Oprah likes to do her "Favorite Things" shows from time to time, and in keeping with that tradition, I thought I'd share my favorite two places to watch live music happen online. The first is a French site called La Blogoteque.  The link is to their vast archive. From what I can tell (since much of the writing is in French and I don't parlent Francais very well) they ask artists visiting Paris to come and film them doing a couple tunes in spontaneous ways: sometimes it is just with an acoustic wandering around the streets, other times they set up a small gathering of friends in a flat, or in Sufjian Stevens case, on top a roof. They don't edit the film; it is just a raw and intimate take of an artist performing a song with background noise right in there. Some of my favorites are Bon Iver, David Bazan, Arcade Fire (especially the song filmed with the entire band squished into a freight elevator), Adrew Bird, and the aforementioned Sufjian. Check it out. The quality of their filming is really great stuff.

The 2nd place I enjoy me some live online music is KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic hosted by Nick Harcourt. This show has been around for years and I'm always excited to watch my favorite artists perform in-studio. Recent performances by Death Cab for Cutie, Wilco, and M83 have been very cool. My favorite episode has to be by Imogen Heap (formerly of Frou Frou). This one woman band is one of the most amazing musicans I've ever had the pleasure of watching/hearing. She opened her set at Coachella a couple years ago by singing acapella. She looped her voice and handclaps mulitple times so that by the end of the song there must have been 12 tracks of just her and it was beeeeautiful! Only a woman could multi-task this well!  

Nothing beats being at an actual show, but since very few of my favorites make there way to San Diego (most hit L.A.before moving up to San Francisco, Portand, and Seattle), watching online is the next best thing. Enjoy.

Check-out the latest JibJab. In this heightened time of political correctness with the election process in full-swing I'm always happy to see some good ol' fashioned political satire and these guys do it so well. I don't care what your political position is, Obama on the back of a unicorn flying through a pink candy forest singing a fruity song about change is hilarious.

"I, a poor miserable sinner..." or so begins one of my favorite confessions of sin in our service book. In a culture bathed in self-help and "your best life now" true Christianity stands in direct opposition declaring that all have sinned, there is none righteous (Rom 3). At its most basic level the Christian faith can be summed up with the phrase: The forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ. Certainly it is bigger in scope than this, but without this vital truth, it is mere religion and worth nothing.

So it should come as no surprise that one of my favorite weekly elements of the liturgy is the confession of sin and absolution (or declaration of pardon, for my Reformed brethren). I like, especially, that it acts as a preparatory element near the very beginning of our service as it releases in me a true sense of thanksgiving and joy, freeing me to worship wholeheartedly, because I am reminded that I have been washed in the blood of Christ and that my sins are nailed to his cross for it in that special time I am a man weighed down by my repeated failures. When it is declared by my pastor that God has forgiven my wrongs and shortcomings, I do not just think the slate is wiped clean. It actually is! Hallelujah!

The Didache, one of the earliest documents discussing Christian worship, admonishes, "Assemble on the day of the Lord, break bread and celebrate the Eucharist; but first confess your sins, that your sacrifice my be holy." As the church grew, it is unfortunate that the priesthood of all believers and the saving work of Christ's atoning work alone became subverted and confused during the late Patristic period and suffered further corruption during the Middle Ages. The Reformers appreciated the value of a preparatory confession, but they could not retain much of the existing liturgical forms because of their impurity in soliciting forgiveness from Mary or the saints vice Christ. Thus, you will find varying prayers in Protestant churches. One of the most common reads:

Almighty God, our Maker and Redeemer, we poor sinners confess to You, that we are by nature sinful and unclean, and that we have sinned against You by thought, word, and deed. Therefore we flee for refuge to Your infinite mercy, seeking and imploring your grace, for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Simple and right to the point. Why should God forgive us? Not for what we bring, as the old hymn puts it, simply to the cross I cling. In other words, for the "sake of our Lord Jesus Christ." In my upcoming album I wanted a song that spoke of this truth as a joyful response to being pardoned. I struggled finding the right words and setting them to an appropriate arrangement. I finally settled on a short hymn by Charles Wesley entitled, Depth of Mercy, updating and rearranging the words to fit a verse/chorus pattern and setting it to my own tune that is built around a simple string arpeggio and cahon beat. Chris later added some horns, piano and cellos as the song builds. I haven't found a way to play it live, yet, but look forward to trying it at some point. For a great article on this topic for worship planners, head over to the Calvin Institute of Worship, here.

