The Psalms have played significant roles in the worship of the Church from its earliest days. That's why Bonhoeffer rightly insisted that they are "the prayer-book of the Church". Even in America, the first book to be published, in 1640, was a Psalter. So this splendid collection of essays seeks to reclaim those Forgotten Songs of the Bible in the contemporary life of the Church.
The various essays form a coherent vision for how the psalms can revitalize worship.
The Psalter, of course, isn't simply a "songbook", at least not in the sense most modern folks envision songbooks. Because in reading and singing the Psalms, we are becoming God's people, participating in an ages-old act of worship. The Jewish and early Christian experiences are thereby becoming our own, and we develop a language -- and therefore create a world -- that is centered in the heart of God.
So Forgotten Songs does two things at the same time. It provides biblical foundations and historical understanding of the Psalter. And it offers some of the best pastoral wisdom in the practical matters of actually singing the psalms in everyday life and worship. And it's there -- in the practical words about actually transforming worship and ministry -- that the book offers some of its best material. The concluding "Resources for the Psalms in the Life of the Church" is a bibliographical essay that offers a wealth of information. It, alone, is worth the price of the book.
Forgotten Songs belongs on every pastor and worship leader's shelf, as well as in every home. Because singing those forgotten songs from the Psalter will transform the contemporary Church into the Body of Christ, the People of God. I know it, because I've seen it. I certainly know these songs reinvigorate my Christian life.
_____________
I was provided a free copy of this book from B&H Publishing for my honest review.