The Baker Who Also Writes and Teaches
I will not be keeping my pastoral office hours this week due to the holidays. I am also changing my hours on Monday. I will still be at Cafe Mediterra, but I will be there 2:00–4:00 p.m. instead of in the morning. I hope this didn’t inconvenience anyone this morning.
Shawna
I visited Grace Place on October 14. Due to all things going on in my life, I am now posting about it. Grace Place is a small congregation: they run 40-50 in their Sunday 10:00 a.m. service. I was very happy to see a small congregation doing well in the city. Before this the churches I’ve visited were huge. It was nice to see something smaller, since I will be beginning very small.
What I had never seen before was that no one was up front during the singing, prayer or psalm reading. The piano would introduce the song, and the priest, Father Tim Curtis, would sing loudly to get us started. He also led from the side in reading the Psalm. The only time people were up front were for the reading of the Scripture, the sermon, and Eucharist. After the songs, prayer, and Scripture Readings, there was sermon. The associate pastor, Sonny Lopez, preached. It was nice to see a woman preaching. I haven’t seen that since I stopped attending the First United Methodist Church with my husband last year (they have two female pastors on staff who preach regularly). She preached a sermon I needed to hear: that Christ is the one who empowers us. We walk in Christ’s power not our own.
After the sermon was a time of community prayer. After Father Tim prayed the pastoral prayer, people were invited to voice their prayers and thanksgivings, which they did. There were several prayer requests, thanksgivings, and praises. It was a time of true communal worship. I think I am going to be doing this in my own services. After passing the peace and the offering, we gathered around the altar for communion. Their altar is circular, so we all could stand around it as a family and receive the elements. Then there was the sending out and benediction. One of the really nice things about this service is they have cut out all of the getting up and down, bowing, genuflecting, and crossing yourself. So you didn’t have to worry about what you should be doing if you didn’t grow up in a high liturgical tradition.
I really liked the small community feel. But that is a personal preference. I lived in a small town and grew up in small churches. The thing I really liked is that this church is a community. There were coffee and snacks after the service, and everyone talked. I was warmly welcomed and talked with several people about the church. The same thing happened when we passed the peace during the service. Everyone took the time to talk, and there was a lot of hugging.
On Wednesday Grace Place has a noon Eucharist, which is a very simple service. There is no music and the liturgy is cut down to its basic components. It’s a quiet service of reflection and short sermon then Eucharist. It is a nice oasis in the middle of busy week if you work, live, or go to school in the Printers Row area. Centering Prayer is 12:00-12:15, and the Eucharist is 12:15-12:45 p.m.
Grace Place is very intentional about community and worshiping as a community. I really enjoyed worshiping with them and getting to know some of the people. I’ve been dropping in on the Wednesday Eucharist every other week or so.
I want to finish the post with the creed they use. They do not use The Apostle’s Creed or The Nicene Creed in their liturgy. They use this creed from A New Zealand Prayer Book/He Carakia Mihinare o Aotearoa:
You O God, are supreme and holy.
You create our world and give us life.
Your purpose overarches everything we do.
You have always been with us.
You are God.
You, O God, are infinitely generous,
good beyond all measure.
You came to us before we came to you.
You have revealed and proved
your love for us in Jesus Christ,
who lived and died and rose again.
You are with us now.
You are God.
You, O God, are Holy Spirit.
You empower us to be your gospel in the world.
You reconcile and heal; you overcome death.
You are our God. We worship you.
The picture is of a service at Grace Place from their website: Grace Church Chicago.
See also:
Willow Creek Chicago
A Via Media for Worship
W Is for Worship
I stood before her tomb: St. Catherine of Sienna at Sant Maria Soph de Minerva, Rome’s only Gothic church. Her remains were entombed in the high altar, which was gorgeous. Her likeness had been sculpted and laid in a glass sarcophagus. I gave an offering, lit a candle, and said The Lord’s Prayer. Later I thought of how I would have asked her to pray for me, if I prayed to saints.
