Diverse worship styles among Tennessee Baptists. (Diverse Baptist worship styles: a panel).

I received my assignment as an opportunity to narrate a chapter in Tennessee Baptist life. Entering the research stage, I quickly discovered the blatant absence of recorded information on the diversity of worship in Tennessee. A struggle began between the urge to abandon the project versus the personal insistence to search on in the quest to at least offer some statement of response.

Eureka! I suddenly remembered that three years earlier our Executive Board staff had accepted the bold responsibility to visit each of 2,980-plus Baptist churches affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Convention. In response, I initiated two searches. First, I located the reports from the visits, and second, e-mailed a passionate cry for help to the staff. "Folks, I'm struggling to write a paper on `Diverse Worship Among Tennessee Baptist Churches.' Please send me any antidotes, observations, analysis, and critiques from your church visits."

In a matter of days, my vacuum transitioned into a horn of plenty as an abundance of data literally flooded in to attest to our worship diversity. The diligence of the staff is well modeled in one carefully-planned orderly response entitled, "A Few Things I've Seen in Worship in the Tennessee Baptist Convention" by Tim Bearden.

   Anointing oil on the pulpit
   Preachers in black suits
   Preachers in golf shirts
   Large formal pulpit
   Small speakers' stands
   A piano but no piano player
   A piano played by ear
   A piano in tune
   A piano out of tune
   A piano played simple and quietly
   A piano played fast and furious
   A piano and a base guitar
   A piano, a base guitar, and a set of drums
   A piano and an organ that sits silent
   A piano and an organ played in harmony
   A praise band
   A full orchestra
   A bivocational preacher
   A preacher with no formal education
   A preacher with a Bible college education
   A preacher with college
   A preacher with seminary
   A preacher with a Ph.D.
   A preacher who could not read
   An auditorium that will seat 50
   An auditorium that will seat 2,000
   Shouts of amen and praise to
   the Lord as the preacher speaks

   The KJV
   The NKJV
   The NIV
   Modern hymn books
   Shape-note hymn books
   over 50 years old
   Words on a projector screen
   Silence as the preacher speaks
   Snoring as the preacher speaks
   45 minutes of special music
   45 minutes of choruses
   A worship service of
   nothing but prayer
   A Everyone praying aloud
   all at the same time
   A prepared sermon
   A non-prepared sermon
   You call that a sermon?
   A church in the city dying
   A but no one knows
   A church in the city alive and
   A everyone knows
   A family church in the country
   struggling to stay alive
   A community church in
   the country bursting
   with growth and life
   A church with a focus
   on missions
   A church with a focus
   on nothing

But who are these wonderful folk called Tennessee Baptists?

The million-plus Baptists of the Volunteer State assemble each Sunday to worship in over 2,980 churches. However, only twenty of these churches ever record over a thousand in attendance on any Sunday. At the same time, only 705 welcome in excess of one hundred folks on a given Sunday. Thus, more than 2,200 of our Tennessee Baptist churches gather weekly with less than one hundred members in attendance. In addition, approximately 50 percent of all our churches have bivocational pastors.

My study offers the conclusion that Tennessee Baptist churches provide diverse worship opportunities. However, the variety does not totally defy some pattern or structure. Rather, worship styles of Tennessee Baptist communities of faith accentuate, a uniqueness of the people called Tennessee Baptists.

Following a review of the church visits and related analyzed reports concerning worship, I believe there are six specific categories of worship expressed throughout our state. They are specifically: Traditional, Southern Gospel, Blended, Appalachian, Contemporary, and Bapticostal.

Traditional Worship

The vast majority of Tennessee Baptist churches today continue to perpetuate a traditional worship style with only an occasional variation. Location of these churches includes county seat towns, small villages, and open rural areas primarily in middle and western Tennessee. Worship most often begins on Sunday morning at 11:00 a.m.

Elements of the service include welcome by pastor or layman, opening prayer, two hymns or gospel songs, reception of the offering, special music, sermon, invitation, announcements, and prayer requests. A few traditional services include a call to worship and a pastoral prayer.

The music ranges from selections from the 1940 Broadman Hymnal to the 1991 The Baptist Hymnal. Also, Stamps-Baxter shape-note gospel songs are often found in pew racks of rural churches. One church featured a Gaither edition of Stamps-Baxter.

Many churches may have four different hymnals and/or song books, and songs or hymns are announced according to the color of the book.

The traditional church, without exception, utilizes a piano. Many have organs, but due to the shortage of organists today, many electric and even pipe organs remain silent.

