Church music and spiritual transformation in Ghana: A biblical and historical analysis

Samuel BoahenORCID iD & Isaac BoahengORCID iD

Issue: Vol.6 November 2026 Issue 1 Article 2 pp. 15-32
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ejomur.2026612 |   Published online 9th November 2026
© 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Since its emergence, Church music has functioned as a powerful medium for worship, theological instruction, moral formation, and communal identity within both biblical and African indigenous traditions. However, in Ghana, a paradox has emerged: many Christians actively participate in gospel music while living in ways that contradict its teachings, resulting in limited evidence of corresponding spiritual and ethical transformation. This study examines the historical, biblical, and theological foundations of music and investigates the factors that contribute to this disconnect between musical participation and Christian discipleship. As a qualitative desk-based research design, the study draws on biblical texts, historical records, theological literature, and scholarly works on African music and Christianity. Data from these sources were analysed using historical-biblical, conceptual, thematic, comparative, and interpretive approaches. The study reveals that although church music remains an integral part of contemporary worship, its transformative effect is increasingly weakened by commercialisation, entertainment-driven practices, doctrinal inadequacies, and insufficient spiritual formation among both musicians and congregants. It further emphasizes that biblical and African conceptions of music consistently present it as an instrument of moral instruction, spiritual renewal, and communal transformation. The study contributes to scholarship by addressing the academic gap in existing literature, which has largely treated biblical theology, African musical traditions, and contemporary Ghanaian church practice as separate fields of inquiry. By integrating these areas, the study offers a coherent response to the resulting paradox. It recommends renewed theological formation for church musicians, greater doctrinal accountability, and a reorientation of church music toward its original spiritual and ethical purpose.

Keywords: Gospel music, transformation, lyrics, morality, and popularity.

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Samuel Boahen (MA) is a PhD candidate at All-Nations University, Koforidua (Ghana). He holds a Master of Arts in Ministry (Trinity Theological Seminary-Legon, Accra), Master of Arts in Christian Ministry in Management (Christian Service University-Kumasi), Post Graduate Certificate in Theology (Christian Service University-Kumasi); Post Graduate Diploma in Education (Valley View University-Techiman Campus) and BSc. Agricultural Engineering (Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology-Kumasi). Boahen’s research interest lies in African Christian Theology, Biblical Studies, Systematic Theology and Missiology. He has authored three peer-reviewed scholarly articles and co-authored seven additional articles published in reputable academic journals. He has also presented research papers at numerous academic conferences. In addition to his scholarly contributions, he serves as an ordained Reverend Minister of the Methodist Church Ghana, Sunyani Diocese.

Isaac Boaheng (PhD) holds doctorates from the University of the Free State and the University of Pretoria, both in South Africa. He is a Research Fellow at the Biblical and Religious Department of the University of the Free State. He lectures at Christian Service University and has over a hundred peer-reviewed publications. His research interests are in Theology, Biblical Studies, and Translation Studies.

Boahen, Samuel, and Isaac Boaheng. “Church music and spiritual transformation in Ghana: A biblical and historical analysis.” E-Journal of Music Research 6, no.1 (2026): 15-32. https://doi.org/10.38159/ejomur.2026612

© 2024 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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