Church Uses Sign Language To Comply with Laws Prohibiting Singing in Church
With UK Churches currently prohibited by their government from singing during worship even with masks on (also limiting the number of musicians on stage to 6), one church found a creative (and stupid at the same time) way to bypass this restriction: Makaton.
Makaton uses signs and symbols, alongside speech, in order to communicate ideas, and functions similar to a much-simplified sign language. In this case, they’ve dropped the speech and only use the signing.
Woking United Reformed Church, a progressive congregation in Woking, UK, began the project last year upon hearing that singing would be disallowed by the government overlords. They hired an expert to teach the congregation, believing it would be a helpful tool in their worship so long as singing is disallowed, with pastrix (because there’s no such thing as a female pastor) Lucy Brierly saying :
“With the service full of young people and children, I had the challenge of ensuring the worship was engaging enough to ‘keep’ them even though they couldn’t leave their seats or sing. I was delighted to see them all engaging with the songs through signs, and it was a beautiful sight to see those gathered joining in unison, signing the words along to the music.”
While the band plays, congregation members stand silently and those proficient enough would be able to use gestures to repeat some of the lyrics in the songs, while others who have been slacking might make the occasional sign, and visitors are left to say nothing.
If people wish to include sign language or Makaton into their worship, that is certainly their choice and all well and good. But a church congregation refusing to worship God with their voices when they have them, even under masks and socially distanced, for months and months on end, is biblical disobedience and sin, plain and simple.
Though the fact that they are already attending this service with a woman in charge and belonging to a denomination that is fully supportive of same-sex marriage should show they are no stranger to hardening their heart and suppressing the voice of the Holy Spirit.
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If you want to make my blood pressure jump sky high, talk about that nonsense “singing is a super spreader activity.” GRRRRR. Congregations are to sing praises in worship to God by Biblical mandate. How many churches tell their members to stand silently, “sing with your heart” (former church of mine) or sing with your mask on yet the same people go to a public bathroom, grab and open public door handles and dare breathe the same air in Target or Walmart?! Just another demonic victory in so many churches that stopped worshipping God because man said so.
Seriously?Woking? Oh Vey!
I would have stayed home and streamed to the U.S. churches that are conservative, singing old hymns and old fashioned sermons. I refuse to mask up in church and our church didn’t require it, most were closed for several months anyway nationwide. People streamed sermons.
You may be interested to know that congregational singing in England has not and is not prohibited. It is strongly recommended that churches do not do it, but it is referred to as a ‘should not’, rather than a ‘must not’ in the relevant legislation. Some churches continue to sing their praises to God audibly in the UK!