Quotes from Brian A. Wren

Informality—prepared and practiced informality, not ramshackle casualness—is a keynote of contemporary worship, and worship blossoms when worship space matches worship style.

On the basis of these definitions, hymns cannot do theology, even when the meaning of "reasoned enquiry" is broadened and qualified. 6 Their brevity and form are ill suited to systematic reasoning, and, though not lacking in rationality, a hymn invites us, not to step back from faith and examine it, but to step into faith and worship God.

Not all music should be functional. Any culture, and all cultural levels, need music that challenges conventions and pushes the boundaries. To say that church music is a functional art does not mean that art music and popular music are superior or inferior to it. It means only that church music cannot be free art, an end in itself. "It is art brought to the cross, art which is dedicated to the service of God and the edifying of the church." 85

To say that church music is a functional art means, on the contrary, that it is composed, played, and sung " to serve the purposes of God , particularly in the church's expression of its worship, its fellowship, and its mission." 86

That is why, as Paul Westermeyer observes, "a group who sings together becomes one and remembers its story, and therefore who it is, in a particularly potent way.

If you accept my analysis, it follows that a "good congregational song" is one that is excellent and has integrity in terms of its own genre , in its words, music, and interaction between them. It makes no sense to compare hymns, choruses, rounds and refrains and declare that one genre is superior or inferior to another. It also follows that a single genre can include varying musical styles, as with "Taizé" and "evangelical" choruses.

Congregational singing requires proximity. "If I am more than three feet away from you, I don't sing, because you might hear me. If I am less than three feet away, I do sing, because I can hear you.

this is a good rule of thumb: if you can't hear the congregation, you are probably too loud