Picture everyday people in a modest room, singing in parts with nothing at all underneath them, and you've got the sound. There's no piano or guitar, and nobody's up front with a band. One voice starts the song. Everybody joins by the first word, and the tune and its harmony reach you together. Here at Christians In Honesdale, that's all the music there is, and people hearing it for the first time are often surprised how full it gets.
Before the First Note
First, a word on the term. "A cappella" is Italian for "in the manner of the chapel," and it just means voices only. No instrument plays, and none is missed, because singing is the thing the New Testament actually describes Christians doing together.
So there's no choir up front singing at a quiet room, and there's no soloist or stage. One of our men starts each song and gives the pitch, and then he sings right along with everybody else.
We'll be upfront about the building, since you'll notice it before you hear anything. We meet in Suite D at 416 Main Street, and you park behind the building and walk in the back door. It isn't a grand entrance. Nobody minds, and you won't be the only one coming in that way.
The First Few Seconds Can Feel Bare
If every church you've attended had instruments leading, the opening line may sound thin to you. That's normal. Give it a verse.
Then the parts come in. When the voices are there for it, there are four. The sopranos carry the melody on top, the altos sing just under them, and the tenors and basses fill in below. Once you know to listen for them, the harmony is easy to pick out. And the sound doesn't come at you from a stage. It comes from all around you, from the person beside you and the one behind you.
By the Second Song, You're Hearing the Words
With nothing on top of the voices, every word lands clearly. You can usually follow a song's meaning on the first hearing, even one you've never met before. We still sing from hymnals, with the words and the four parts printed right there on the page. The song number is called out before each one, and if you lose your place, the person next to you will be glad to point.
You'll also hear that it isn't polished. Some voices are strong and some wobble a bit. Nobody tried out for anything. This is a congregation singing to God and to each other, not a concert, and a few minutes in, the rough edges fade from your attention.
Why Nothing Else Plays
We sing this way because that's how the New Testament describes Christians singing, and we'd rather not add anything to it. Paul pictured Christians "addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart" (Ephesians 5:19). He told the church at Colossae much the same: "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God" (Colossians 3:16).
A note on the Greek: "Addressing one another" in Ephesians 5:19 is lalountes heautois, literally "speaking to yourselves," that is, to each other. "Making melody... with your heart" is psallontes tē kardia. You may hear that psallō once meant to pluck a string, and in older Greek it could. But Paul names the string being plucked: tē kardia, the heart. The instrument in New Testament worship is the worshiper.
Look at who the singing is for in those verses. It goes up to God. It also goes sideways, to the people next to you, and it teaches and encourages them. That's a big part of why everyone sings instead of sitting back to be sung to. Hebrews even pictures Christ Himself saying, "I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise" (Hebrews 2:12). The singing isn't a warm-up for the sermon. It's worship.
A note on the Hebrew and Greek: Hebrews 2:12 quotes Psalm 22:22, bəṯôḵ qāhāl ʾăhaləlekkā, "in the midst of the assembly I will praise you." The verb is hālal, the root of "hallelujah." When Hebrews gives it in Greek, "the congregation" becomes ekklēsia, the New Testament's word for the church: en mesō ekklēsias hymnēsō se. The church gathered and singing is the picture.
Paul wanted our minds in it, too: "I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also" (1 Corinthians 14:15). Your mind stays in it more easily when nothing's louder than the words.
A note on the Greek: "I will sing praise" there is psalō, the same verb as Ephesians 5:19. Paul's own use of the word is about understanding: psalō de kai tō noi, "I will sing with the mind also."
The rest of the New Testament fits the same pattern. On the night He was betrayed, after the first Lord's Supper, Jesus and the apostles sang: "when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives" (Matthew 26:30). Paul and Silas, beaten and locked in stocks, "were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them" (Acts 16:25). And James wrote simply, "Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise" (James 5:13).
What about the harps and cymbals in the Psalms? They were real, and God commanded them for the temple through David and the prophets (2 Chronicles 29:25), along with the priests, the sacrifices and the incense. Hebrews calls that whole system "a copy and shadow of the heavenly things" (Hebrews 8:5; 10:1). The New Testament never carries the instruments over into the church, and for most of Christian history churches sang without them. Eastern Orthodox churches still do today. (We've written more on that question in our post on why we sing without instruments.)
Singing Is Optional for You
What's expected of you? Nothing at all. Sing every song if you like. Hum. Read along silently, or just sit and listen the whole way through. Nobody's checking whether your lips are moving.
Can't carry a tune? Plenty of the people around you can't either, and they sing anyway. God asked for hearts, not auditions.
Read the Singing Passages Before You Come
If the singing is the part that's got you curious, read Ephesians 5 and Colossians 3 in full, then 1 Corinthians 14. They say more about how the early Christians worshiped than most people expect. Take your time with them, and write your questions down in the margin.
Small practical details like these do vary from one congregation to the next. We're one independent congregation, with no denomination or headquarters behind us, and we don't speak for other groups of Christians who also sing without instruments. We can only describe our own Sunday mornings, and that's what this is.
Come Listen on a Sunday Morning
You're welcome to come and simply listen, for one song or for as many Sundays as you need, and nobody will expect a solo out of you. Drew De Grado preaches here as our evangelist, and any question about what you heard is a welcome one. Before you come, you can read who we are, drop us a line, or schedule a free Bible study if you'd like to talk things over first.
Our week:
The street address is 416 Main Street, Suite D, Honesdale, PA 18431. Park at the rear of the building, and that's where the door is too.