There were were a few things Catherine did not like about the Catholic Church the same way there are a few things I do not like about the Church of the Nazarene. In fact, when we were in Rome, I was seriously considering leaving my denomination because of decisions made on the general leadership level that I thought were nonbiblical and unethical. I didn’t know if I could stay a member–especially an ordained minister–when I doubted decisions and motives at the highest levels of our leadership.
Catherine was born in 1347 in Siena, Italy. This was the time of the Great Schism in the Catholic Church with France and Italy vying for power. 75 years earlier French cardinals and the monarchy had succeeded in moving the papacy to Avignon, France. A move the Italians saw a betrayal of the highest order. For a time there were two popes because Rome and Italy refused to recognize the French “puppet” pope. By the time Catherine was born the papacy was firmly established in France.
The Sunday I attended Willow Creek Chicago Church was the three-ring circus I was expecting and then some. There were good points. The music was good, and they had a string section in addition to the usual praise guitars, drums, and keyboards (I love strings). They also had a small choir plus praise team. There was both drama and dancing. The pastor is a good speaker, and the sermon had interactive aspects. But everything was very “I” and “me” oriented with a “what can God do for me” mentality. There was also the jump from salvation to heaven. We’re saved to go to heaven. There was nothing about building God’s kingdom and being Christ’s ambassadors here on earth. There was a huge emphasis in the sermon that we are made in the image of God, but there was nothing about imaging God to our world. We’re saved to have a private, personal walk with Jesus until we go to heaven. There were also no ties with the church-at-large or the historical church. There was no communion, which didn’t surprise me. There was nothing said at the end of the service about going out to be God’s image in our communities and doing kingdom work.
The Willow Creek service tended to be on the schizoid side. We sang. Then there was the welcome and greeting each other. The sermon was next. The first time I thought the sermon was over was when the drama started. But the sermon continued after that. Then there was a song, and the sermon continued after that and then finally finished. Then more songs. The service was set to get people emotional and elicit an emotional response (one of the final songs was “I Could Only Imagine”–again no hint of “Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life” or a more up-to-date song of that vein–only heaven). It was also very personal and very private: Jesus saves me. Jesus loves me. There wasn’t any intentional corporate communal worship outside of shaking hands with a few people. EVERY song revolved around the words “I” and “me.” There was no “we.” There was no corporate sense that we are God’s people here to do God’s will and build God’s kingdom.
The Sunday I attended was their one year anniversary, so they had a slide show. 95% of their volunteers are for the Sunday morning service. Most of the church’s resources are spent on that one service. There is some community ministry, but considering the church runs 1,200-1,500, it doesn’t seem like a lot. They do have small groups and are starting neighborhood groups that would meet once a month. But again this is around 5% of the volunteers, which is what percentage of the church? And how many people actually attend the small groups? That number was not included in the slide show. Are they getting the substance and grounding they need in the groups? Because they are not getting it Sunday, or that Sunday anyway.
I definitely like William Law’s order of worship better. As I said in my previous post in this series, there are many modes of worship: singing, reading, listening, communal, and sacramental. At Willow Creek the major two modes of worship were singing and preaching with a nod to the communal through a short greeting and offering. Outside of the singing, the congregation sat passively through most of the service except for the few interactive parts of the sermon. And it was a long service due to the anniversary stuff: 1 hour and 45 minutes.
I would like most of my church’s resources to be going out and most of “church” to take place outside the walls of the church. I want most of my volunteers to be out and about making a difference in the world. This is not going to be too big of a problem, since the church I’m planting will start in my living room (I’m planning on starting January 6). And I’m wondering if that’s a good way to start? No upkeep or maintenance expense; we can focus on what we can do in this neighborhood, in this community. How can we be the body of Christ in the South Loop incarnationally while we don’t have a building or formal place to meet? I like those questions. I think I’m going to be doing church very differently from the traditional model. And I’m okay with that, or I’m getting okay with it. If nothing else going to different churches and services helps me solidify my philosophy of ministry and worship. And I think that is a good thing.
Related posts:
W Is for Worship
A Via Media for Worship
William Law, an Anglican priest in the 1700s, came up with a worship order that make sense to me. Not only that, but it allows the pastor to have a considerable amount of freedom in putting a service together. As I said in yesterday’s post, elements of the three main worship styles (traditional, contemporary, and liturgical) can be incorporated into the service. The worship service has four movements: Preparing to hear God, Hearing God, Responding to God, and Being sent out to do God’s work.