Special music in the town church has been rehearsed. Often, in the smaller churches, special solos or group singing is a spontaneous request with the invitation, "Sister -- or Brother --, come up and sing out of your book." The book refers to a three-ring binder of photocopied music. Traditional Tennessee Baptist worship offers little spontaneity outside music. Even prayer follows the pattern of gratitude, intercession for the sick, and petition for the forgiveness of sin. The use of Scripture has been relegated primarily to the sermon, the focal point of the service.

Southern Gospel Worship

Southern Gospel worship has a distinction in Tennessee in addition to music. Nevertheless, a grasp of the worship style must begin with the music. Usually, such fast-paced loud music celebrates the themes of heaven and life perseverance.

Heaven awaits the redeemed and the loving Father will see you through life's trials and troubles. While variations of these themes attest to the vast repertoire of Southern Gospel, the lyrics are often repetitious and quite easy to memorize. Both traits contribute to the popularity of the music. In the Volunteer State, all three grand divisions--East Tennessee, Middle Tennessee, and West Tennessee--include scores of rural churches proudly displaying an affinity for Southern Gospel music.

Most Southern Gospel music in worship requires more accompaniment than a church piano. These instruments will include an electric and/or acoustic guitar, drums, fiddle, and bass. Quite possibly, the nature and fervor of Southern Gospel music contributes greatly to two other distinguishing characteristics of Southern Gospel worship.

A survey of over two thousand Tennessee Baptist churches noted that the Southern Gospel worship service most often included testimony or testifying. One of our staff recalled being asked, "Sister, would you like to testify?" She responded yes and proceeded to join in the worship.

The preaching in the Southern Gospel worship service provides a second unique feature. A staff member recorded:

   As I entered the building, I observed an unusually great distance between
   the pulpit and the front row. Once the sermon began, I understood the
   significance of the area. This was the preacher's "stomping ground." He
   read the Scripture from the pulpit and immediately moved down on the floor,
   moving back and forth, to and fro, swaying, and shouting all the time.

The staff member's small child had accompanied her to this visit. The child exclaimed, "Mommy, what is that man so mad about?" During the pastor's sermon, he called twice for congregational prayer, and everyone prayed out loud at the same time. Once the pastor said, Amen, all praying ceased.

Another staff member gained his insight into Southern Gospel worship during a two-hour-and-fifteen-minute worship celebration that included a one-and-one-half-hour sermon. At approximately midpoint of the intense sermon, the preacher stopped, selected two deacons, walked outside the building, and in sight of the congregation smoked a cigarette, and then returned to continue his sermon.

In discussion with several of the executive board staff, I found a consensus that in Southern Gospel churches much concern centered upon "nobody has nothing against nobody in the room."

Blended Worship

Blended worship refers primarily to the type of music used and primarily sung by the congregation. Technically, the music blends traditional and contemporary hymns, songs, and choruses. Usually, the service follows a printed order of worship. A blended service requires planning and coordination usually by a professional or trained minister of music. The service may also include a praise band, praise orchestra, or praise ensemble to accompany, the singing. Otherwise, the service would tend to resemble a traditional style.

A growing county seat, First Baptist Church near Nashville, presents an excellent example of blended worship. The metropolitan expansion of the city has impacted the church greatly. The median age declined and members come together from a wider background than any period during the century and a half of the church's life.

On a specific Sunday morning, the music included a Bluegrass version of "What A Friend We Have In Jesus." The two congregational hymns, "All Hail The Power Of Jesus Name" and "Praise Him, Praise Him," were sung in sequence. Next, a series of praise choruses focused on the lordship of Christ. The "Doxology" provided an offertory response. The accompaniment included organ, piano, and two guitars.

This worship style continues to increase rapidly in churches in excess of 250 in attendance.

Contemporary Worship

Usually, in Tennessee, a contemporary worship service reflects a label assigned by the worship leader. The contemporary service typically demonstrates careful planning and answers the question, "How far are we willing to dare to go to rock the boat?" Also, the contemporary service expresses, "What are we doing that is different from what you do?"

Two middle Tennessee Baptist churches regularly welcoming over fifteen hundred people in attendance provide excellent models of contemporary worship.

In one, the morning worship promotes a single truth for the day. The music, drama, Scripture selections, PowerPoint presentations, and testimonies all amplify the central truth. The pastor dresses casual and literally works the congregation prior to the service. The service does not include an invitation. However, the pastor invites interested persons to visit with him following the service.

