Why Don't JW Congregations have a Choir?
itsacult
That's why
Why Don't JW Congregations have a Choir?
by journey-on 24 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
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MrFreeze
Haha, sorry I'm just laughing over the name Sister Smoothsound. I think I knew her once.
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watersprout
Oh my goodness i once knew a sister smoothsound! She was a truly horrid!
Peace Bec xx
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Ding
Because churches of Christendom have choirs, and the WTS has to be different in order to feel superior.
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journey-on
If the powers that be were smart, they would realize a music program within the congregation would be nothing but beneficial. They could even set it up as a trial only thing for a period of time to help the flock learn the new songs and hear the beauty of them when sung properly.
A choir would be something the sisters could participate in and thereby consider it a congregational privilege. I think more young people would look more forward to the meetings.
The only problem I see?......Sister Smoothsound could be the choir director with the P-O-W-E-R to accept or reject the choir members. Oh boy! Can you just imagine the drama. LOL!!
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hubert
As some here said, anything to be different from Christendom churches..... Cross/stake....blood/ no blood.....organ transplants/organ transplants...huh?
Hubert
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journey-on
I am not familiar with the new Kingdom songs. I wonder if they have one as beautiful as this and if Sister Soundsmooth could sing it as beautifully.
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AnnOMaly
They had choirs in OT times. A whole Levitical group was set aside for singing (1 Chronicles 15:21; 25:7, 8; Nehemiah 12:46).
*** w60 8/15 p. 491 Sing and Make a Joyful Noise! ***
[As part of a fictional conversation between a boy and his grandma] "David was assisted in his work by Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun, three masters of music. In David's reign the choir of singers and musicians numbered 4,000 members. (1 Chron. 23:5) Of these, 288 were trained musicians, supported by a body of less skilled assistants. They were divided into twenty-four courses, containing twelve trained musicians each. The orchestra consisted of stringed instruments with cymbals. Little is known of the character of the music. The Hebrews had a scale of eight tones. Their sacred choirs probably sang the same simple melody, divided into two parts, the one an octave higher than the other, representing the male and female voices. Several Psalms were arranged for responsive singing."
*** w09 12/1 p. 29 King David and Music ***
Singing and Music at the Temple
A legacy of David was the organization of singing and music in the house of Jehovah. At the head of 4,000 singers and musicians, he placed Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun (apparently also called Ethan). David associated them with 288 experts, who trained and supervised the rest of the group. The 4,000 singers and musicians were all present at the temple for the three large annual festivals. Imagine the grandeur of that magnificent choir! - 1 Chronicles 23:5; 25:1, 6, 7.
The KH only has its music to inspire any kind of sense of awe and worship - and yet that sense is not at all nurtured. The recent revisions to the song book have, for the most part, further deadened that sense.
Beautiful rendition of that hymn by Susan Boyle.
I've very recently joined a choir (first time since school which I quickly had to give up because of Xmas stuff) and, apart from learning different arrangements of some popular songs, I'm for the first time learning some beautiful, long-established hymns that, when sung by a trained choir, sound absolutely phenomenal.
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SlipnSlide
I use to be in a choir so I'm used to harmony. Nothing sounds better when you hear a joyful praise in perfect harmony. Most Witlesses can't read music and generally are tone deaf. There were a few folks in my congo who would make the songs more interesting. They sounded to good that you could get caught up. Of course there were those staunch Witlesses who would give them dirty looks because they could sing and they couldn't. It wouldn't work because they would get the most attention and it might take away from the meeting.
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Larsinger58
Unfortunate circumstance, but I understand the WTS in this regard, since they are so anti-creature worship and their 100% focus is on field service.
But I'm disfellowshipped and singing is considered a part of worship. I like to sing (or try to sing--after hearing Susan Boyle, a naturally gifted singer with a great sound I definitely don't consider myself a singer now), so it was my plan to sing quite loudly at the meetings. After all, no one in the congregation is supposed to even acknowledge you exist, but during the meeting you have three opportunities to be heard during the song. Of course, you need to hit a few notes on key, but it worked. If someone sings well in the congregation they quiet down to listen. So I enjoyed making myself "heard" if only in this limited way.
On the other hand, really good voices are going to draw attention to themselves and away from the "kingdom message" and some might even encourage them pursuing a singing career, heaven forbid!
So I think a lot of this is just FEAR of the complications of how this would affect the individual and the congregation. The WTS has always been anti-individual. That is, except during the reign of super-ego JF Rutherford. Early on, for instance, no names were used to give credit to articles published or books; it was always anonymous. So not drawing attention to the individual was deep-seated early in JW culture. Of course, when JF Rutherford came along as Russell's successor, he signed off on everything he did and plastered his picture prominently everywhere. He took personal credit for all the books during his presidency. This was always a secret embarrassment, so when he died, they went back to the policy of nameless books coming out and no one indivisual distracting attention for himself. So I think this basic background explains some of the shyness away from having congregational choirs. It's just a complication antithetical to preaching the good news with all our available time.
As someone else noted, this is such a "cult" that so many rather natural and spontaneous things in life get cut off, like going to college and getting a good education so you can take care of a family. The same cult fear of the world or being "worldly" in any way just gets overplayed again and again.
But on the other hand, as we see "American Idol" now idolizing singers, maybe the risks outweigh the benefits of congregation sponsored choirs. I think they try to make up for it at assemblies with their orchestrated music programs. Live orchestrated kingdom songs was a highlight at the assembly. Now we have the dramas, of course. I haven't been to an assembly in decades but I'm pretty sure they probably just play the tape. More time for musicians to go out into the field...
LS