Why Johnny Can't Sing Hymns Book Review

I expected a bit too much from this little book (shall we say essay?) Why Johnny Can't Sing Hymns: How Pop Culture Rewrote the Hymnal by T. David Gordon. This is my fault. Not his. I really had thought Gordon was going to lay down the case for Hymnology once and for all.

At best, this little essay provides a delightful commentary on our horrible attempt to please ourselves and not the Lord. I would have liked more in-depth info.

In Summary:

We're enamored with "I, Me Mine" banality. We love "Whats New". We seek to please. Gone are the days of reverence, Catechism, solemnity, and long-hours of study.

As recent surveys reveal (1, 2), americans are too Avant-garde to sit down for 60 minutes and be bored by verse-by-serve exegesis. Churches (Worship Directors?) need to keep the crowd entertained.

Think: More choreography. More Clapping. More Urban. More MetroSexual. More people with black glasses on stage (and why does everybody need a microophone?).

For an alternative review, check out Zac Hicks' review here or Susan's, from the Girls In White Dresses blog, review here.