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Performing Arts & the
Society
The performing arts in a society�s point
of view can be defined as forms of audio or visual entertainment usually
performed live in front of an audience or through recorded medias. It
covers drama (mime, plays, skits, etc.) and music (dance, songs,
instrumental, etc).
Drama
As early as the 10th century, short dramatic scenes was incorporated
into the mass of the Roman Catholic Church. One of the first recorded
play, The Queen Quaeritis, depicted the three Mary visiting Christ�s
tomb after his resurrection1. The appeal of drama in society is
as strong in the middle age as it is today. Drama is not limited to
entertainment and leisure. It is more than that. It can be use as
vehicles that transport or explain a message to the audiences.
Creativity is one of the important main elements in drama.
Drama allows more creativity in expressing a point.
The Bible is a book full of expression and creativity. From the creation
in Genesis right to John�s vision in Revelation, the creator and
creation is creatively and expressively described. Jesus himself uses
creativity to reach out to the crowds of people surrounding him.
Parables were used to teach his followers many profound truths. These
were �audio-dramas� � dramas in story-told form. It is done by using the
right context before the eyes of the listeners � for e.g. sheep,
vineyards, father & son, etc. Thus it makes the gospel more attractive
and easier to communicate to the audience.
Drama is a dominant form of communication.
As mentioned earlier we are living in a world of visual communication.
Cinemas and theaters today are flooded within all kinds of shows and
plays that attract the public. During the period of medieval church, the
church relied heavily on images and drama to reach a society where the
majority cannot read. Boniface (Winfred), an early Catholic missionary
bishop in Germany assembled a large crowd of pagan worshipper in
Geishmar, where the sacred oak of Thunder god was located. With the
people looking on in horror he began chopping down the tree. It was a
defiant act but one that clearly drew attention to the sovereign God.
Philip Schaff, described that it was a masterstroke of missionary policy2.
The act by Boniface led thousand of people to know God when the message
is preach. Drama is an effective communication tool in reaching to a
hostile audience.
Music
Plato once said, �Give me the music of a nation and I will change the
mind of that nation". Lenin paraphrased that to �Give me the music of a
nation and I will destroy that nation�. Music plays a major impact in
today�s society. It is no coincidence that music has always accompanied
the great revival in the history of the church. Calvin, Bach, Wesley,
Luther are some of the names that immediately come to the mind. Many of
their hymns are sung in today�s church. Music has since diversified into
various categories. Today�s youth are very much influence by the music
industry.
Music & the society today
We are told in the book of Zephaniah that God sing!
Zeph 3:17 NIV
"The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great
delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over
you with singing"
Music is something that is very close to God�s heart. If we, who are
sinful, could cause God to respond to us in music and song, how much
more that which is perfect and pure and delightful from His own hand.
The church today has grown into various denominations. Different
denominations has different views towards music. Despite of the
differences in one�s opinion, it doesn�t change the fact that our
society especially the youth today is very much influenced by the music
industry. Parents are careful as to what type of music their children
are listening to. Radio stations are blooming and diversifying to cater to
the various choices of society�s music. Music is no longer just a form of
entertainment; it is becoming a need for the society. For example jazz
music was written as a form of relaxation while blues music speaks of
the struggle and hardship of life. The God who created us is also the
creator of music.
Judges 5: 3
Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers! I will sing to the LORD, I
will sing; I will make music to the LORD, the God of Israel.
Music is one of the main tools in influencing and winning the hearts of people
especially in today�s youth. Larry Norman, a former secular rock star
that came to the Lord in the late 60�s and began a ministry in
contemporary Christian Music says, � Why should the devil has all the
good music?"
Capturing the Audience for the Gospel
through Music & Drama
Evangelism today is much harder than
before. While there is nothing wrong with the traditional method of
having one speaker proclaiming the gospel, it has becoming increasingly
difficult to capture the attention of the audience. There are two main
factors to consider
1) Keeping up with the changes
Through various form of media (internet, television, etc.) the Christian
message is more accessible than it ever has been in any other time in
history. If we are going for the cutting edge audience we need to be
relevant. The gospel hasn�t change one bit and power of the Holy Spirit
is not discounted but our message must be contextualized in a medium
that our target audience can relate to. Compare Paul�s audience and his
approach in proclaiming Christ in Antioch (Acts 13: 13 to 41) and in
Athens (Acts 17: 22 to 34).
There have been people who would come for dramatic and musical
evangelistic meeting or concerts that would never come for the normal
church gospel meeting. If the churches are fearful of going with the
changes, addicted to play safe then ministry potential is greatly
diminished. The apostle Paul, the master of contextualizing his message
for audience says he tried to become all things to all men so that by
all possible means, (He) might save some � (see 1 Cor 9: 9-23)
2) Innovative
Keeping up to the changes is not enough to win the audience. We have to
be innovative in our approached. We are urged in Scripture to sing a new
song (Ps 96: 1). The �theme song� of the gospel is not new, but we need
to constantly seek out new and creative ways of expressing the gospel.
Similarly in drama, fresh ideas are needed. Creativity is something that
has been with us ever since the dawn of creation. Our God is a creative
God and we are created in his own image. Being creative is a part of us.
Music and drama certainly serves to attract people to an evangelistic
meeting; people who might otherwise decline to enter a church. Drama
provokes questions in the hearer's mind, raises underlying issues in a
person's life and has a great impact to people. As for music, there is a
capacity for a song to hammer home a truth. How many of us remember
Scriptures set to music far easier than memorizing verses directly from
our Bibles! Performing arts as a whole is a powerful tool to be used in
reaching out for the lost. Like it has been before in the early ages, it
is more powerful now with the available resources as we move towards the
new millennium
Conclusion
There is a lot more we could do for the Lord. We will be losing out on
the gospel's full potential unless we adhere to the need of the people
and the changes in the society�s life. The performing arts IS one of the
tools to reach the lost. Our goal must always be to communicate the
truth of God�s love.
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