Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Reading this book was quite an experience. Working in a ministry surrounded by a myriad of musical expressions giving glory to God - from white metal to alternative worship it's been easy for me to forget that for thousands upon thousands of Christians the issue isn't whether we can praise God with a heavy funk beat or grungey guitars but can we allow a 10 year old hymn into the same order of service as the works of Watts or Howells. Dr Brian Castle is an Anglican priest in the high church tradition and is seeking hard to be a radical voice to bring life and relevance to today's hymnody. As well as chronicling the history of hymns (under the chapter heading 'From "Amazing Grace" to "O Valient Hearts'") he makes an impassioned plea for the power and potential of hymns. As the cover blurb states, "At the heart of this book is a conviction that although everyone has some insight about God, not everyone has the means to express it. Song is a universal medium of communication: hymns, used creatively, offer a universal means of communicating the faith. We may not always understand, but we can always listen." 'Sing A New Song To The Lord' has some useful insights, Dr Castle's thoughts about folk hymns from other cultures - he once worked in Zambia - are well reasoned and free of prejudice. Also helpful, though too brief, is the chapter dealing the the thorny topic of assessing hymns' actual content even touching on hymns containing unbiblical concepts and language (Fanny Cosby comes under the lash in one place!). Where the book comes unstuck is when he speaks about the power of hymns to communicate to the masses outside church buildings. Much of what he says is true as far as it goes. But Dr Castle leaves so very much unsaid. In Dr Castle's world there is no Spring Harvest and no alternative worship movement, no TOTP and MTV, no Prince and Madonna, no Michael W Smith and Petra, no Ian White and DKF. He enthusiastically reminds us that the Wesleys wanted hymns set to folk tunes "to give hymns a more popular appeal" but fails to follow through the implications of that in a post-rock 'n' roll age. The dear man really seems to believe that "Abide With Me" or "O Valient Hearts" can be effective in reaching millions of young people brought up on Nirvana and acid house and who would find "Shine Jesus Shine" profoundly naff let alone "Onward Christian Soldiers". When this magazine comes out I'll send a copy to Dr Castle. He has clearly never heard of Cross Rhythms or thought through the issues with which CR wrestles.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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