Today there are many books about worship and many books about the book of Psalms, but only a few books about the relationship between the two. Contemporary studies of the Psalter are in flux between those focused upon each psalm in its literary-historical environment (micro-structuralists) and those focused upon the Psalter as a great literary text comparable to other "great texts" from the ancient world (macro-structuralists). Contemporary worship is also in flux between traditionalists (who want to sing hymns) and progressives (who want to experience contemporary Christian music)--the so-called "worship wars." Praise or Performance? seeks to open a dialogue between Psalms scholars on the one hand and Western worshipers on the other in the hope of sensitizing each group to their common theological interests.
Michael S. Moore is the author of two "short theological introductions" to the Pentateuch (Chaos or Covenant?) and the book of Job (Retribution or Reality?) as well as a trilogy of books on the poverty-wealth polarity in Torah (WealthWatch), the Prophets (WealthWarn), and the Writings (WealthWise) all published by Wipf & Stock.