70 years ago--Mainline churches look to worldly music in an attempt to attract young people

The use of worldly methods and appeasement of engagement with popular culture in an effort to attract people--especially young people--to church was adopted by mainline churches long before it became fashionable in Evangelicalism. It may seem hard to believe today, but in the mid-1950s, religious broadcasting was dominated by mainline denominations; Thomas Reeves wrote about this is his book The Empty Church: The Suicide of Liberal Christianity (1996). The surveys cited in the following article provide an interesting glimpse into the popular musical tastes of young people in the United States just a few months before Elvis Presley became a national rock and roll celebrity (he was already becoming known in the field of what was then known as country and western music; a poll of disc jockeys published in the November 12 issue of The Billboard named him as the most promising C&W artist, with both sides of his single I Forgot to Remember to Forget/Mystery Train in the top 10 of all three C&W charts).

As reported by June Bundy in The Billboard, December 24, 1955 (bold in original, several errors corrected by blogger):

Churches May Woo Kids by Rockin' 'Em

Council Polls Teen-Ager Taste as Video Program Guide; Age Preferences Vary

NEW YORK, Dec. 17--Altho religious interests have long frowned on the teen-agers' preference for rock and roll music, the rhythm and blues medium may yet be utilized as a means of bringing youngsters into the church.

National Council of Churches of Christ introduced the idea of presenting jazz in a religious TV context on the "Theology of Jazz" portions of its CBS-TV series "Look Up and Live." A recent survey by the Council reveals the show is attracting older teen-agers with such jazz greats as Dave Brubeck, but kids in the 13-year-old age group don't dig modern jazz yet.

Instead, younger teen-agers polled for music preferences on the show almost unanimously vote for r.&b.-type record artists; thus confronting Frank Nichols, producer for the Council's broadcasting and film commission, with something of a dilemma.

Lyric Problem

The lyrics of many r.&b. tunes make it difficult--if not impossible--to work them into the context of a religious show. Nevertheless, Nichols is wrestling with the problem and hopes to work out some kind of solution.

The NCCC has been conducting extensive surveys on several different teen-age levels for some time now, in an effort to determine the most effective ways of reaching youngsters. At the same time, the teen-age market in general has become more and more a focal point of merchandising and marketing surveys made by the radio-TV industry, record companies and manufacturers of teen-age products.

Teen-Age Survey

Teen-age Surveys, Inc., this week, for instance, reported on its fourth continuing survey of teen-agers' views on deejays' radio-TV programs, music records and advertising effectiveness, with results again pointing up the differences in tastes between high school and college students.

Cognizant of the growing awareness of the teen-age market by manufacturers, Cleveland's independent radio station WERE is readying a merchandising service, whereby products aimed at the teen-age market will be tested by the station with special groups of teen-agers assembled for deejays' shows.

The survey efforts of the NCCC have been concentrated on three different channels, with a major advertising agency conducting regular tests on a mixed-age audience utilizing electronic program analysis equipment. Another survey is conducted at Columbia University to tap the college group. Still a third is made in the field and generally aimed at the pre-college group.

Qualifications

To qualify as a testee, the teen-agers polled must be "unchurched," since the primary aim of the show is to make converts.

Past surveys have shown that "Look Up and Live" has registered most effectively with the 17 to 23 age group. Consequently, Nichols now feels that somehow they must apply what they have learned about 13 to 17-year-old tastes (notably the rock and roll craze) to future programming.

Interestingly enough, Nichols notes, the 13-year-olds prefer Frank Sinatra (who is liked by all age groups incidentally) to Eddie Fisher, with the latter's name seldom showing up in their request-answers. Bill Haley, the Crew-Cuts, and the Four Freshmen are others showing up strong on their preference sheet, along with Al Hibbler, Count Basie and Joe Williams.

