Robert Webber, author of The Younger Evangelicals, from Jonathan’s blog series says:

The Phaith of St. Phransus: A WEEK WITH ROBERT WEBBER- day 6

If you look at worship over the last 30 years, the movement has been primarily the nearness of God, the immanence of God, the friendship of Jesus, the relationship and even a lot of romantic terminology in contemporary music about a relationship with God. The Younger Evangelicals are sick of that stuff. They just think it’s shallow, not really real — all this romantic stuff about their relationship with Jesus. And they’re beginning to see God more on the side of God’s holiness, God’s otherness, God’s transcendence.

I’m sick of it, too.

A couple of things I like to mention when this topic comes up.

One is from the late Mike Yaconelli, who referred to the individualistic, narcissism inherent in this kind of “Praise Worship”, and called it “spiritual masturbation”. Crude analogy, but if you think about it, and consider just how “anti-community” or “a-communal” that idea really is, and compare it to the sexual differences, it fits. Quite a “seminal idea” if you ask me (heh….sorry)

The other is from Ken Medema, a singer/songwriter whom I have listened to for 30 years. One of my favorite songs of his is from his album Kingdom in the Streets, where the chorus goes:

I’m sick of those ‘I am his’ and ‘He is Mine’ and ‘Doesn’t- it-make Me Feel Good’ love songs— I’ve read the book and it doesn’t turn out that way
We need a few more ‘he is ours’ and ‘we are his’ and “he calls us to his service’ work songs; he calls us together to give our lives away