The organization of the Church, musically.

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston UniversityChurch music has held a very important position in the service of worship ever since the very earliest days of the Christian Church. And, for this reason, music owes much to the church because it actually grew up inside its walls and under its guidance. During the first thousand years of the Christian era, the music of the church consisted entirely of unaccompanied unison melodies. Harmony did not make its appearance until about the year 1100. It continued to grow up through the centuries, always moved forward by the accomplishments of the great musicians of the church. About the beginning of the Sixteenth Century, the Reformation, the invention of music printing, and the development of the Protestant Church had far-reaching effects on the religious music. Martin Luther and his associates took the radical step of introducing their hymns into public worship. This accounts for the rapid spread of the new faith. These hymns served as models, and through the 16th and 17th centuries a vast flood of hymns continued to be written and published. The contributions of John and Charles Wesley to the field of church music and congregational worship have been the foundation of the Methodist Church from its very beginning to the present time. It is a fact that the music in our churches today is not what it could and should be. With a wealth of great religious music at our fingertips, for some reason or other the music of our churches has failed to attain its full value both as an aid to worship and as a means of worship. The only way to solve this problem is by developing a well-organized and properly-functioning music department. A poor department of music does more harm than good, and the sooner this is realized the better it will be for the church as a whole. The Ministry of Music plays a very important part in the life of the church. And for this reason the director should be a co-worker with the minister, rather than a musician who must do what he is told. Worship is honor paid to God; and, therefore, nothing less than the best is fit to offer. This should always be the standard on which our churches are based