藉著同聲唱詩學習基督教信仰：一種衛理宗的觀點

Learning the Christian Faith by Singing Together: A Wesleyan Perspective

當代基督教禮拜現象一直呈現多元面貌，這現象也挑起了會眾唱詩本質的神學爭論。面對當代流行讚美詩歌的衝擊，會眾唱詩會不會因為這些詩歌難以學習或不熟悉而消失在教會禮拜中呢？就會眾唱詩的意義而言，到底在教會禮拜中會眾齊聚同聲唱詩的目的是甚麼呢？本文從衛理宗神學的角度來論證會眾唱詩在教會禮拜中的重要性。因此，本文將分成兩大部份來探討約翰衛斯理（1703-1791）對於會眾唱詩的神學觀點來論述其重要性。一、會眾唱詩與衛理宗運動；二、會眾唱詩與衛理宗禮拜。最後，為了尋求更多對此議題的討論，本文將摘述衛理宗會眾唱詩特色並且反思其對當下臺灣衛理宗教會禮拜處境的啟發性。

"Contemporary Christian worship takes many forms, afact that has triggered aseries of theological debates over the nature of congregational singing. Will congregational singing fade away from church worship because contemporary Christian songs are considered unfamiliar and hard to learn? What is the purpose for the congregation to sing together in church worship? In this paper, Iargue from aWesleyan perspective for the theological significance of congregational singing in the Protestant church worship setting. To do so, Iemploy aqualitative research method to examine the theological idea of John Wesley (1703-1791) whose ideas are mainly found in his central work ACollection of Hymns for the Use of the People Called Methodists. Ihave divided the paper into two sections: (1) congregational singing and the Methodist movement, and (2) congregational singing and the Methodist worship. Finally, to solicit further discussion and reflection on the nature of congregational singing in church worship, Isummarize the Wesleyan features of congregational singing and reflect on their implications for contemporary Methodist worship in the ecclesiastical context of Taiwan."