contribute to denominational decline in the name of ecumenical unity.

Following Luther's lead, each Protestant group reacted against the Christendom approach to culture in some way. The most radical rejection of the Christ above culture model of the Roman Church was that of the Anabaptists. Niebuhr categorized them as Christ against ...

The missional church movement has significantly influenced the evangelical church in recent years, especially their philosophy of evangelism and worship (see my recent series on this subject here). Missional advocates argue that the church is part of the missio Dei— ...

The hymnody of the early church was naturally an extension of Hebrew hymnody. 1 Therefore, we can expect the hymnody of the early church to have the same general characteristics of Hebrew hymns: Early church hymns were word-centered, modest, and ...

The hymnody of the early church was naturally an extension of Hebrew hymnody. 1 Therefore, we can expect the hymnody of the early church to have the same general characteristics of Hebrew hymns: Early church hymns were word-centered, modest, and ...

... We must ask ourselves, how can we whet the congregation's appetites now for the satisfactions that will be theirs in God for eternity? ... Children learn to worship God primarily through participating in rightly ordered worship. Children learn to love God by first learning how to love. ...

If there is one argument in defense of bringing secular musical forms into the church that I've heard more than any other, it is certainly one that insists that Luther used tunes from love songs or drinking songs, so why shouldn't we?

The development of American church music during the nineteenth century has important implications for the philosophy and practice of church music in the twentieth century and beyond. Indeed,“it would be difficult to overstate the impact that antebellum sacred music ...

If we truly desire to be governed by and to preserve transcendent ideas about God, then our worship must be regulated by God's Word. This commitment to the Regulative Principles of Worship solves the question of what we will include in our corporate worship, but it doesn't ...

Commitment to the Regulative Principles of Worship solves the question of what we will include in our corporate worship, but it doesn't necessarily address how we will do it. Conservatives have always recognized that while the Bible clearly prescribes what ...

Before exploring approaches to cultural engagement post-Christendom, or even that of Christendom itself, it is necessary to consider what happened before and during the period immediately after the Edict of Milan in 313. Early debates about approaches to culture are ...

Lesslie Newbigin's influence spread to North America in the 1980s, leading to the formation of the Gospel and our Culture Network (GOCN) under the leadership of George Hunsberger. 5 According to Hunsberger, “The GOCN is a collaborative effort that focuses on three ...

This fall the Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal will publish an essay of mine in which I evaluate claims that Isaac Watts was a proto-dispensationalist. In the article I argue that Watts's writings do not demonstrate enough characteristics of dispensationalism to ...