The Chicken, the Egg, or the Stupid Question?

Roger Kovaciny

Which came first: the chicken, the egg, or the stupid question?

Eggs require a temperature of 103 Fahrenheit to hatch. If the egg came first, it would die of the cold. Chicken eggs that do hatch turn into chickens. Only chickens lay chicken eggs. If a bird that wasn’t a chicken laid an egg, the egg would mature into something else–not a chicken. Only if you presume that a fertilized chicken egg can come from the mating of a proto-chicken with a proto-rooster can you think that the egg come first. It’s a stupid question, entirely apart from the evolution vs. creation component.

Another chicken-and-egg question occurred to me–why do we talk about “preaching to the choir”? Why do we expect the choir to be loyal and supportive? –Or rather, why have we noticed that the choir and its members are almost always committed? Which came first?

We all know that most of the time our choir members are not just people who like to sing; they are among our loyalest, most committed and most supportive Christians. Did they join the choir because they were so committed, or did they become so committed because they joined the choir? Do they only come when they’re scheduled to sing, or are they there for almost every service?

People join choirs for various reasons, but an obvious reason why they tend to stay with them for decades is the power of God’s Word. They aren’t practicing Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Drummer Boy. They’re practicing anthems which are generally based on God’s word, internalizing the words they are singing, rarely miss a service and frequently hear the sermon twice. And just as important, during Lent and before all major holidays they are preparing for those holidays. This is one more reason why even small churches without a large talent pool want their own choirs, even if they can only sing hymns, instead of piping in magnificent music from a megachurch. It’s almost more important for the choir members than it is for everyone else. (Although–since the choir’s most basic function is to lead the singing–that’s important too.   Accompaniments on CD are okay, partly because you simply can’t find organists everywhere. And yet we only want instruments on CD–not the best of singers. The singing has to be done by our own people, because of the effect that it has on them.)

That’s also why it’s important that children sing at Christmas and Easter, so they internalize what they are to practice.

Contrast the experience of choir members with that of John Q. Layman who attends a time or two a month. He’s not lazy, a bad person or even a weak Christian, but when he comes in on Easter Sunday he may really kinda wonder “What’s the big deal?” That may be because he hasn’t heard the entire Passion History read during the previous six weeks. He may be like someone who gets bored watching Sports Highlights because the tie-breaking goal or basket is no big deal without the hour of buildup before it. What’s all the excitement about?

Because so many pastors are liturgical purists and insist that technically, the Sundays “of” Lent are not “in” Lent, John Q. hasn’t heard the Passion History. Even worse, this same liturgical purism extends to Advent. John Q. Layman doesn’t get a single Christmas hymn or carol during December if his pastor is a liturgical purist who doesn’t schedule Christmas hymns during Advent. If it wasn’t for Wal-Mart putting out Santa Claus in October, John Q. would hardly get any Christmas prep at all.

My wife saw first-hand how important the hymns were. She made frequent visits to an Alzheimer’s patient who couldn’t even converse with her–but she could sing along verse after verse of all the beloved hymns and carols she’d learned.

 The world is changing around you, Pastor. Your liturgical purism may stand in the way of edification and popular piety. Midweek services aren’t the only social activity your church members have, unless maybe you’re in the rural Great Plains. If you insist on being a liturgical purist, fine. Before the invocation and after the benediction schedule Christmas hymns. Have one or two per Advent service. Meet your peoples’ needs, not the outdated ivory-tower opinions of a now-deceased liturgics professor who got his degree before the Baby Boom. Don’t be a purist, and don’t be afraid to use anthem accompaniments that are on CD if your organist isn’t up to it, because the words are the thing.