The 13-year-olds have little or no interest in modern jazz. Several students in this group thought Dave Brubeck was a classical musician, and a couple referred to him as blind, evidently confusing him with George Shearing. Also the 17 to 23-year-old group has little interest in r.&b. They responded much more to Brubeck (who has made two appearances on series including one wherein he commented on segregation and how jazz has broken thru the color lines), Eddie Sauter, Stan Kenton, Wilbur de Paris and other jazz greats.

However, surveys indicate that both the 13 to 17 and 17 to 23 age groups have little interest in straight commercial pop singers, and Nichols has programmed the series accordingly during the last year. At first he planned to include country and western artists from time to time, but, according to the surveys, there is virtually no demand among teen-agers generally for c.&w.

Electronic Count

Most scientific of the NCCC's surveys are those conducted by the electronic program analysis equipment, with each person in the audience reporting his responses thruout the show by pressing one of three levers ("not at all interested," "fairly interested," and "very interested").

When these individual reports are out together in chart form, they form a graph, indicating which segs of the show held the most audience interest. Nichols uses them to determine programming schedules on future shows.

The graphs are so detailed that they accurately chart the decline and rise of audience interest on each musical number, thereby enabling a performer to gauge exactly where the lyric or his larynx faltered.

In line with this, Nichols opines that record companies might well utilize such electronic survey equipment to determine which take on a record session is most effective.

Marian and Jimmy McPartland are scheduled to appear on Part 5 of "Theology of Jazz" on "Look Up and Live" January 1. Nichols is also talking of airing a live remote from a Mitch Miller record session early next year. Singer Merv Griffin is the permanent emcee on the "Look Up and Live" which spotlights various members of the clergy (Reverend Alvin "$64,000 Question" Kershaw, etc.) appearing on a rotating basis.

Other music figures who have appeared on the show during the past year include Jerry Jerome's orchestra, Ellis Larkin, Sonny Greer, Lawrence Brown, Jo Jones and Mahalia Jackson.

See also my posts: Today's Evangelicals, Tomorrow's Liberals--A Warning from 1983 (January 13, 2010)

Ambrose University College's "Jazz Day" provides evidence of increasing worldliness in evangelical schools (March 5, 2014)

50 years ago: United Church in Calgary experiments with modern music (June 15, 2018)

Synagogue in U.S. Virgin Islands rewrites Beatles songs for Purim (March 14, 2020)

This recent prophecy sounds plausible, but has already proven false

But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die.
And if thou say in thine heart, How shall we know the word which the Lord hath not spoken?
When a prophet speaketh in the name of the Lord, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the Lord hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him. Deuteronomy 18:20-22

The description of this video from the YouTube channel Near Death Experiences, posted in late November 2025, reads:

Eva Crawford, a dedicated nurse with 12 years of experience, never believed in dramatic spiritual encounters — until she died for 5 minutes on November 26th, 2025, during a routine shift. In those moments, she experienced a near-death experience (NDE) where Jesus Christ revealed urgent warnings about the mark of the beast system and where believers must never be found when it’s fully implemented.

This life-changing NDE opened her eyes to the urgency of the times we are living in and the importance of staying faithful.

Watch till the end to hear how this experience transformed her and why it’s a message everyone needs to hear.

If you're wondering how people are going to be deceived into worshiping the Antichrist, listen to the part of the video starting at about the 3:05 mark, and notice how certain Ms. Crawford is that she was in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ:

I found myself standing in a place of such great beauty that human words feel totally unable to describe it...a presence so holy, so perfect that I immediately understood that I was standing before God Himself. That's when I saw Him approaching, and every part of my spirit knew who it was before my mind could even grasp it. Jesus Christ, the savior I'd believed in but never truly known, walked toward me with eyes that held the kindness of forever and the urgency of a father warning his children of immediate danger. His appearance wasn't like the paintings in church windows or the movies I'd seen. He looked like a man in his 30s, but there was something eternal about Him, as if He held all of history and all of forever inside Himself. When He looked at me, I felt completely known, completely understood, and completely loved despite every mistake and doubt I'd ever carried.

