Singing ‘Good’ Music: A Deconstruction of the Platonic View of Music and Morality and a Biblical Reconstruction for Spirituality Today

Room S215

“We only sing good music at our church.” The phrase often rolls off the tongue of many Christian worshipers as they compare their style of worship music with that of others. What do we mean by “good” music? What is the meaning of “good”? Is this an aesthetic judgment? Or a moral judgment? Will listening to good music make a listener good, while listening to bad music will make the listener bad? This paper examines the presuppositions underlying the philosophy of good music. This paper first seeks to deconstruct the source of this philosophy, Platonism, giving particular attention to how the experience of music changed the character through the conveyance of virtue to the soul, impacting one’s spirituality and salvation. Second, this paper seeks to articulate a biblical view of the process of character transformation. A Platonic view of intrinsic morality in music reduces it as a mechanistic sacrament of salvation. Alternatively, a biblical, dynamic view of music and morality demands the Christian not merely turn to aesthetic musical experiences for the basis of their spirituality. Christians should utilize music as a tool to cooperate in a Spirit-enabled transformational relationship with God in His Word.