On the 28th of March, one of the clown princes of
the Baptist Board posted a weird comment About the worst Baptist preacher I ever heard.[i] There are several
interesting takeaways.
The “style” of the “worst Baptist preacher” who is referenced might be referred to as chanting or intoning. It was once much more common than it is today. We Baptists share this style as part of the heritage from our Separate Baptist ancestry, in my opinion (though subject to revision if new information of which I am unaware is revealed).[ii]
The original post and many of the comments judge that preacher and his preaching by their personal opinions rather than the content of the message. (Only the original poster has actually heard him; everyone else was commenting gratuitously). Rather than hearing the message and searching the scriptures whether these things are so, the preaching is outright dismissed because the hearers do not approve of the way the preacher talks. As far as I can tell, the scriptures teach us to judge a message by its conformity to the word of God. The preached word is the word to the extent that it agrees with the living Word (Jesus Christ) and the written word (the Bible). (Cf. e.g. Romans 10:17; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 4:2.)
Additionally, there is the judgment of the heart of the message bearer based on observing externals. “I believe he’s quite a sham.” “Deliberately using poor grammer & pronunciation is a sham…People in this area don’t talk that way…And the grunting every few words is certainly a sham…All phony as a $3 bill…he only does it when he preaches, which is LESS-THAN-HONEST, & anyone preaching should be honest as possible.” One confirms, “it’s still a pretense. They should talk the same on Sunday as they do the rest of the week, without putting on a show with their language.” Another chimes in “My wife and I all the time laugh at people who have preacher speak.”
There is little doubt that some preachers “put on a show.” That is not confined to a particular “style” of preaching, or to preachers who speak with a different accent, grammar, or vocabulary. The naysayers do not take into account several possible factors.
There are different views on what constitutes proper decorum in the pulpit (much based on pragmatism rather that biblical precept and example). There is both taught and learned behavior in preaching (i.e., how one preaches, stylewise). There is no doubt that some of us have beneath the surface “learned behavior” that is considered our “normal” when it comes to preaching. There is room for discussion of whether it is actually good or bad without calling it a sham, dishonest, put on, a performance, or a show. I honestly do not think a majority of preachers “talk the same on Sunday as they do the rest of the week” – whether for good or bad or indifferent reasons. Preaching is readily viewed as different from “normal” speech, as well as different from “normal” oratory. It is speaking on behalf of God and his word.
The naysayers may have it backwards! This man’s preaching may reflect his innate grammar and vocabulary, and what is his “normal” way of speaking.[iii] His “other” speech may reflect his learned behavior – a way to get along in a culture distinct from his church culture. People who move in two different “cultures” may have two ways of speaking. I work in an education industry setting, and when I am around administrators, I may speak differently than I do around my family, my friends, and the people I work with on a daily basis. If any of it is a “put on” or a “sham” it would actually be when I am apprehensive and make an effort to sound a little more intelligent than I figure I usually sound, on average.[iv]
I likely have a family voice, a work voice, a preaching voice, and even a writing voice.[v] More times than not, I try to write a little more “scholarly” than the sound of my voice and the patterns of my speech! However, when the occasion warrants, I may bring out the voice (or part of it) that reflects the way I grew up speaking, like Who You Gonna Believe?[vi] I ain’t gonna apologize for it when I do.
Sending conflicting and contradictory messages is deceitful. Speaking with “different voices” in different contexts is not. It is a “normal” part of human interaction. Yes, some preachers may put on a show. If you are familiar with the case and know what you are talking about, that can be one thing. If not, don’t assume or presume that you have some grand gnostic knowledge that, like a rabbit’s foot, lets you know that a certain “style” of preaching that you do not like is showmanship, and that the preaching “style” you like is the real deal. It’s simply not that simple, and you may be displaying some of your own ignorance.
[ii] I am not aware that this style of preaching has a consistently common or regular name. It has been referred to a chanting, intonation, singsong preaching – as well as many less than complimentary terms. Stephen Garrett has copied several good quotes in his blog titled Singsong Preaching. H. B. Charles and Ralph D. West refer to the black experience of this preaching as the Celebrating, Whooping, Intoning Tradition. You can hear a bit of this style in this sermon closing of H. B. Charles, Jr., pastor of Shiloh Metropolitan Baptist Church at Jacksonville/Orange Park, Florida.
[iii] I searched and found radio messages by the unnamed preacher in question. Yes, his style may seem unusual to those unfamiliar with folks who preach this way. Most preachers I know do not preach in this style. On the other hand, I am quite familiar with it. To me, his preaching does not sound at all contrived or dishonest. It is just a man preaching the way he knows to preach. Dislike it if you will, but do not charge him with fakery on that account.
[iv] The speaking voice we use when we are comfortable and uninhibited is most likely our “normal” voice (though speaking of a “normal” voice in most cases may be a bit misleading). Many urban people think that rural-sounding speakers are not as educated as they are. Accent does not equal education level. However, some people adapt their speech patterns consistently to what they think should reflect their levels of education. Others do not care. Additionally, I know a person from England living in East Texas who learned and changed speech patterns in order to avoid the accent’s constant calling attention to itself.
[v] The online article “Appalachian Code Switching” gives an interesting perspective about how, when, and why people might change their speech patterns. “An Expert Explains Why Your Voice Changes in Different Situations” is also interesting, discussing how people use different voices to achieve different interactions. In addition “Finding the Right Tone of Voice in Communication” discusses how we use different tones of voice in different situations, such as motivation, humor, questioning, etc. (This latter article is about training oneself to use the “apt” tone, but we nevertheless learn and practice much of that subconscious through experience.)
[vi] I originally wrote that back in the 1980s, and (if I remember correctly) actually adapted some (much?) of the speech of the article “up” a bit when I posted it on my blog in 2016.
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