Well, I have a bunch of emails from Apple regarding the order I placed. Apparently, my credit card was declined, which is probably because my credit card company monitors my spending patterns and saw something hugely out of the ordinary. I guess its good that they monitor charges and watch for variations from the usual pattern. One time I ordered a CD from Wales, and received a phone call the next evening from my credit card asking if that charge was legitimate- they said red flags went up when an international charge came in on a card that had only been used in the States before.
Hopefully a phone call to the credit card company will clear things up, unless somebody really got my number and went on a spending spree. I guess I'm glad that they monitor my spending patterns--its a little less privacy for me, but helps make sure some bloke in Wales isn't using my credit.
BTW, thanks Josiah for the code to get the comment thing working--now only for some time to work on my blogs coming new face.
Well, back to work...
I may soon begin radical construction on the look of my blog, so bear with me if things look ugly for a bit as I tweak things.
I also just ordered some new stuff. A 12.1" Apple PowerBook G4 with some extra RAM and a 20GB iPod should be arriving here in the next few days--and the best part is the iPod only cost $69!
Apple's website has a deal running through 24 September where if you purchace a laptop and iPod (excluding the mini) with an educational discount, you get a $200 rebate, hence the $69 iPod cost.
My sister is gonna get my current laptop; she thinks she'll pay me for it, but I'm not gonna let her--it'll be more fun to just give it to her, and she'll be able to use the wireless network up at Covenant.
The following are my notes from Charlie Peacock's lecture, "Issues in Style" at the Indelible Grace worship conference on using classic hymns in contemporary worship, held at Belmont University, autumn 2002. Don't expect an outline or any such help; I only jotted down some notes.
--- Issues in Style ---
Christian musicians are appointed as caretakers of God's creativity in a long line of Christian musicians.
Francis Schaeffer spoke of the validity of all musical styles and of the need to be thinking in the use of styles. We struggle through style; we struggle with it through all of life, we will not answer it all. Schaeffer said that every style has cultural baggage, and with every instance of a style in a particular work of art, the Christian artist must consider the appropriateness of the style.
How do we know styles? That's an epistemological question. Polani says styles come to us tacit, something not in words. Musical style comes through assymmilation. Style comes without explicit instruction. Yet there is explicit knowledge; jazz is learned by tacit explicit learning.
What cultural things affect style?
- family of origin
- ethnicity
- community: this is a huge factor in style coming together
- religion
- popular media: radio, TV
- education: wind ensemble, classical music
Each of the areas above have a long [musical] history.
Culture making
- Three ways of knowing
1. tacit
2. explicit: pursuing a style as a student
3. imaginative knowing or creating new styles
- develop skill and ability
- pray for the Spirit to enable you
- dream new dreams of making music
Imagining new styles - We need more Christians to do this. It will take skill, ability, dependence on the Spirit, and be born out of love for God and his church, in front of the watching world.
Think about the future. The Christian life is lived backwards; because we know the future (the end) we live differently in the present. Style covers the past, present, and future. Christian music would have to include the beauty and purity of the first musical expression; it would include the music of Jubal, of the gathering tribes of Israel worshipping God, of the first century church, of the chants, medieval modes, Bach, the Wesleys, African American spirituals, contemporary Christian music, and all the music yet to be created before the new creation. In the new creation there will be no sea, no sun, no moon (think of all those lost metaphors), no marriage, no evanglisim--and yet evangelism drives much of contemporary Christian music.
What remains? God's people living under God's rule, and love remains--it defines all of life. John 15 -- remaining in Jesus and his love to bear fruit, that our joy might be complete. At the heart of this we find God's way to deal with the issue of style: love God and love your neighbor.
Loving God and neighbor involves an ongoing life of response to God in music. God loves what he has created; He finishes what He's started--He doesn't walk away from a half-finished song; we too should have this long term commitment.
We are called to create music for the specific community God has placed us in. On style, what does it mean to love the tribe to which you are called to serve? What does the setting need? What style works best to love these people at this time? What does it mean to love God and his church in music? What does it mean to love the watching world?
When you increase your stylistic abilities and skills you are able to serve in a larger variety of settings.
Once Peacock was visiting a friend, and went to an exhibit of a friend of that friend's artwork in a gallery. The style being exhibited was one Peacock couldn't understand, connect with, relate to, or seriously consider as art. Arriving late to the gallery, the other folks had passed on to the reception, Peacock said aloud after starting at the art, "How can anyone stand this art?" and the security guard replied, "Sir, they don't have to stay in the room."
Good style is style that lets people stay in the room. It needs to be emotional, intellectual, real life. A piano piece might be incredible, progressive, intellectual music, but if the congregation is alienated by it, if they doesn't understand or connect with it at all, and can't stay in the room with it (at least metaphorically) then that piece is probably stylisticly inappropriate as an offertory.
Neighbor love is always about loving what God loves--the church. That love may be played out over time; you must educate the congregation in love to the new styles; the attitude of your heart must be to care for the Bride. What do people need? Beauty--make beautiful music; correction--put it in a song (Col 3:16).
Widen your view, look at music eschatologically from what the future holds. Create music for the good of humanity everywhere; push back the effects of the fall.
wireless internet at the local cafe, only a ten minute drive from work...
i was going to post a new entry, but met a guy who's writing a novel and he was asking about what blogs are. after explaining the idea, i told him about chattablogs, and i think he might start a blog (josiah, if you see this, his name's ken).
back to work...