Great verse to memorize on this topic:

"If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:8-9)

Book Recommendation on the topic of Sin:

Original Sin: Illuminating the Riddle by Henri Blocher

This is a follow-up post to my rant last Friday. Chris left some good remarks and questions to stir the pot [note: Chris is my long time producer/mix master and guitarist in Call Down Fire, but I assume that many may have similar questions, so I thought I’d leave a reply rather than just call him].

First off, I knew my post would ruffle some feathers and I deliberately did not tie all the logical pieces of the puzzle together because it would’ve made for a very long write-up. So here it goes and sorry about the length:

1. In my post, I purposefully focused on the comparison of philosophies of marketing between fast-food restaurants and the church. My mention of “worship styles” was only peripheral to my argument as it is only one component of a broader problem, which is catering to market trends by creating a food court approach to the way the church attempts to appeal to its congregants; in other words, “you should come to our church because we have canvassed the neighborhood and the polls show that our target demographic between the ages of 25-35 like a, b, and c. We now have implemented a, b, and c, so you’ll like it here.”

Chris asks: Does this “marketing” translate to drawing mostly established families and the elderly in the case of my local parish, which is a conservative Lutheran church and worships using a fairly traditional high liturgy? The answer, surprisingly, is no; at least not in the past year as we have grown 60% with the better part of that 60% being under the age of 45 with about half of this number being single. As I’ve got to know my fellow parishioners (many who are brand new converts, by the way) I’ve found them to be a diverse group of people with many different reasons for ending up at our church. There is a small pocket of recent Russian immigrants that grew up in the Russian Orthodox church, but have come to a protestant understanding of the gospel (they appreciate the familiarity with the liturgy). We have many ex-Catholics that have reformed. Because of our location being in the heart of Hillcrest, which is 85% homosexual, we have a growing group of young homosexuals that have become believers and are still struggling with the ramifications [note: this is a very specialized ministry opportunity God has given us that we are still trying to figure out in order to neither come off as fundamentalist or liberal, but rather, truthful and loving. Pray for us about this.]

Additionally, we do not impose a liturgy or musical style that is 100s of years old. Yes, it is a liturgy that is steeped in tradition, but the Lutheran Service Book we use was published in 2006. Yesterday I led a song that I wrote 4 months ago which was based upon a Psalm that is at least 2000 years old as well as chanted a prayer that was written 900 years ago. That my friends is true diversity and manifests the kind of blending that Dr. Robert Webber championed in his book Ancient/Future Faith. Highly recommend this book as a side note. 

2. Chris asks if it is so important to stay with one given style, where is this concept found in Scripture? Quick answer: It isn’t and in re-reading my post and the last 2 ½ years of material that I’ve written on this site I cannot see where anyone would think that is something I would advocate. Rather what I had hoped to communicate, and probably didn’t too good a job of it, is honesty and authenticity. This was my point in using the food industry as an analogy.

Here’s the long answer: The church is missional, not because of its musical style, but because of what it offers, which is the forgiveness of sins found in Christ alone. The church is missional because of her gospel message. Thus, what hungry sinners should come for week after week is not a spectacular light show and funny pastor spewing forth the latest 10 steps to a better you, but rather, word and sacrament. The proclamation that God is renewing all things through Christ Jesus and that in his mercy he has sacrificed his own son in order to close the divide that sin separated. This is done on Sunday through confession, prayer, singing, baptism, the Lord’s supper, the reading of God’s word, and of course, through preaching. Can this be accomplished with an indie-style band and Powerpoint? Sure. Can it be accomplished through a more traditional organ and hymnbook? Yes it can.

