By Rev. Chris Brouillard-Coyle
CONGREGATIONS have often included rhythm instruments (what we call shakers) in contemporary worship opportunities. These work well with praise bands and are great for encouraging participation of young people.
In general, shakers invite a different kind of energy to the music. They don’t have to be reserved for special events. As long as there are individuals willing to shake along, these can work with organ, piano, and guitar music. It just requires a bit of openness and joyfulness.
These instruments can also be a tangible form of inclusion for those who are neurodivergent, particularly for those who have limited capacity for verbal communication. Experience in the congregation where I serve has shown that parishioners who have difficulty participating in other ways, come alive when given a tambourine, and encouraged to play along during music. It is one of the ways we say: ‘we value your presence and what you bring to our worship.’
Some may have noticed that the newest hymnbook of the Anglican Church of Canada, “Sing a New Creation”, includes drum notation for some of the songs. I have recently learned that this was an intentional choice in which the committee acknowledged the harm caused when the Anglican Church, during colonisation, forbid drums in the Anglican Indigenous churches. The committee hoped that by publishing this text with the inclusion of drum notation, it will signify an openness to drums and dancing within Christian liturgies, an important effort towards decolonisation.
Turning to Grace calls us to recognise that: “The Good News of the Gospel is for all peoples and nations and so, as Christians, we are called to exercise hospitality and practice generosity in the face of difference since we are all beloved children of God.”
As a result, we are encouraged to audit our spaces and practices, including worship and music, for opportunities to make space for others. Rhythm instruments/shakers are a simple way to signify to diverse individuals that who they are – young, neurodivergent, or from diverse cultures – is a valued part of the family of faith.
Recognising that Synod is where we assemble as the family of faith that represents the fullness of this diocese creates an opportunity for us to embrace that diversity and honour the breadth and depth of who we are. To have some among us bring rhythm instruments acknowledges the cultural, youthful, and neurodivergent individuals for whom shakers are a meaningful way to participate in worship. It is a simple way that we engage in acts of decolonisation and diversity.
We don’t all have to bring shakers, that’s the beauty of being Anglican. We can have those willing to shake things up (pun intended) and those who prefer to keep it simple, and both can coexist holding each other in love, understanding, and mutual respect.
May we trust that the Spirit works through diversity, shaking and not-shaking, as both make music together.
Rev. Chris Brouillard-Coyle is a co-chair of SEJH.