Scott Aniol

Scott Aniol is the founder and Executive Director of Religious Affections Ministries. He is Chair of the Worship Ministry Department at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he teaches courses in ministry, worship, hymnology, aesthetics, culture, and philosophy. He is the author of Worship in Song: A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship, Sound Worship: A Guide to Making Musical Choices in a Noisy World, and By the Waters of Babylon: Worship in a Post-Christian Culture, and speaks around the country in churches and conferences. He is an elder in his church in Fort Worth, TX where he resides with his wife and four children.

Author Archives: Scott Aniol

Use Sound Worship in a study group!

We’ve designed Sound Worship to be especially useful with small study groups. 6 short, easy-to-read, engaging chapters provide perfect opportunity for discussion and application in a small group setting. We have developed several free resources to help you use Sound Worship in such a group: Personal Study CompanionThe companion is divided according to the chapter and… Continue Reading

Get a free digital copy of Sound Worship!

Get a free digital copy of Sound Worship by posting the following message to Twitter, Facebook, or your blog: “Get a free digital copy of Scott Aniol’s new book, Sound Worship! http://bit.ly/soundworshipfree” Then let us know that you have posted the message by e-mailing us at: info@religiousaffections.org. After we have confirmed your post, we will send… Continue Reading

The Lord's Day

The Lord's Day

Christians should set apart every day unto to the Lord as a sacrifice of worship, but the first day of the week has been specifically distinguished from the other six days by God. This special day was prophesied in the Old Testament: I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation.… Continue Reading

Where Is Christ in Christmas?

Where Is Christ in Christmas?

Christmas—a very mention of the word produces delight and expectation in the hearts of people everywhere. Or does it? For some Christians, Christmas is a much-anticipated season to celebrate the birth of Christ. For others, it is also a time to encourage family closeness and tradition. But still others refuse to celebrate at all, insisting… Continue Reading

Applications are not as important as Philosophy

Applications are not as important as Philosophy

I have strong convictions about worship philosophy. I also have strong opinions about certain applications of that philosophy. But these are not the same thing. Neither are they equally important. Philosophical convictions are judgments based on clear, biblical principles. Notice that I did not say that the convictions themselves are necessarily clear, but they are… Continue Reading

Can Rap be Christian? Evaluating Hip Hop

This entry is part 2 of 2 in the series Can Rap Be Christian You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Today we finally arrive at a discussion of the nature of rap itself. This post will be beneficial for you, however, only if you accept the following assertions on made on Monday: Man is completely depraved and thus cannot trust his own preferences implicitly. Music is a medium of human communication and thus must be… Continue Reading

Can Rap be Christian? The Presuppositions

This entry is part 1 of 2 in the series Can Rap Be Christian You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Are “Christian” and “rap” mutually exclusive? Mark Dever’s answer after a 9Marks interview with Shai Linne and Curtis Allen (Voice): “Hardly.” This from one of the most conservative evangelicals alive today. It is primarily for that reason that I’d like to make a few comments about the interview. If this is what one of the most… Continue Reading

New book coming in January: Sound Worship

I’m excited to announce the coming publication of my new book, Sound Worship: A Guide to Making Musical Choices in a Noisy World! This book is targeted for the average Christian layman. My first book, Worship In Song, is a biblical approach to tackling issues related to music and worship, but it’s quite technical and sometimes… Continue Reading

The Watts Controversy

On the wall in my study I have three portraits. All three are portraits of theologians who were also heavily involved with music. They are Martin Luther, J.S. Bach, and Isaac Watts. All three men fought their battles in defense of high standards for worship music. All three had their share of controversy. And all… Continue Reading

Is Music a Separation Issue?

Music philosophy is not a separation issue of the same kind of level as heterodoxy or flagrant, known sin. Probably one of the most common questions I’m asked is if I think differences over worship/music philosophy warrants separation. Here’s my attempt at an answer. What do you mean by separation? I do not view separation… Continue Reading

Does Music Matter?

Does music matter to God? Should it matter to us? We are living in a day when people — even Christians — see music as unimportant. Enjoyable, yes; but necessary or important? No. We see this kind of thinking all around us. Music education is now considered extracurricular in schools. It’s extra. It’s not important.… Continue Reading

Book Review: The Glory Due His Name by Gary Reimers

The Glory Due His Name: What God Says About Worship by Gary Reimers. Greenville, SC: BJU Press, 2009. 100 pp. $9.95. The Glory Due His Name by Gary Reimers is a welcome addition to the Bob Jones University Seminary “Biblical Discernment for Difficult Issues” series. Gary Reimers is the senior pastor of Cornerstone Baptist Church… Continue Reading

What is influencing fundamentalist worship today?

As I consider the landscape of fundamentalism today,1 some characteristics of its worship encourage me, while others concern me. The primary influences on modern fundamentalist worship reveal the reasons for this mixed assessment. Three Influences Shaping Worship Today In my estimation, three sources have influenced modern fundamentalist worship most: 1.John Piper 2.Wayne Grudem 3.Sovereign Grace… Continue Reading

Externalism

Externalism is a sneaky error in which we insist that the outward appearance reveals the heart. Or, another way of saying it is that inward, heart realities will show themselves outwardly. Conservatives are often charged with externalism by progressives. The progressives claim (sometimes rightly) that conservatives place too much emphasis on outward appearance, forms, rituals, duties, and traditions… Continue Reading

Why trying to emulate Edwards may actually be emulating Finney

I’ve been doing some reading recently from both Jonathan Edwards and Charles Finney. In most ways, these men, their philosophies, theologies, and practices are polar opposites. But as I studied, I couldn’t help but notice what appear to be similarities in what they said. And the deeper I looked, the more apparent it became that… Continue Reading

Charles Finney on "excitements"

From Revivals of Religion (CBN University Press), 1978. Men are so sluggish, there are so many things to lead their minds off from religion and to oppose the influence of the Gospel, that it is necessary to raise an excitement among them, till the tide rises so high as to sweep away the opposing obstacles. They… Continue Reading