Christian Copyright Licensing International - Copyright Issues in Worship

Copyright Issues in Worship

It is important to note that the performance of works in copyright (for example, playing music) as part of an act of worship is specifically exempted from copyright laws in several countries.

Problems began to arise during the 1970s, when large numbers of new worship songs were written and became popular in many churches. Managing these songs was difficult, as churches typically used material drawn from a number of songbooks, and new publications were released frequently. It became common practice for churches to either create their own songbook, to include songs on a service sheet, or to project the songs using an overhead projector. (Slide projectors were occasionally used in the early days, and today the use of a video projector is more common). All these options required making a copy of the lyrics, an act which was in breach of copyright law.

The same issues arose for church musicians, who needed a collection of music books. Frequently, they resorted to photocopying music, which again is a breach of copyright law.

To undertake this legally would previously have required a church to obtain permission from all the copyright holders, a time-consuming and potentially costly process. CCLI has simplified matters by negotiating agreements with music publishers that enable them to issue licenses giving permission for words or music to be copied in return for a specified fee.