KFUO Sale

So, there's been talk in the local media about the potential sale of Classic 99 KFUO to a local Christian contemporary station seeking to broaden its audience by acquiring a stronger FM signal. The Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, owner of KFUO, wants to sell but they have not been very public about it until recently. I personally find this move to be potentially devastating for the Arts Community at large in St. Louis, as this station has always gone by the tagline "Your station for Classical Music and the Arts." KFUO has been a pillar in that regard, and to lose it just sounds awful.

I know I'm going to sound snobby for what I'm about to quote, but there was an excellent editorial on the potential sale from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and it ended with the following line:

"We take no position on church finances or its mission, or even on musical tastes. We only would note that when it comes to stirring souls, there's nothing on the Christian contemporary playlist that can match Beethoven's 7th."

That line could spark a debate like no other, I would say. Personally, I have never gotten into Christian contemporary music. Trust me, when I was still active in the Southern Baptist Church, it was starting to get HUGE. From that experience alone, I get why it's popular with people. They've taken secular, mainstream genres and switched out secular texts for faith-driven, sacred ones. Pretty easy formula. I have no problem with its existence; it just doesn't speak to me the way sacred classical works like the Fauré Requiem, Handel's Messiah or the Mozart Solemn Vespers do. My main gripe with this seemingly overwhelming desire to broaden the availability of Christian contemporary on the radio is that there are at least FIVE christian stations in the St. Louis area providing this very format. Us classical music people have ONE!

Yeah, I get all the capitalistic arguments for why JOY FM should be able to fairly purchase KFUO for its glorious St. Louis-based signal if the LCMS is willing to sell. But I'm sorry...this is where I think capitalism gets ugly and--dare I say it--soulless.

If you'll indulge me, please take some time to read the comment below, taken from the comments on a related story on the Post-Dispatch website. This gentleman makes a strong, nuanced, religious argument for why KFUO ought to remain Classic 99:

KFUO-FM Classic 99 radio station should not be sold!

Classical music is one of the few genres of music in civilization that helps to promote peace, sensitivity, understanding, beauty and thoughtfulness in human beings. How does the saying go: ‘Music calms the savage beast’. And, if there’s anything of which we need more in this world, it’s peace and understanding.

Therefore, if Classic 99 brings a little more peace and beauty to our troubled world, it has done a noble thing, making it, therefore, worthy of the ownership of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, of which I am a member. Although it does not continuously broadcast the Gospel (the mandate of the Christian - and Lutheran - Church), it does offer beautiful, and often soothing music, to its listeners. This is something of which I think Jesus would approve, and, frankly, which is part of the commandment to ‘love thy neighbor’.

To those (especially in the LCMS) who say that KFUO FM should only preach the Gospel 24/7, and at the risk of being a bit melodramatic, one could compare the story of the Good Samaritan to the work of Classic 99. This kindly, God-fearing soul didn’t first preach the Good News of God’s grace to the poor victim. No, he first attended to his wounds, and provided for his needs. Indeed, through the very service he offered, the Samaritan extended God’s grace.

Moreover, had there existed in that day and age the blessing of radio and Classic 99, the Samaritan might well have turned it on so the soothing strains of Bach, Beethoven, Chopin or Mozart might have calmed the victims’ soul, giving him much needed comfort and solace.

Not only would Jesus approve of the mission of Classic 99, and thereby the LCMS, but I dare say Martin Luther would also approve, considering a quote of his from the book, ‘What Luther Says’: “Nor am I at all of the opinion that all the arts are to be overthrown and cast aside by the Gospel, as some SUPERSPIRITUAL PEOPLE [my emphasis] protest…” (Vol. II, p. 981.)

There are many ministries in the church at large, and in the individual congregations, that don’t ‘preach the Gospel’ 24/7: for example, ice cream socials, car washes by youth groups, church cuppers, fish fries, habitat for humanity, etc. They are, nevertheless, ministries that are part of the church’s mission and command: to love God and love they neighbor. Classic 99 is such a ministry. If none other than Walter A. Maier, the founder of KFUO, and an ardent preacher of the Gospel, considered the ministry of KFUO-FM worthy of the LCMS, I think we should do no less.

As a concert pianist, and a church musician, I perform classical concerts around the country and in St. Louis. As I reflect on what happens when people listen to classical music, I understand that people are affected in a positive way toward the aforementioned attributes of peace, sensitivity, etc. When people sit for sixty to ninety minutes, and do nothing but listen to, and be affected by great musical works of art, they become (I believe, by default) thoughtful human beings. They reflect on their lives, their families, their occupations, and perhaps even their purpose in life. They think about their joys and their problems. Ultimately, I believe this thoughtfulness can, by the grace of God, even help them to see solutions to the challenges and dilemmas in life that beset us.

In conclusion, KFUO-FM Classic 99 is a blessing to society, gives glory to God, and is a credit to the LCMS. If money is needed is needed in the church, though it may sound simplistic, God can and will provide. With God, nothing is impossible. KFUO-FM Classic 99 radio station should not be sold!

Amen, brother!