Here’s the problem. What do you do if you’re congregation is over 100 years old in a very old and historic building built for natural acoustics? What if your congregation’s age and demographics are between the ages of newborn and 96? Do you only reach out to the indie-hipsters and forsake all others, especially those who are 50+ and are largely keeping the congregation afloat, financially speaking? These questions are complex and require much thought, prayer, and I don’t believe can be solved with an off-the-shelf answer. This is why many graduating seminarians are opting to plant a church rather than take the helm of a well established church, and I completely understand the benefits of doing so. But…back to my original post.

I complained that many in my denomination are pushing various church growth strategies. My problem is not with growing, because of course, I desire to see all people praising Christ. It is the non credible means that they are pushing that troubles me. If I hooked-up a major sound system in my sanctuary and attempted playing “How Majestic is Your Name” with a full band and my Telecaster ripping in all its glory it would be a disaster. The space is not designed for this; it would isolate over half of my current congregation and not really even speak to those for whom it is intended because they do not even listen to that kind of thing, and it would not in any shape or form “fit” with the rest of the liturgy. It would come off like a burger joint attempting to make a really bad taco. In other words, it comes off sounding, and truly is, not authentic. But…and this was my point…when Crossroads Community Church down the street does it in their converted warehouse it is authentic, because it is who they are and fits with the overall scheme of the rest of their Sunday morning liturgy. This was all I was really trying to get across in my post. My point was not to say that one style is better or more Christian than the other, but that the various methods and marketing schemes and styles may all have their place at the table called Christian, but they should not be pushed upon the other in a way that reeks of not being genuine. Unbelievers can smell THAT a mile away.

3. Chris asks: Didn’t the Lutheran church start b/c it was bucking tradition? Yes, but the interesting thing was that it was a theological reformation centered upon the gospel. Luther only made minor reforms in the liturgy. Later Calvin, and especially Zwingli, came along and made more radical changes (the Puritans and Anabaptists even more). But Luther (who was a good musician and hymn writer) supported congregational song, supported the arts and artists in his parishes, and in general, attempted to use the traditional liturgy in a language that was comprehendible to the laity and participatory. He did not advocate change for change sake, and was not even trying to start his own church, by the way. I recoomend a good biography by Heiko Obermann if you want more details.

4. Chris asks: Where does the person who likes certain aspects of the Calvary style but wants Reformed content go to church? Hmm. I think that is a good question that cannot be answered with a simple fill-in the blank. It would probably be determined on a city by city basis. I’m in the LCMS but would not attend every LCMS church because some are quite frankly, awful (even in my own city). And I can vouch for my PCA buddies, too. Some are great; others not so much. The same goes for independent movements and churches like A29 churches. Some are really solid; others should probably not use the word church.

In general, Chris, I tend to think that musicians put a much higher level of importance and expectation upon the church in terms of musical style or excellence than the average church member. In terms of importance, I would put gospel content and biblical fidelity far and above musical style in choosing which church to attend. Find a church whose leadership is determined to be faithful to the teachings of Scripture, get involved, and help the music ministry out by pariticpating in it rather than sitting on the sidelines in silient judgment.

5. Chris asks: Wouldn’t it be ideal if a church could exhibit a range of styles that is true to who is in the congregation? Maybe having separate traditional and contemporary services is better? Or maybe changing up styles from week to week or a fusion of styles?

Again, I must apologize as these really good questions require a thorough answer.

A. Range of styles? The key word is in the question is that is culturally reflects the make-up of the congregation. In my experience, and I’ve lived in seven cities, and two different countries, is that most congregations are mono-cultural, which is to say, that even though a congregation may be made up of diverse ethnicities and social status, one predominant cultural entity emerges, and whatever this is, becomes the greater church culture in terms of its worship and the way in which it communicates to the broader culture. And to be honest, I think THAT is okay. Again, it's okay for a burger joint to just sell really good burgers and not try to be something it is not. If it’s a fusion, okay, but it better be an authentic one, and not something forced or coerced or its credibility will be called into question. It is akin to Justin Timberlake acting ghetto. People just laugh at him. Is he talented? Yes. But no one is under the delusion that this ex-Orlando living rich Disney white kid is from the mean streets. Just watch the first episode of Punk'd and see how gangsta he actually is.

