Worship practice in the Churches of Christ : Central Luzon, Philippines

Abstract

Worship practice in Christian churches around the world has changed rapidly in the last two decades. The impact of contemporary Christian music on non-western churches has been little studied. The Filipino Churches of Christ of Central Luzon have utilized tools of a worship service order and a hymnbook provided by American missionaries in the early twentieth century to establish a consistent worship practice. As the new music has entered through international marketing and communication, the worship order has remained the same while the usage of the Tagalog himnario has declined. This research reviews Filipino history, the history of the Churches of Christ, missionary practice in the Filipino Churches of Christ, the translation of the himnario from the English, the impact of new Tagalog lyrics, and the importation of contemporary Christian music into the Churches of Christ.