by Linda Burleson

Created on: August 09, 2008   Last Updated: October 07, 2008

What were the Psalms of scripture? They were contemporary worship music. As far back as the Israelites touching shore after crossing the Red Sea then watching it swallow up Pharoah's army, we read of praise and worship music. Music has always been an integral part of the adoration experience.

In the early pages of the New Testament we read about the last supper that Jesus shared with His desciples where we are told, "and they sang a hymn and went out". Even Jesus used music to praise the Father.

In Europe in the early/modern church, her greatest composers wrote music that today fill our hymnals as classics - "A Mighty Fortress is Our God", "Holy, Holy, Holy", Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring".

What is contemporary but something occuring during the current time period? Every era and generation and culture has had its contemporary music. It just happens that in this generation, in this era, in this country we are a melting pot, ergo, many kinds of worship music can be called contemporary.

The slaves in the field were taught about Jesus from the white masters and preachers, but they saw him a bit differently than the white man. Perhaps they viewed Jesus a bit like the Israelites did, an earthly ruler come to set them free. The slave songs reflected this and the fact that their could be peace in the heart no matter your earthly circumstances. They were not sung in the early white church, but they are now, because the message is pure and true.

In early America the great hymns of faith that immigrants had sung in Europe were the songs that were still sung. It wasn't until the 1900s that people began to adapt their "soul" music into the church. New Orleans funerals were joyous occasions because the Christian who died was in a better place. Slave songs were updated with a dixieland sound - "When the Saints Go Marching In". It began to be okay for people to put the words of their faith into their every day music. This led to what we today call "Southern Gospel". This is music that grew out of the Camp Meetings where people would camp out and sing and worship together for entire weekends. Four part harmony became the order of the day, and the Stamps Baxter songbook was everybody's favorite. They used something called "shape notes", and with just a little training, most anyone could harmonize.

For many years children have had their own little songs such as "Jesus Loves Me", Jesus Loves the Little Children", "Only a Boy Named David", "I've Got the Joy Joy Joy" and "Zacchaeus". Children's

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