If you’re in A Cappella or Gospel Choir, this may not come as a surprise to you, but let’s be open about it: There is an obvious animosity between the two choirs. And it needs to be stopped.

I’m not including every person in each choir in this accusation, but it is true for more than just a few select choir members. There have been passing comments, sneers, and people refusing to go to the others’ concert. I’ve heard comments along the lines of “Gospel Choir isn’t even good at singing” and “A Cappella is boring and doesn’t even really worship God.”

Why does this animosity exist? I would expect this kind of behavior from secular schools, like the competing choirs in “Pitch Perfect.” But that’s a movie—this is real life, and there’s no excuse for the choir-hating that is taking place.

I cannot honestly exclude myself from having these negative feelings at one point. When I came to ENC, I joined A Cappella because I enjoy that kind of music. Shortly after, it became very clear to me that we, A Cappella Choir, did not really like Gospel Choir. For what reason, I’m not exactly sure. Maybe it was simply because they sang differently, or maybe it was because it seemed like non-choir students at the school liked Gospel Choir so much more than A Cappella and that just made us bitter.

But as I thought about it these past few years, not liking each other—especially for those reasons—is absolutely ridiculous.

Gospel Choir and A Cappella Choir have the same goal: to minister to people through music and song. Members of both choirs are encouraged to sing for the glory of God and to evangelize to our audiences.

As brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to be united in our ministry. We need as much support and love from each other as possible. Instead, we focus on ourselves and call our own choir better than the other. When we do this, we take some of the focus from God and instead we become focused on our own pride.

There needs to be an attitude adjustment. We need to stop talking down about Gospel Choir or A Cappella Choir. The animosity going on only creates gossip, hurt feelings, and division. Instead, we need to share in our passion for singing. We should go to each others’ concerts to show support for our shared ministry. We should rejoice in each others’ success and encourage one another.

Yes, there are differences between the choirs, and I’m not saying that everyone should be in both choirs. A Cappella and Gospel Choir have different methods of singing, but we are both charged with the mission to spread God’s love through song. It’s a special ministry we are a part of; let’s enjoy the blessings of being a part of that ministry together.