By Rachel Terry, Opinion Editor
Appropriate sound levels in Hughes Auditorium and the decibel limitation that caused a stir this past month are the focus of a new committee made up of eight Asbury staff and faculty members. This committee, formed in the beginning of the semester, has been tasked with setting guidelines that ensure all worship in Hughes will be both theologically and technically sound.
According to Vice President of Student Development and Dean of Students Sarah Baldwin, one of the committee members, the decibel limit is “reflective of an ongoing conversation that’s been in place for at least the last couple of years about trying to identify an appropriate sound level for Hughes while taking into account all of the different opinions and style preferences and, frankly, tolerance for volume.”
[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]According to Haseloff, many surrounding churches are eager to provide student worship bands with opportunities to play for youth groups and occasional weekend services.[/perfectpullquote]
Because of such diversity in students’ backgrounds, a debate regarding which style of worship music is most conducive to actually worshiping the Lord is always present on campus. Some argue that traditional hymns are most effective while others claim that either loud or quiet contemporary music creates a better atmosphere.
“Every ministry’s mission also is to reach people in the way that they receive things,” senior Jessica Mendez said.
Mendez compared creating culturally relevant worship music to sharing the gospel in a similar manner.
“If you speak English, I’m probably not going to come share the gospel with you in Spanish because it’s not going to make much sense to you,” she said. “We need to reach people in the cultural way that they live and that’s what we’ve been trying to do with our music.”
Associate Dean of Campus Ministries and Campus Chaplain Greg Haseloff described the discussion about chapel music as a chance to increase music diversity and break out of the usual categories, traditional and contemporary.
“Is there only one kind of contemporary?” Haseloff asked. “Is campus open to other cultural kinds of worship that we wouldn’t just describe as contemporary? There are significant other things we would love to talk about just as much as we love to talk about volume.”
Baldwin is expecting to resolve the chapel music debate by the end of September. “[The limit] is a permanent guideline right now, but there is discussion happening,” she said.
Additional members of the committee include Worship Arts Program Coordinator Jon Roller, CIO and Assistant Vice President of Information Technology Services Paul Dupree, and Haseloff, among others.
Baldwin also acknowledges the need for further accommodation to ensure that worship arts majors continue to receive a quality education.
“Many schools’ worship arts students don’t have chapel as a lab so they have other ways that they learn and grow…outside of chapel,” Baldwin said. “We know we have to find a way to accommodate them whether it’s inside or outside of chapel.”
According to Haseloff, many surrounding churches are eager to provide student worship bands with opportunities to play for youth groups and occasional weekend services.
Ultimately, according to Mendez, it’s important to remember that “the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit and he can reach people no matter what.”