To back up my point as far as marketing goes, popular business author, Tim Ferris recently posted something I found interesting. He speaks of the rising importance in niche marketing:

“But here’s the secret: it’s possible to niche market and mass sell. iPod commercials don’t feature dancing 50-year olds, they feature hip and fit 20-30-somethings, but everyone and his grandmother wants to feel youthful and hip, so they strap on Nanos and call themselves Apple converts. Who you portray in your marketing isn’t necessarily the only demographic who buys your product — it’s often the demographic that most people want to identify with or belong to. The target isn’t the market. No one aspires to be the bland average, so don’t water down messaging to appeal to everyone—it will end up appealing to no one.”

Now I personally struggle with any form of marketing and the church, but she must communicate her message in some shape or form. What I hope the church would focus on, as Paul did, was Christ crucified. If we made Jesus and his saving grace (bloody cross and empty tomb) our “niche,” I think we would be surprised by the attraction; the kind exhibited when he walked this earth.

B. Contemporary and Traditional Services? I’m not a fan as it creates two different congregations. I’ve attended a large church in the South for a year that attempted this and I always felt it was a failure, although I’m sure there were those who would disagree. You’d meet people at a church event and they’d ask what service you attended and the response would be, “Oh, you’re first service people,” as if we had leprosy. In an attempt to appease all people, it appealed to no one in the end, or it just divided the church into two congregations that shared the same facility.

C. Range of Styles from week to week? This depends again upon the local congregation make-up and the musicians available. As much as I enjoy myself some Bach, I cannot play one of his pieces, as least not very well, so even though my current congregation enjoys that style I have to combine it with a bit of folk and pop, which creates a unique folksy chamber pop fusion. For us this works, but I wouldn’t hold it up as THE form of worship for all churches for all time. It fits with our traditional liturgy, theology, cultural make-up, current musicianship, and yet is progressive in that it is still moving artistically forward while still enjoying our heritage as Lutherans. While leading worship at Kaleo for several years, we played around with various styles (indie, ambient/electronic, and folk/alt-country), but they were styles that were not that far apart and we had the musicians to pull this off pretty well. I know Dan Price (from the SRR band, Ish) at Riverview Church has done some similar things with great success. Again, they have the musicians to pull it off and it was a fair representation of their church. If we would have attempted hip-hop it would have been terrible as we would have been completely out of our league. I can appreciate the art form, but it would not have suited the congregation or congregational participation. I know of inner-city church plants where it works, though. Again, I don’t think the church needs to be a Sizzler buffet that attempts to cater to every persons needs. It’s a nice idea, but it does not work in practice.

6. Last question Chris asks: How can it make sense to mandate style across a denomination of churches? It doesn’t make sense, which is my point. Some denominations who desire to grow the mega-style churches they see on TV or read in Purpose-Driven books think that they must employ the same types of market techniques to get people in the door. The silly thing is that we conservative types are always 20 years behind the curve so by the time they finally get around to being so-called “relevant” they are no longer relevant. My point is that a church with a specific heritage should not run from it, nor be embarrassed by it, but own it and carry out their mission in the most excellent way possible. For example, in recent LCMS church plants they are purposefully NOT using “Lutheran” in their church name and you will have trouble finding their association with Lutheranism in their media like websites and visitor pamphlets. The same goes for Baptists and Presbyterians. Why? Well they say that recent market demographics suggest that people are turned off by such naming conventions. So…you end up with a ton of church plants named Wedgwood Community Church, even though the church is not located near anything called Wedgwood, nor any woods for that matter, and it’s all just silly to me. I’d rather people be up front about who they are. If I see a church proudly displaying they are a member of the Presbyterian Church in America at least you know they take their Westminster confessional standards seriously and represent their Calvinist heritage, theologically. If a church had the very common name of St. Peter…I’d hope they followed it up with Methodist, Anglican, or Catholic Church as the three stand in very different theological and ecclesiological spheres. They represent a theological niche in the broader Christian context. While these differences may not be ideal, and will be sorted out on the last day, they do provide an honest recognition that there are REAL differences, and for the time being, I personally think it is okay to own up to that fact rather than hide behind some kind of homogenous façade. Christian leaders are only fooling themselves anyway as the surrounding culture is dripping in pluralism and relativity.

