Music as an Expression of the Church’s Worship
Sacred music, in the Anglican and Episcopal tradition, is integral to the worship of Almighty God. It is not ornament but offering—an audible prayer, giving voice to the Church’s faith, hope, and love. The Book of Common Prayer reminds us that worship is “the work of the people” (leitourgia), and music has always held a central place in that work. From the ancient psalmody of Israel (Psalm 95:1–2; Psalm 150:6) to the hymns of the early Church (Philippians 2:5–11), the people of God have been summoned to sing. Sacred music in Episcopal worship thus continues this unbroken tradition: proclaiming the Word, supporting the sacraments, and forming disciples in the way of Christ.
Theological Foundation
I affirm that sacred music serves the dual purpose of glorifying God and edifying the Church (Ephesians 5:19–20). Music in worship is sacramental in character—an outward and audible sign of inward and spiritual grace. Just as the Eucharist unites the faithful in the Body of Christ, so too does the shared song of the congregation enact and deepen the mystery of our communion. In keeping with Anglican doctrine, sacred music must be ordered to the praise of the Triune God, grounded in Holy Scripture, consonant with the Creeds, and expressive of the breadth of the Church’s liturgical life.
Tradition and Practice
The Episcopal Church inherits a rich musical tradition: the chanting of psalms, the Anglican choral legacy, hymnody both ancient and modern, and the global voices of the Anglican Communion. To this treasury I bring a particular affinity for American musical forms—spirituals, gospel, hymnody, jazz, and contemporary compositions—which embody the prayers, struggles, and joys of God’s people in this land. These genres stand in continuity with the Church’s teaching that worship is both catholic and contextual: catholic in its universality, contextual in its particularity. As the BCP affirms, our liturgy must be “in the language of the people,” and so must our music be shaped both by tradition and by the lived experience of the worshiping community.
Collaboration and the Communion of Saints
In the Body of Christ, no gift is given for private gain but for the building up of the whole (I Corinthians 12:4–7). Thus, sacred music flourishes in collaboration—between clergy and laity, choirs and congregations, organists and instrumentalists, composers and poets. In this, the Church participates in the great communion of saints, joining her song to the eternal hymn of angels and archangels, as we declare at the Eucharist: “Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory” (Sanctus, BCP p. 362).
Excellence in Service of the Liturgy
The Episcopal ethos holds that our worship must be both beautiful and ordered, reflecting the majesty of God and the dignity of the human person. Psalm 33:3 exhorts us to “sing to the Lord a new song; play skillfully with loud shouts of joy.” Excellence in sacred music, therefore, is not mere artistry but an act of reverence, ensuring that music serves the liturgy faithfully, invites the whole assembly into participation, and draws hearts and minds to the presence of the living God.