Contemporary worship is a form of Christian worship that emerged within Western evangelical Protestantism in the 20th century. It was originally confined to the charismatic movement , but is now found in a wide range of churches, including many which do not subscribe to a charismatic theology. Contemporary worship uses contemporary worship music in an informal setting. Congregational singing typically comprises a greater proportion of the service than in conventional forms of worship. Where contemporary worship is practiced in churches with a liturgical tradition, elements of the liturgy are frequently kept to a minimum. The terms historic worship , traditional worship or liturgical worship are sometimes used to describe conventional worship forms and distinguish them from contemporary worship.
26-502: Timothy David Llewelyn Hughes (born 23 July 1977) is a British worship leader , singer, songwriter, and Anglican priest . Formerly the director of worship at Holy Trinity Brompton , a large Anglican church in central London, he has since been ordained as a minister in the Church of England and appointed Vicar of St Luke's, Gas Street Birmingham. He leads Worship Central, an international worship training and resource centre. Hughes has written
52-658: A book called Holding Nothing Back (the same name as his third album) and was interviewed by Premier.tv's Christian TV On Demand , to promote the book. In June 2017, he was awarded the Cranmer Award for Worship by the Archbishop of Canterbury "for his outstanding contribution to contemporary worship music". Worship leader The contemporary worship phenomenon emerged from the Jesus Movement in North America in
78-634: A computerised system. Specialised software, known as worship presentation programs , was developed to generate the images for display. Contemporary worship often includes other elements not found in conventional forms of worship. Drama , typically in the form of short sketches, is sometimes used to highlight a topic of teaching. Dance is commonplace and includes both choreographed and improvised dance as both an expression of worship and again for teaching purposes. Occasionally short videos or film clips are shown. Critics have also argued that contemporary worship services are actually 'entertainment', claiming that
104-451: A derelict warehouse to use as a church for Hughes and his team. The church officially launched on 5 February 2016. With Holy Trinity Brompton's associate director of worship, Al Gordon, Hughes established Worship Central, a worship training and resource centre, aiming to have an international impact. Hughes' songs were published in the UK by Survivor Records and distributed globally by EMI CMG ,
130-425: A major music label documented as market share leader from 1998 to 2009. He is currently signed under Integrity Music . Hughes has recorded and released six albums: Here I Am to Worship in 2001, When Silence Falls in 2004, Holding Nothing Back in 2007, Happy Day in 2009, Love Shine Through in 2011, and Pocketful of Faith in 2015. Here I am to Worship Hughes' album, Here I Am to Worship
156-753: A mix of previously released material and brand new songs, including "Give us your courage". The album was released at the Worship Central Global Day on 14 March 2009, in London's Westminster Central Hall. Love Shine Through On 11 March 2011, a fourth studio album was released, Love Shine Through . The recording was produced by Martin Smith and featured musicians Marc James, Michael Guy Chislet and members of Northern Irish band, Rend Collective Experiment . Pocketful of Faith On 17 July 2015 Hughes released his fifth studio album, Pocketful of Faith . The album
182-540: A number of songs that are sung worldwide, including the Dove Award -winning " Here I Am to Worship ", "Happy Day", "Beautiful One", "Jesus Saves", "At Your Name", and "The Way". Hughes, the son of an Anglican vicar, grew up in High Wycombe , before moving to Birmingham as a teenager when his father was appointed vicar of St John's Church, Harborne. He studied history at Sheffield University , graduating in 2000. Hughes
208-419: A single book rarely contained all the material they wanted to sing, and the turnover in songs was rapid. Hence many churches that adopt a contemporary style of worship project the words to the songs onto one or more screens. Originally, this was done using an overhead projector or occasionally a slide projector , but as video projectors fell in price and improved in performance, it became more popular to use
234-515: A variety of non-traditional church instruments. In the 1970s and 1980s, a folk music style was commonplace with acoustic string or woodwind instruments being popular. Today, the influence of rock music is widespread and the use of electric instruments has increased. Worship bands normally also include vocalists and a worship leader and usually lead congregational singing replacing the traditional church choir and pipe organ , although occasionally churches use both bands and choirs. In fact, apart from
260-460: Is a member of Compassionart , a charity founded by musician Martin Smith , the front man of Delirious? . Hughes trained for ordination at St Mellitus College , a non-residential Anglican theological college in London. On 29 June 2013, he was ordained in the Church of England as a deacon by Richard Chartres , Bishop of London, during a service at St Paul's Cathedral, London. On 22 June 2014, he
286-409: Is intrinsically related to the contemporary Christian music industry . Contemporary worship normally includes a number of songs sung in succession, with little or no intermediate speaking. In more traditional forms of worship, it would be normal for hymns to be interspersed with prayers, readings, liturgical items, etc. The traditional practice is sometimes referred to as a 'hymn-prayer sandwich' and
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#1732875894249312-501: Is married to Rachel and has four children. Hughes began his music career in 1997, when he was invited by Mike Pilavachi to lead worship at a Soul Survivor festival. After the departure of Matt Redman from Soul Survivor Watford Church, Hughes succeeded him as Worship Pastor. In 2005, he moved to Holy Trinity Brompton, an Anglican church in central London, as director of worship. In 2015, he and his family moved to Birmingham where they have launched and now head up Gas Street Church. He