Conclusion:

By now there are probably only two people still reading. To you I say, thanks for hangining in there. I hope some of this is helpful or has at least stimulated thought, even if you disagree with me.

If you have alternative ideas, better or more comprehendible answers to these questions, please feel free to leave a comment. I think I’ve said my peace so you can rattle off whatever you like as long as its done respectfully with a level of grace. Peace out my friends.

[Editors Note: This post reflects Brian's thoughts and may or may not be the opinion of my fellow artists]

I've been thinking again (I know: this spells trouble). So this post takes several random things and tries to put them into something coherent; I hope it works.

San Diego was a target market for a recent marketing campaign by Jack in the Box to show its "love" for its struggling customers in this heightened time of financial woe due to the rise in gas prices. They offered two free tacos to anyone that came in with a recent gas receipt. Good idea, really. Because it is estimated that a taco only costs them like a dime to make, but of course, most consumers will also purchase an extremely overpriced beverage, and...their tacos are pretty weak, so they'll probably splurge for something else like fries or a burger, or maybe even pay for extra tacos.

This got me thinking about how churches often market themselves to their consumers potential congregants. Jack in the Box is a pretty good burger joint; it is not a good Mexican restaurant. I know that some absolutely love themselves a JB taco from time to time, but (and here I speak as an expert that lives just a couple miles north of the border) it is not really a taco per se. It is a poor burger joint substitute. If you want the real thing, you go to a taco shop (and the more of a hole in the wall it is, the better and more authentic it likely will be). This epidemic is running rampant in the food industry as burger joints try to also become coffee shops, pizza parlors, and yogurt mills. Sort of the Walmartirazation of the restaurant world. Unfortunately, this trend is working its way into the church and it bothers me...a lot!

Over the last decade, my denomination (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod) has been struggling with identity issues as it fiddles with various church growth and marketing strategies. And of course, the LCMS is not alone here as many other denominations and independent churches struggle alongside us. We have a strong heritage of catechisms, confessions, and liturgical worship that has been passed down to us. Problem. What do we do when we notice that the big Calvary Church down the street seems to really be growing? Well one answer that is becoming prominent is that we just change our menu to cater to the broadening needs of our customer base. [Hey! People like tacos, mabe we should make tacos alongside our burgers] I think this is a poor solution. Why? Because Lutherans do a terrible job of acting like the Calvary Chapel. It comes off as a cheap substitute. Why? Because the two worship styles were founded upon two very different theologies. Here's my thought. If you really like the syle, the feel, the sound, the whatever of something akin to a contemporary Calvary service, why not just go to an actual Calvary Chapel church where they do their thing really well. And vice versa: If I want high liturgy couched in tradition with hymns, creeds, and prayers, then I would not attend a Calvary Church (even if they had candles lit) because it really would not be an authentic representation of it.

What's my point? It is okay for a burger shop to be really good at JUST making burgers. The minute they start flipping pizzas, stocking salsa as a condiment, and installing an espresso machine they are going after other gods...I mean...consumers. And it is okay for a Lutheran church to be...well...Lutheran. And the same goes for whatever tradition that your church represents. Take pride in your heritage and identity, and if you cannot take pride in it for theological or ethical reasons, maybe you shouldn't be in it. And if that's the case? Leave it, but don't try to change it into something that is not. Because you just end up having to come up with silly free taco promotions to keep or attract consumers when they start realizing that the tacos next door are actually authentic.

