Church at a Paul McCartney concert?
The joy of sharing history and hope
By Mary Robin Craig
Was that . . . church?
There was a call to worship, in the form of a driven, pounding “Hard Day’s Night.”
There were confessions, in the form of humorous anecdotes illuminating early years of learning and recording.
There were texts and music, songs known by heart by all of the 18,000 people in attendance.
There was a hefty dose of collective memory, with nods to family, to justice, and to loved ones now gone.
There was a benediction, in the form of a final encore. “The love you take is equal to the love you make.”
Could that have been church? A Paul McCartney concert? (I wasn’t the only one who thought so, as evidenced by a local review of the concert.)
The energy, the excitement, the sense of unity and community . . . even in the midst of it, dancing and singing along to the songs of my youth, I found myself wondering, Do we know this joyful vitality in our sanctuaries?
Was it the numbers? Was I swayed by the size of the crowd, thousands packed like sardines into a cavernous event space? Fun, yes, but not necessarily conducive to connection to God.
Was it the theology? Pretty shaky, that, when our faith lies in a God whose love is not a transactional function, but is instead extravagant beyond any “love we make.”
Was it the pyrotechnics? A little over the top, and not necessarily in sync with the rest of the show.
The combination of everything, perhaps?
In the end, it was, of course, the music. The memories and hopes it evoked. We all know where we were when we were listening to certain Beatles tunes. Well, those of us old enough to remember.
Music in worship does the same thing: reminds of us solitary moments and community gatherings, and evokes lamentation and praise in connection to times past and those now anticipated.
I am not a megachurch aficionado. I am quite fond of worship conducted decently and in order, and of prayers written, sermons preached, and music selected with great care and attentiveness to theology. I am!
But I find myself thinking that Paul McCartney and his band have something to teach us about gathering in community and celebrating history and hope. About energy, and connection – and joy!
Mary Robin Craig is a PC(USA) Minister of Word and Sacrament currently serving as interim pastor to Bethesda on the Bay Lutheran Church in Bay Village, Ohio.She is also a trained spiritual director and frequently teaches as an adjunct in the Theology and Religious Studies Department at John Carroll University.