Arts
Roman and Greek views of actors
It was not just Christians who struggled with the decadence of pagan theatre but some of the more upright pagans too, such as Plato, the famous Greek philosopher, who had tried to purify the Greeks of their debauched religious shows, and the Roman leader, Scipio who...
Christian view of theatre
It is not surprising that the church reacted to theatre in a negative way because it was not just seen as a debauched form of entertainment, but also as a participation in pagan religious rites, and the gods of the Greeks and Romans were regarded as demons. No doubt...
Theatre in the Roman Empire
If we could be transported somehow back to the first centuries of the church in a pagan Roman Empire we would be shocked. The Romans incorporated theatre into their culture from the Greeks, as well as much of their religion. If we are to understand theatre in this...
The history of theatre and the Church
An increasing number of Christians in today's church are becoming involved in the life of theatre, whether it be on the stage or on the film set, and this is indeed encouraging; there needs to be more 'salt and light' of Christ in this very needy industry. But it has...
Since the twentieth century & conclusion
In many churches today you will find styles of music that appeal to today's generation in a way that they sing the words as they go about their everyday lives and are a means of godly transformation; this was exactly the strategy of the Church Fathers, Ephraim and...
The eighteenth & nineteenth century revivals in Britain
The eighteenth century revival In this period there was a great turning back to God in our nation as multitudes responded to the preaching of people like John Wesley and George Whitefield, and they had a big impact on Edinburgh. It was found that the old style of...
Classical Music in Edinburgh during the Enlightenment
The explosion of musical compositions in Europe in the eighteenth century also impacted Edinburgh. Hired rooms and private homes of the wealthy became the meeting places for fellow musicians who wanted to perform classical works. In 1728 the Edinburgh Musical Society...
Martin Luther and music
Luther is regarded as the Father of the Reformation and although he preached on the necessity of returning to a biblical Christian faith he also supported music. He himself played the lute and flute. He wrote in a letter of 1530: I really believe, nor am I ashamed to...
The earliest church organ
In AD 670 Pope Vitalian introduced the first organ in church history at the cathedral in Rome, but organs were not widely played in churches until the eighteenth century. In fact often they were met with great suspicion and even anger. The organ gradually made its way...
The Celtic Church and music
Earlier in this article it was mentioned that Clement of Alexandria was supportive of the harp and lyre amongst Christians in second/third century Egypt. Scholars have noticed that the Celtic monks of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and France have a direct influence from...
Boethius and the rise of western music
It is not until the sixth century that musical instruments start to be used more openly. Boethius (AD c. 480-525) was a Christian scholar from Rome who wrote De Institutione Musica based on the Greek notation before his time. In one of the sections called Musica...
The Church Fathers on musical instruments
The majority of Church Fathers between AD 100 and 500 did not accept the use of musical instruments in church and the Christians worshipped God with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs in a chanting fashion. The Orthodox Church today would claim to follow this pattern...