The second near-Nashville church features a choir and praise band. The congregation uses no hymnals, and all congregational songs appear on a large screen. On a specific Lord's Day, the music, Scriptures, visuals, and sermon all supported the theme of steadfastness. The service began with the auditorium being darkened followed by the climactic battle scene from the movie "Brave Heart" being shown on the screen. Mel Gibson stood with his army urging them to hold steady in the face of a larger, better-equipped army. Such a worship style appeals to "Seekers" and did not include a traditional Baptist invitation. Staff members and lay counselors visited with inquiries following the service.

Appalachian Worship

Appalachian worship in East Tennessee has basically been the same for over 150 years. While an absence of order of service prevails, certain undeniable Appalachian traits permeate the worship experience. Worship often begins with a question, "Does anyone have anything from the Lord today?" Once a haunting Appalachian solo is sung, testimonies may begin. This can lead to a "ya'll come" choir and an altar prayer time. Loud preaching of the "huffing" or "hacking" rhythm style consumes much of the worship service. Congregational music is lined out and singing is responsive. Readers and pastor will present all Scripture from the King James Version of the Bible--with no exception.

Written by Paul B. Clark Jr., worship and music specialist, Tennessee Baptist Convention, the following description of an actual experience of Appalachian worship amplifies my conclusion:

   I visited Riverview Missionary Baptist Church in Huntsville, Tennessee. I
   had not seen blacktop for six miles when I arrived at the little white
   church building. I did not see any cars and wondered if services had been
   canceled. I drove around back, where I saw three cars and a truck parked
   almost as if to be hid from public view, not that anyone had driven that
   way for days. The outside door led directly into the Sanctuary. I made the
   fifteenth person present that morning. I feel certain I was the first
   visitor they had seen in quite some time. The deacon stepped up to the
   pulpit and called the service to order. He said we would begin with
   Scripture. Each person read, or quoted a passage. All quotes were from the
   King James Version, and so when it came my turn I quoted Isaiah 40:31 from
   memory King James style, and tried to be certain no one could see the
   letters "NIV" on the edge of my Bible's binding. Next, the deacon called
   for the choir. All but three adults and one baby made their way to the
   choir loft. I was invited to join, which I did. We sang from a tattered red
   book some song about heaven that I had never heard. The notes I heard sung
   were in frequent disagreement with what my eyes were reading on the printed
   page, so I tried to just fit in the best I could. By the end of the second
   song, I felt more comfortable scooping and slurring notes with the others.
   The pianist struggled to represent the chords, but did her best with the
   aid of the lady who held the book page open for her and made an occasional
   comment like "that's not right." We were then called to pray, which meant
   everyone praying aloud at the same time. The deacon then asked if I would
   like to preach. Knowing the mildly suspicious stares I had received upon my
   entrance, I graciously declined, but did share a word of encouragement on
   the part of the Tennessee Baptist Convention. The deacon decided he would
   have to do it himself. He rambled for forty minutes with frequent hollering
   and pounding fits. Suddenly, he stopped. That was it. End of sermon. It was
   then fellowship time in which, the men hugged the men, and the women hugged
   the women. The pastor spoke for a brief moment about the need to witness
   and dismissed us. We had been to church.

Bapticostal Worship

The Bapticostal label, worn proudly, describes a merger of some basic Baptist fundamentals with Pentecostal emotional intensity. In addition, the term alludes to a type of church whose ministry focuses primarily on a worship experience, usually to the neglect of ministry and missions. The fervor of the service often begins in a course of prayer as deacons and/or men gather at the front and begin spontaneous verbal praise and petition to God. Sometimes loud music will accompany the prayer until someone receives the call to end the prayer.

Bapticostal worship experiences can include speaking in tongues, exorcism, dancing, anointing with oil, and public healings.

The sermon garners intense attention. The preacher may "enter the spirit" and experience a holy seizure. One pastor began his message by quietly cupping his hand behind his ear. According to a church member, "he was seeking a word from from the Lord." As the service ends, the pastor will close with a statement, "Are all minds clear?" A Bapticostal style of worship represents the smallest group of Tennessee Baptist churches. However, due to an intense growth in the desire of people to have a feeling of belonging, this group will continue to increase.

I close with a hearty invitation: "Come visit and worship with us in beautiful Tennessee. Come to stay a while. We have much worship diversity to offer you."

James M. Porch is executive director-treasurer, Tennessee Baptist Convention.