7 comments

1. Gentlemen, I am rolling my eyes. The present St Paul’s Cathedral was commissioned (along with all the other City churches designed by Wren) to replace Old St Paul’s which was destroyed in the Fire of 1666.

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   • Allan,

     Thank you. We recorded this sometime ago. What did we conclude?

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     • You concluded, after five minutes of mithering, that it couldn’t possibly be St Paul’s Cathedral because it ‘didn’t exist yet.’ The previous mediaeval gothic building most certainly did, and indeed, the decision to replace it with Wren’s baroque design (too Roman) was highly controversial. And to think that H. Perkins ministered round the corner in Aldersgate…

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       • Mithering is what we do best on Saturday mornings!

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2. Around the 25:00 mark you mention a “young man” who put all 150 Psalms to music. Could you please share those songs with us through a link or otherwise? Thank you.

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   • Michael Owens

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3. As always: great episode and topic! I would love to have Pr McDermott’s input as well, as we can all guess he would have great input! I’m new to the PCA (formally in March 2026) and think I long for primacy of psalms (singing) in worship (let alone “a cappella”), however I would prefer directly out of the Bible translation we read from (ESV), just so it is easier to memorize scripture. Although, I know if/when contemporary revisions of translations are necessary, it may change the meter of a tune (melody).
   There will always be “pros and cons” with adapting contemporary melodies to scripture, as even a “tune” can distract us: I recall hearing a hymn that I would swear was to “Ah! vous dirai-je, maman.” (Twinkle little star, Baa Baa Black Sheep, Alphabet Song, etc) Which in turn made me focus on trying to guess why the tune was so familiar. 😅
   I personally think the only instrument should be piano, only for melodic accompaniment: no long intro, no interludes/solos, etc. I also would rather hear the congregation sing versus a “choir” or “team”. But in our Western society with a lack of formal musical training and our “reserved” attitude (fear) about public speaking, let alone public singing, I think the average congregant finds it challenging to sing: a melody they may not be familiar with, words they are unfamiliar with, and potentially people they are unfamiliar with – all focusing on themselves instead of the one who they are there to worship.
   Anyone been part of a congregation that had a weekly “sing” fellowship (like a Bible study with singing practice in preparation for a psalm for the month/week)?

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