The Best of Both Worlds

Robert Webber's version of "blended worship" involves much more than simply musical style, as I originally supposed. Many of these ideas are brand new to me, and I am still unsure what to think about them. On one hand, I do not want to reject blended worship because it is foreign to me. On the other hand, I do not want to accept something that replaces the regulative principle of worship found in Scripture.

Webber helps this dilemma by clearly defining what he means by blended worship. He describes it as "a synthesis of the liturgical and contemporary worship renewal movements of the twentieth century. (175)" Later on, he adds: "Blended worship brought the content of the liturgical movement and the experience of the contemporary movement together... Blended worship at its best is substance and relevance, truth and experience, divine and human.(178-179)"

Webber's theory sounds wonderful. But is it possible to blend the strengths of these two movements together without also blending their weaknesses? Is Webber on the right track or is he being too idealistic?