Pop Music in the Church – Sheet Music

For many centuries, the church has been one of the main sources and means of spreading new music around the world. Sacred and secular music have always influenced each other a great deal, and many forms of music, such as gospels and spirituals, originally made their way into houses of prayer from the secular world, and in the 20th century, so has pop music.

Pop vs Church

The first rock & pop superstars like Elvis Presley and The Beatles caused an uproar among devout Christians with their swinging hips, banging heads, screaming fans, and all the other ‘obscenities’ that came with them. John Lennon of the Beatles even dreamed of a better world without religion in Imagine, and he offended the Vatican with his statement that the Beatles were “more popular than Jesus”. After several failed attempts to condemn pop music, the church had no choice but to come to terms with it, and to begin to integrate this new form of music.

It was partly through the work of Elvis Presley, a very devout man, that the two musical forces began to reconcile, when he published his spiritual songs and gospel albums (a compilation of which can be found in the issue Songs of Inspiration). In recent years, pop music has inspired the youth movements within the church, and many pop stars have also expressed their faith with songs inspired by religion.

The secular song Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen is one of the most popular songs in modern pop music, and in the church today, and due to its many religious allusions, it is often played at weddings, funerals and many other religious ceremonies and celebrations.

Klaus Heizmann established “Christian Pop Music” in Germany. This new religious music, which is so close to pop music, is categorised as Modern Sacred Song, and all around the English speaking world, pop singers like Sir Cliff Richard and Josh Groban sang songs of a similar style, and inspired people both in arenas, and in the church alike.

Some popular Pop Music in the Church

• Pop Music for Organ
• Klaus Heizmann
• Gospels & Spirituals
• Modern Sacred Songs
• Pop Music in the Church for Choir
• Josh Groban