However, He apparently didn't resemble the most recent physical description of the apostle John's encounter with Him in Revelation 1:13-17:

And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.
His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;
And his feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and his voice as the sound of many waters.
And he had in his right hand seven stars: and out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword: and his countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.
And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:

Ms. Crawford may indeed have had a spiritual experience, and her description of how the system of the Beast will be implemented sounds plausible. However, she gave specific dates for the fulfillment of her alleged vision, and we already have evidence that it fails the biblical test of 100% accuracy in the passage from Deuteronomy cited above. Starting at about the 28:03 mark of the video, we hear and read:

I saw the exact order of events that would start the mark system, and it was much closer than anyone imagined. In January 2026, I watched as a coordinated set of computer attacks crippled the global money system. Banks failed overnight, stock markets crashed with no hope of recovery, and digital money became worthless. The confusion was so complete that governments around the world declared emergency rule and stopped normal laws.

But this wasn't a random attack by enemies or terrorist groups. As Jesus allowed me to see behind the scenes of earthly events, I realized this crisis had been carefully planned by the same powers that had spent decades preparing the mark system. The collapse was done on purpose, designed to create such desperation that people would beg for any solution no mater what it cost. "Watch how they offer salvation through technology," Jesus said. And I saw world leaders appearing on every working screen, announcing the emergency start of a new body-based identification system. This wasn't presented as the mark of the beast, but as humanity's rescue from money collapse and social chaos. The lies were expertly done. Children would be protected from being taken through GPS tracking. Elderly patients would never be without their medical records in emergencies. Workers would have instant access to their job benefits and social help. Everyone would be equal in this new system, no matter their race, class or background. But I could see the spiritual truth behind this attractive idea. The moment anyone accepted this mark, once that choice was made. The plan began with the weak populations that Jesus had shown me. Patients in hospitals were told they needed the mark for their safety and the safety of others. Children in schools were marked as part of required health programs. Elderly residents in care facilities received it automatically with their routine medical procedures. Within weeks, the system spread to include all of society. No one could buy food, access transport, receive medical care, or even enter public buildings without the mark. Those who refused were systematically kept out of every part of normal life, labeled as terrorists and threats to public health and safety.

I watched as the four dangerous places Jesus had warned me about became exactly the death traps he had predicted. The cities turned into spy prisons where unmarked individuals were hunted by complex AI systems that could spot faces, track movements, and guess behavior patterns. The medical facilities became enforcement centers where health care workers--many believing they were helping people--gave the mark as standard practice. The churches proved to be the most heartbreaking betrayal of all. I saw pastor after pastor standing before their groups, Bible in hand, explaining why receiving the mark was not only okay, but actually the loving thing to do. They quoted Bible verses about obeying those in charge and caring for the needs of neighbors. They argued that the mark was simply technology, no different from a driver's license or social security number. But what upset me most was seeing how many sincere believers were carried away by these arguments. These weren't people who fought against God or mocked faith. They were true Christians who had trusted their spiritual leaders more than they had built their own relationship with Christ. When their pastors assured them the mark was acceptable, they followed that advice straight into eternal destruction.

It is now February 2026. The events prophesied for January 2026 didn't come to pass, but the statement that true Christians will take the mark of the beast doesn't agree with scripture. Those who take the mark will indeed go into eternal torment (Revelation 14:11), but they won't be true Christians. The tribulation chapters (6-19) of Revelation indicate that the Church will be in Heaven (which implies a pre-Tribulation rapture). Also, the real Lord Jesus Christ said that those who are His sheep will never be lost (John 5:24, 10:28-30, 17:12, 18:9). Since the prophecies allegedly revealed to Eva Crawford didn't take place by the date predicted, and they contradict statements that the real Jesus made about Himself, it's plain that the "Jesus" who allegedly revealed them to her was a false Jesus and a false prophet.

The most deceptive error is that which is mixed with truth. The scenario presented by Eva Crawford is plausible, but you don't have to receive direct revelation from God in order to see the direction in which things are going. Covid 19 in the early 2020s was likely a dry run, and this blogger can't forget the cowardice and servility toward dictatorship on the part of church leaders.