When the story of modernity is told from a theological perspective, music is routinely ignored - despite its pervasiveness in modern culture and the manifold ways it has been intertwined with modernity's ambivalent relation to the Christian God. In conversation with musicologists and music theorists, in this collection of essays Jeremy Begbie aims to show that the practices of music and the discourses it has generated bear their own kind of witness to some of the pivotal theological currents and counter-currents shaping modernity. Music has been deeply affected by these currents and in some cases may have played a part in generating them. In addition, Begbie argues that music is capable of yielding highly effective ways of addressing and moving beyond some of the more intractable theological problems and dilemmas which modernity has bequeathed to us. Music, Modernity, and God includes studies of Calvin, Luther, and Bach, an exposition of the intriguing tussle between Rousseau and the composer Rameau, and an account of the heady exaltation of music to be found in the early German Romantics. Particular attention is paid to the complex relations between music and language, and the ways in which theology, a discipline involving language at its heart, can come to terms with practices like music, practices which are coherent and meaningful but which in many respects do not operate in language-like ways.

Music, Modernity, and God: Essays in Listening

Arts & Photography

Begbie, Jeremy

Music

Oxford University Press

When the story of modernity is told from a theological perspective, music is routinely ignored - despite its pervasiveness in modern culture and the manifold ways it has been intertwined with modernity's ambivalent relation to the Christian God. In conversation with musicologists and music theorists, in this collection of essays Jeremy Begbie aims to show that the practices of music and the discourses it has generated bear their own kind of witness to some of the pivotal theological currents and counter-currents shaping modernity. Music has been deeply affected by these currents and in some cases may have played a part in generating them. In addition, Begbie argues that music is capable of yielding highly effective ways of addressing and moving beyond some of the more intractable theological problems and dilemmas which modernity has bequeathed to us. Music, Modernity, and God includes studies of Calvin, Luther, and Bach, an exposition of the intriguing tussle between Rousseau and the composer Rameau, and an account of the heady exaltation of music to be found in the early German Romantics. Particular attention is paid to the complex relations between music and language, and the ways in which theology, a discipline involving language at its heart, can come to terms with practices like music, practices which are coherent and meaningful but which in many respects do not operate in language-like ways.

Redeeming Transcendence in the Arts

SCM Press

An introduction to the theology of art and the art of theology.

Voicing Creation's Praise: Towards a Theology of the Arts

History & Criticism

T&T Clark

"A fine collection of probing and imaginative discussions on the relation between the Incarnation and the arts." --Nicholas Wolterstorff, Yale Divinity School

Beholding the Glory: Incarnation through the Arts

Religious

Baker Academic

Resonant Witness gathers together a wide, harmonious chorus of voices from across the musical and theological spectrum to show that music and theology can each learn much from the other -- and that the majesty and power of both are profoundly amplified when they do. With essays touching on J. S. Bach, Hildegard of Bingen, Martin Luther, Karl Barth, Olivier Messiaen, jazz improvisation, South African freedom songs, and more, this volume encourages musicians and theologians to pursue a more fruitful and sustained engagement with one another. Contributors:<ul>
<li>Jeremy S. Begbie</li>
<li>Bruce Ellis Benson</li>
<li>Alastair Borthwick</li>
<li>Daniel K. L. Chua</li>
<li>Nancy van Deusen</li>
<li>Margot Fassler</li>
<li>Steven R. Guthrie</li>
<li>Carol Harrison</li>
<li>Trevor Hart</li>
<li>C. Michael Hawn</li>
<li>Joyce Irwin</li>
<li>John Paul Ito</li>
<li>Anthony Monti</li>
<li>David J. R. S. Moseley</li>
<li>Michael O'Connor</li>
<li>Catherine Pickstock</li>
<li>Richard J. Plantinga</li>
<li>Robert Sholl</li>
<li>Nancy van Deusen</li>
<li>John D. Witvliet</li>
</ul>

Resonant Witness: Conversations between Music and Theology (The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies (CICW))

Religion & Spirituality

Guthrie, Steven R.

Christian Books & Bibles

Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

How can the arts witness to the transcendence of the Christian God? 
Many people believe that there is something transcendent about the arts, that they can awaken a profound sense of awe, wonder, and mystery, of something “beyond” this world—even for those who may have no use for conventional forms of Christianity. In this book Jeremy Begbie—a leading voice on theology and the arts—employs a biblical, Trinitarian imagination to show how Christian involvement in the arts can be shaped by the distinctive vision of God’s transcendence opened up in and through Jesus Christ.

Redeeming Transcendence in the Arts: Bearing Witness to the Triune God

How do the arts in worship form individuals and communities?
Every choice of art in worship opens up and closes down possibilities for the formation of our humanity. Every practice of music, every decision about language, every use of our bodies, every approach to visual media or church buildings forms our desires, shapes our imaginations, habituates our emotional instincts, and reconfigures our identity as Christians in contextually meaningful ways, generating thereby a sense of the triune God and of our place in the world.
Glimpses of the New Creation argues that the arts form us in worship by bringing us into intentional and intensive participation in the aesthetic aspect of our humanity—that is, our physical, emotional, imaginative, and metaphorical capacities. In so doing they invite the people of God to be conformed to Christ and to participate in the praise of Christ and in the praise of creation, which by the Spirit’s power raises its peculiar voice to the Father in heaven, for the sake of the world that God so loves.

Glimpses of the New Creation: Worship and the Formative Power of the Arts

Taylor, W. David O.

Eerdmans

Preaching and music are both regular elements of Christian worship across the theological spectrum. But they often don't interact or inform each other in meaningful ways.In this Dynamics of Christian Worship volume, theologian, pastor, and musician Noel A. Snyder considers how the church's preaching might be helpfully informed by musical theory. Just as a good musical composition employs technical elements like synchrony, repetition, and meter, the same should be said for good preaching that seeks to engage hearts and minds with the good news of Jesus Christ.By drawing upon music that lifts the soul, preachers might craft sermons that sing.

Sermons That Sing: Music and the Practice of Preaching (Dynamics of Christian Worship)

Snyder, Noel A.

IVP Academic

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Begbie, Jeremy. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Begbie, Jeremy

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Begbie, Jeremy. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Music, Modernity, and God: Essays in Listening

Music, Modernity, and God: Essays in Listening

Redeeming Transcendence in the Arts

Voicing Creation's Praise: Towards a Theology of the Arts

Beholding the Glory: Incarnation through the Arts

Resonant Witness: Conversations between Music and Theology (The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies (CICW))

Redeeming Transcendence in the Arts: Bearing Witness to the Triune God

Glimpses of the New Creation: Worship and the Formative Power of the Arts

Sermons That Sing: Music and the Practice of Preaching (Dynamics of Christian Worship)