Greetings: Do you have to believe in
God to know that the music in the church should be different from music played
and sung in nightclubs? What Demons have possessed the church leaders, who
allow secular music into the church?
Those that have been under the Word
should know better. IF YOU PLAY WITH GOD, GOD WILL NOT PLAY WITH YOU.
Peace,
Carl A. Patton, FreedomJournal
The
Confrontation of Truth and Knowledge
THE WORLD SATAN AND THE BLACK
CHURCH
(Ungodly Blasphemy)
Part 7: Sacred Music Challenged:
Spirituals/Gospels vs. Contemporary Rap & Hip Hop
In
the name of God, Master of the universe, Ruler of the earth.
We continue to pray that Almighty God
will grant us the wisdom and knowledge to know the just from the unjust.
Therefore, we are committed in this Christian journey to distinguish good from
evil and God from Satan. We bear witness that much of the contemporary Christian
music is blasphemy and ungodly.
The contemporary influx of so-called
contemporary Gospel and the Rap and Hip Hop music brought into the church is
Satan. When we say the world and Satan in the Black church, we note that Rap
music is a leading example. Our youth that have the potential to know God are
now being exploited by greedy music moguls and low-down money-grubbing
Preachers and church leaders.
In our previous article we discussed
the impact of the sacred folk-songs called Spirituals. Our historical framework
for our discussion thus began with Spirituals. A discussion of Gospels is our
next topic before we attempt to qualify the negative impact of Rap and Hip Hop.
However, but, before we move our
discussion to Gospels we will make an additional note on Spirituals to keep us
in focus. Also we note that this brings up for review a different viewpoint
than the view earlier noted by E. Franklin Frazier in his work on the Black
church. Joseph Washington, one of our contemporary writers in Black Theology
published, "Black Religion, The Negro and Christianity In The U.S.,"
in 1964. Professor Washington offers the following comments on Negro
Spirituals:
"Spirituals lie outside the
Christian faith, precisely because they were expressions of religious fervor,
related to situations of struggle which ended in 1890. As expressions of
religion, rather than faith, some Negro Spirituals were songs of protest,
unacceptable and thinly veiled forms of protest against the conditions of his
life."
Professor Washington also notes that
Negro Spirituals involve African rhythms. He also notes the Biblical
relationship of Spirituals to the King James' version of the Bible. In the
following statement Professor Washington seems to subscribe to the Black
intellectuals noted earlier by E. Franklin Frazier who interpreted Negro
Spiritual in a revolutionary sense.
"In addition to the African
rhythms as a mode of expression, there are four fundamental elements without
which Negro Spirituals are not fully appreciated. These four elements are the
cataloging of historical events, the various forms of protest, the individual
and personal reflections, and the worshiping expressions."
As the journey of the Black man and
woman continued in America, Black music also developed. Gospel music like
Spirituals were a result of the Black experience in America. In all cultures
you have creative art forms. It is for sure that the particular conditions of
oppression have had a great Influence on the creation of musical geniuses in
the Black community.
You cannot adequately discuss Gospel
music without noting the impact of Thomas Dorsey. Brother Dorsey was born in
1899 in Villa Rica, Georgia. As the son of a Baptist minister he also was
introduced to music and became a child prodigy. C. A. Tindley who wrote hymns
was a great influence on Dorsey.
Dorsey combined the musical sounds of
his environment and developed Gospel music. Thus, from his upbringing in the
church he went from Blues, Jazz to Gospel. We also see the fusion of circus songs,
vaudeville tunes, hillbilly ballads and the popular revival hymns. For a while
he was involved with the careers of some well-known Blues singers, like Bessie
Smith and Ma Rainey. However, he always stayed in touch with his church and his
religious roots.
Dorsey came back to the church in
1932 and started writing Gospel songs. When he lost his first wife in
childbirth in this year, he was inspired to write one of his greatest songs,
"Take My Hand Precious Lord." Dorsey has inspired and has been the
inspiration for countless Gospel song writers and Gospel singers. Although
there was a fusion of various musical art forms that went into Gospel, Gospel
music has always been a sacred testimony.
For the record we note that many
people during the Depression who first witnessed Gospel had negative thoughts.
The fusion with Blues, and Spirituals was new. Also the tempo too many people
was up-beat. However the FreedomJournal declares that Gospel music further
reflected the Black experience. Therefore we would be remiss if we did not
record that some contemporary Gospel music has been a further development of
the creative juices that often overflow in the Black community.
However, all of the contemporary
Gospel is not sacred. Also, we see that onslaught of other purely secular music
invading the church. Thus as we continue this series we hope to make some
analysis of these music art forms that we view as a negative impact on the
Black church. The following framework of analysis has some utility in analyzing
this problem. We see several things that one has to include in an evaluation of
contemporary Gospel music and more especially Rap and Hip Hop. Lyrics are very
important. So is style of dress. Also, the movement of the body. There is also
a need to evaluate the musicians.
Cont. Part 8:
What Is So-Called Christian Rap and Hip Hop Music?
All
rights reserved by FreedomJournal Press 2009.
carl@freedomjournalpress.comcastbiz.net