It may be a generalization to say the church today has three generational expressions, but I think church leaders can work with it, especially with respect to music in the church. You can walk into most churches and recognize quickly what generation it falls into. Most of today’s churches fall into one of these categories related to worship style.
Three Types of Churches
First, there is a traditional format.
Believers who worship in a traditional church will dress up and carry themselves in a more conservative fashion. In general, they will be more concerned about reverence in the church compared to others. The music for these churchleaders will be traditional hymns. Anything more recent than Jack Hayford’s “Majesty” might be suspect.
A traditional format will be very similar to a church service conducted in the 1960s or 1970s. This reflects my parents’ generation. (Remember, these are generalizations, but still predictable.) Interestingly, it is also what my daughter prefers!
Second is the contemporary church.
It tends to be comprised of the Boomer generation and younger churchleaders. Christians who are part of a contemporary church will usually be more relaxed in their approach. They dress more casually when they go to church. Men wear jeans more than khakis. More women will wear pants than dresses. Their order of service is casual, but probably more intentional than in many traditional churches. As for the music in the church they will often have a blended musical style, or lean toward contemporary. Ease of singing and passionately expressive lyrics are expected in the songs.
Third, some more emerging eclectic approaches.
This approach is a bit harder to describe. Some of these churches are intentional about not being predictable or appearing to come from a traditional mold. Their band may have an electric guitar, but it might have a cello and clavichord, too. While they don’t dress up per se, there is almost an unstated expectation that you will dress to reflect the culture they are trying to reach. (There will be suspenders!) The music in the church may include a mix of modern worship songs. Many older hymns will have been updated. Theological depth is expected in the songs.
Now, I get that there are a thousand variants of music in the church. My concern is more with the implications than the descriptions, but it is worth noting that we are the only generation in recorded history that can list its worship style by generation.
Hence, the point …
