This summer Dr. Arnfield P. Cudal travels to Asia on a speaking circuit on the topic of music and worship.
“The late D. James Kennedy’s Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church and its much publicized schism (in 2009) over the issue of music is a poignant reminder that music remains a highly contentious issue in the life of the Christian and the Church. But this problem is not unique to the States. It is worldwide. And if the Apostle Paul were here, what would he say about the Church universal? Not good. Where there is little Biblical understanding and guidance, confusion reigns. Yet the Bible speaks volumes about music, with specific guidelines to the Church, but is this something the Church is willing to accept – to its betterment?”
Dr. Cudal’s approach:
The answer in Scripture is revealing and poignant in its admonition to the Church. Musicologists and philosophers alike agree on one thing: music is undefinable. However, we have been given markers or guideposts with which we can ‘grasp’ music. These guideposts address music’s three main dimensions which are: Aristotle’s Mimeses, Plato’s Virtue, and Pythagoras’ Structuralism. What does the Bible say about these, and what are some practical applications to the Church?