Here is a mock-up of what the next album will look like. It is a painting by 16th century Cretan artist Michail Damaskinos entitle, Holy Liturgy. He was a very influential Greek artist that spent a lot of time in Venice. His use of vibrant reds and lighter flesh tones in the post-Byzantine era was very unique for his day. Here's the wiki on him for anyone interested. I spent a week in Crete a couple years ago and it was a beautiful place with some very interesting characters. As I engaged a couple locals sitting next to me on a barstool in the local watering hole I realized this is the place where all the outlaws of the Europe end up.

Some will find this an odd choice for an album cover, and I guess it is, but my thinking is that we pray each week, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven", so this pictures the heavenly realm of worship depicted in Revelation 4, Isaiah 6, as well as other places, and it is a stimulus for me personally to pay tribute to my King whenever I reflect upon this.

Every worship service has to begin somewhere, and for most in the liturgical tradition, this is with either a Call to Worship or Invocation. Technically, they are not the same, but often we treat them as one thing. In my tradition the pastor begins with, "In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." Here we are reminded of the words that were pronounced upon us through the baptismal waters, when we were made partakers of God's family. The call to worship is just that - the liturgist or worship leader or pastor - in a variety of ways, calls the congregation to fall before God's presence in collective worship as Creator, King, and Savior. Typically, this is through a Psalm reminding the parishoners of why they are there in the first place.

There is an ancient way of doing this that I really like called the Sursum Corda. The liturgist declares: "Lift up your Hearts!" and the congregation responds, "We lift them up the Lord!" This is the church's version of the baseball phrase, "Heads up." The Sursum Corda is a way of saying, wake up, get ready, we've gathered in the name and for the purpose of bringing honor to our Father God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the upcoming Tales of Thomas album, Divine Service, I begin the album with a Psalm of Invocation called, "Lord, Open our Lips", based in part on Psalm 51:15ff. This is followed by a call to worship based on the well worn Psalm 95 called Venite (or Song of Triumph). Both songs are piano and string driven. I've had opportunity to play them live in a couple settings and I'm happy they have gone over very well, which I was thankful for, because the bridge in Venite takes an unexpected turn into something akin to Hebrew polka? I know. Sounds weird, but its pretty fun to sing and play.

Next post, I'll comment on the happy topic of confessing our sin and receiving absolution (or forgiveness if you don't like that term).

Anyone who has ever worked with me knows that I am a bit of a Luddite and always behind the technological curve. But I figured out Amazon's music preview widget and added it to the left column. The original SRR website featured a streaming player. Unfortunately, I haven't found a way to build one that is FREE (my favorite price), but this little widget at least allows you listeners an opportunity to preview 30 seconds of each track before buying (like itunes). All SRR albums have been uploaded so scroll down to see Luke, Nathan, and Ish's awesome albums. And of course, if you like any of our artists, please check their individual pages and purchase the entire album through our website, so each artist sees a bigger profit (feed the starving church artists)!

Coming Soon

• Semper Reformanda Store through print-on demand company Zazzle which will feature some T-shirts, Stickers and other cool stuff you'll want to purchase for you and all your friends and family (or not).
• Tales of Thomas: Divine Service - 2nd album is almost complete with just 1 more recording session left! Should be available mid-July, Lord willing.
• Walls to Fill - I'm in the early stages of starting yet another endeavor that involves my visual art and growing involvement with design, fashion, illustration, some freelance writing...and even a children's book series. More to follow but the link above will take you to the walls to fill blog.  

From SRR Artist and Seminarian Luke Morton's Spring Newsletter:

This week I have been preparing to lead worship for the upcoming Sunday (May 25). While putting together the liturgy I had one of those moments where you think, "What am I doing right now?" Not only is the worship of a holy God a nearly insane concept (apart from Christ), but it also flies in the face of so many beliefs in our society. Why would you gather on a Sunday morning and sing songs together? How could you sit and listen to someone speaking authoritatively from a book thousands of years old? What value could there be in gathering around a table, talking about things like suffering, blood, atonement and resurrection? Isn't all this weird?

Then, coming out of this swirl of questions I thought, "But this is truth and life and though it does in fact seem alien to a world without Jesus, nothing could be sweeter."