338-406: Is responsible for much of the spiritual direction of the meeting and often will choose the songs that will be sung. This can be contrasted with traditional churches, where the entire service is normally led by a member of the clergy. Also, in many cases, the worship leader is responsible for recruiting, assigning, and training other musicians to compose a worship band or team. A popular definition of
364-466: The 1960s and the "Charismatic Renewal Movement" in Australia and New Zealand during the 1970s and 1980s. The function of music in services, the style of songs, their performance, the explicit theology of the lyrics, and the theology implied by these aspects distinguish “contemporary worship” from traditional worship in practice, and theological background. Contemporary worship music takes a significant part of
390-431: The contemporary form 'block worship' or the 'praise and worship'. A notable feature of contemporary worship is the worship leader. A worship leader is normally a musician (often a guitarist or pianist) with good singing ability whose role it is to lead the congregational singing. Many composers of contemporary worship songs are also worship leaders. The worship leader has a prominent role in contemporary worship services and
416-468: The extent that they kept churches from splitting. After his 2011 interview, Gordon said Mark Moring of Christianity Today had observed that contemporary music in churches was on the decline. Gordon said the people who first wanted it are older, and contemporary music had become so common that it was no longer a marketing tool, and no longer new when people wanted what was new. Praise teams, Gordon said, were like performers, but they were in conflict with what
442-464: The hip hop group 29th Chapter , from west London. Holding Nothing Back Hughes' third album, Holding Nothing Back , was released on 3 April 2007, and includes songs like "Living for your glory", "The Highest and the Greatest", "God of Justice", "Everything", and "Happy Day". In 2007, prior to the recording of Holding Nothing Back, Christian Today interviewed Hughes, asking him, "Do you think any of
468-478: The increased amounts of music (often played by a band) and lack of intercession , create the atmosphere of a concert or performance. Interviewed in Christianity Today in 2011, Grove City College professor T. David Gordon stated that churches were adding hymns to contemporary services, but that in the past the main concern had never been how new the music sounded. He supported blended services, but only to
494-419: The service time and repetition of phrases reinforces the theological content of the service. The impact is heightened as creeds and formal prayers are seldom used. Theologically, contemporary worship music is influenced by Pentecostal and evangelical theologies. However, the phenomenon has influenced all major denominations to some degree. There is a wide variety in practice between churches. Contemporary worship
520-611: The singers and musicians, the people "handling the presentation slides, the sound guy who manages the mixer, and all others who support the worship ministry in many different ways" are also considered a part of the worship team or band. A worship band can create a contemporary sound to the worship that younger worshipers can identify with. Worship bands may also be utilized with the rationale that some non-churchgoing visitors will feel more comfortable. The charismatic movement also resulted in large numbers of songs being written. It became impractical for churches to use hymn or song books, as
546-487: The songs have the potential to become worldwide hits like some of your previous singles ("Here I am to Worship" and "Beautiful One")?" Hughes responded that what connected with people was often a surprise and hard to predict. Happy Day In July 2008, Hughes recorded a live album and DVD, Happy Day , at a Worship Central event held on 16 September 2008 at the Shepherds Bush Empire, London. The recording featured
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#1732875894249572-643: The traditional church organ. Most churches adopting contemporary worship therefore have a worship band or praise band to provide music during their services. Other terms such as worship team , worship group , praise team , or music group are also used. Worship bands are most common in evangelical denominations, but can also be found among other Christian denominations. Most worship bands are church-based and seldom play outside their own churches. However, some contemporary Christian music bands also act as worship bands for events, and may label themselves as such. Worship bands have varying compositions and use
598-530: The worship leader's role is by Bob Kauflin: "A faithful worship leader magnifies the greatness of God in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit by skillfully combining God's Word with music, thereby motivating the gathered church to proclaim the gospel, to cherish God's presence, and to live for God's glory." The style of contemporary worship music is influenced by popular music and not suitable for
624-470: Was ordained as a priest by Paul Williams , Bishop of Kensington, during a service at St Mary Abbots , Kensington. From 2013 to 2015, Hughes served his curacy at Holy Trinity Brompton (HTB) in the Diocese of London . In 2015, he was appointed priest-in-charge of St Luke's, Gas Street, Birmingham in the Diocese of Birmingham . This was a church plant from HTB, and involved the renovation and consecration of
650-407: Was produced by Nathan Nockels and includes songwriting collaborations with Martin Smith , Matt Redman , Reuben Morgan , Phil Wickham , Jonas Myrin and Tim's Worship Central teammates Nick Herbert, Luke Hellebronth and Ben Cantelon . Hughes published Passion For Your Name in 2003, in which he gives his advice on many issues, including worship leading and songwriting. Hughes has published
676-516: Was released in 2001. The album introduced the worship songs "Jesus, You Alone" and the Dove Award-winning song " Here I Am to Worship ". Both songs have become world-renowned worship anthems. When Silence Falls Released in 2004, When Silence Falls featured well-known tracks, "Beautiful One", "Consuming Fire", and "Whole World in His Hands". The bonus track on the album, "Saviour" featured
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