Lining out the hymns

This clip illustrates the old-time practice of ‘lining out’ hymns.  Used in congregational singing in worship from the 17th century onward, it is still practiced in some quarters today.  The lyrics are on the YouTube page.

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Phillips’ Campbellism Exposed on Google Books

More here.

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Henri on power, love and leadership

Yesterday Josh Graves posted on his blog this quote from Henri Nouwen: One of the greatest ironies of the history of Christianity is that its leaders constantly gave in to the temptation of power—political power, military power, economic power, or moral and spiritual power—even though they continued to speak in the name of Jesus, who [...]

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Alexander Campbell as a speaker

I’m up late reading…this paragraph caught my eye: He trusted the common person to comprehend his most seminal and profound concepts.  He did not save his groundbreaking ideas for educators or the clergy, but freely shared them with the rank and file.  He did not have one message for the elite and another for the [...]

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Survey Says

While I may have blogged little in the last six weeks, I did think about it.  One of the things I mulled over was the survey on the side-bar to your right.  Here are the results of the latest survey: In the ‘other’ category three responses were submitted: 1. combination of exegetical with motivational (modern-day [...]

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Checking in from the hill

Just a moment to check in and give an update from the Stone-Campbell Journal Conference, now underway in sunny Cincinnati at Cincinnati Christian University. CCU is a city on a hill…literally.  I’ll post a picture tomorrow.  It is also a city on a hill figuratively and spiritually.  though portions of the neighborhood have declined (not [...]

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Once in 43 years…

“I remember being out of the pulpit one Sunday on account of sickness in 43 years,” writes a minister, now long dead, about his preaching career.  His comment is preserved for us on  a pension application.  It is a testimony to his commitment to preaching, and it is a rather outstanding record at that.  That [...]

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Looking Back: Of Disclaimers and Critical Thinking

Installment 3 (see the two prior posts below) is from the 21 June 2005 edition of Occasional Espistles of Grace and Peace and is entitled Of Disclaimers and Critical Thinking. Given my profession I regularly surf church, parachurch, biblical studies and other like ministry websites. Invariably I run across disclaimers, usually on the links pages, that [...]

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Looking Back: Follow the Truth

Installment 2 of my trio (read yesterday’s post below for the set-up) is also from the 20 June 2005 edition of Occasional Episltes of Grace and Peace.  The title is Follow the Truth: …wherever it may lead” read the sign on the Music City Assembly of God…not bad for a marquee one-liner. I snapped a [...]

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Looking Back on Blogging: A Trio Worth Re-reading

I began blogging in June 2005 at blogspot and continued there through August 2008.  Before that I maintained a faculty web page on the Ezell-Harding site for over two years.  That page was obviously academic in nature (my Biblical and Theological Studies links page is the residue of that old page).  My vocation, as I see it, has changed little in these [...]

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