A Glad Obedience

• A Glad Obedience: Why and What We Sing by Walter Brueggemann on Amazon

Inspired by the Presbyterian Church (USA)'s Glory to God hymnal, "A Glad Obedience" by Hebrew bible scholar Walter Brueggemann with a foreword by renowned liturgical scholar John Witvliet, what we sing in church is not only the Genevan Psalter (as it used to invariably be in John Calvin's Geneva Reform and in some of the American colonies)—singing in church covers many different styles, meters, rhythms, and modalities from continental Europe and from the British Isles, those places where American protestantism began.

If you've been attending church during this century, you've experienced hymns from African, Caribbean, Asian, and other cultures. (However, We Are Marching in the Light of God that originated in South Africa is the only non-traditional church song the author considers.) Alongside the kind of old favorites Brueggemann focuses on, If you've attended church even sporadically during the twenty-first century, in a more non-denominational setting you may have been surrounded by or sung what's sometimes called contemporary worship music, usually led by a band; in a mainline protestant or Roman Catholic church of any size, hymnody – and liturgy settings – almost definitely have included pieces by Marty Haugen, David Haas and cohorts.

Book is in two main sections:

• Why We Sing – an overview of four psalms explicating God's gracious, redemptive acts throughout history;

and

• What We Sing – an overview of 15 standard-issue hymns (and a chapter about sparrows) that respond to God acting in our lives. They're mostly British Isles/North American, ending with the aforementioned "We Are Marching" …no Lutheran chorales. Absence of chorales is a bit surprising, given how much of the history of new world immigration and the history of American Lutheranism run parallel, and given WB's Evangelical Reformed roots. The book concludes by considering The Covenantal Fidelity of the Psalms. After all, Walter Brueggemann is the author!

Despite finding A Glad Obedience relatively underwhelming – probably because I tend to rely on WB for biblical scholarship and incisive theology – I'm happy to have discovered this approach that could be exceptionally helpful in a small group or bible study gathering. The facilitator or another individual could choose a hymn or a stanza from a hymn to explore in terms of history, imagery, scriptural sources, and daily application. Of course, everyone present would sing together, either a cappella or with keyboard or instrumental accompaniment.

• My Amazon Review: underwhelming yet helpful overall