First we prepare ourselves to meet and hear God. This is done through music, and both traditional hymns and contemporary songs can be used. Reading Scriptures, responsive readings, readers’ theater, communal prayer, and drama can also be incorporated here. Through singing, reading, and hearing, we prepare ourselves to hear God’s word. The next movement is the sermon. After the sermon, we respond to what we heard and God’s grace through passing the peace, the offering, and communion. Responsive readings, communal prayers, and drama can also be added here. We are then sent out to be God’s ambassadors to the world. There are many modes of worship in this service: singing, reading, listening, communal, and sacramental. It doesn’t revolve around only two forms of worship–singing and the sermon–the way traditional and contemporary services normally are. It also does not have to be as formal as liturgical services can be. The Scriptures for the week can be the lectionary passages or passages the pastor chooses. There is a lot of flexibility in this approach to worship.
Now that you know my preferences for worship, the next posts will be on my experiences with churches I have already attended here.
The picture is “The Supper at Emmaus” by He Qi. You can see more of his work at his gallery.
Related posts:
W Is for Worship
I have began visiting churches in the South Loop where I live. I have been processing their services theologically by writing about them. I have decided that I am going to post what I find. But I thought that the first post should be a general overview of worship styles in the United States. There are three main worship styles: traditional, contemporary, and liturgical.
I grew up in the traditional evangelical worship service. This includes singing traditional Protestant hymns accompanied by a piano, organ, and if the church is large enough a choir. Normally four or five songs are sung, the pastoral prayer is given, the offering taken up, and the sermon preached. There might also be an altar call after the sermon. Communion was served once a quarter, so it didn’t become an “empty ritual.” But there are many traditional congregations that practice communion monthly. The service is done from scratch Sunday to Sunday with the pastor (and staff if the church is large enough) picking out the songs, picking Scripture to preach from, and prayers.
The contemporay worship service has comtemporary choruses and sometimes songs (they’ll even throw in a hymn once in a blue moon). They have the praise band and team leading the singing part of worship. These services will also incorporate dance and drama. The sermon is usually about a felt need and there is a lot of PowerPoint presentations. The sermon also tends to be interactive because outside of singing the congregation tends to be sitting and observing for a lot of the service. Of course offering is taken up, and like traditional churches, communion is observed monthly or quarterly. As with the traditional service, the contemporary service is created from week to week.
Liturgical services have a set order every week written by the denomination or church. Normally there is a book of worship with prayers, Scripture readings, and responsive readings for that Sunday (the Catholic Missal or the Anglican Book of Common Prayer are examples). This service also uses the lectionary, which contains four readings for each Sunday: Psalm, Old Testament, Epistle, and Gospel. All four readings are read during the service, and the priest or pastor preaches on one or more of the readings for that Sunday. There are a lot of different forms of active worship in liturgical services for the congregation: reponses to the priest or pastor, singing, prayers, responsive readings, praying the Lord’s Prayer, and reading one of the Creeds. This kind of service also does not revolve around the sermon as do the former two services. Everything in this service leads up to Communion, which is celebrated every week.
These are the three main styles of worship. Of course, many churches use a combination of two or all three. My favorite order of worship can incorporate elements of these three worship services. That will be the subject of my next post.
Related posts:
A Via Media for Worship
On beginning a ministry in the Loop area, I met with a college student who goes to our church. T and I sat down and brainstormed ideas for the college ministry we would like to start. I am going to be contacting Roosevelt University about reserving a room and how we put up flyers to advertise the group. Our tentative start date is October 20. We have decided to focus on homelessness since that is a big issue here and the prophets and Jesus has plenty to say about taking care of the poor and oppressed. I will also be contacting ministries like Pacific Mission Garden to found out about volunteer opportunities for the group.I am also going to start going to different services in this area and setting up times to talk with pastors. I want to see how they are ministering to the people here. I also want to know what they think the felt needs of the area are. I’m also hoping to learn some of the history of the area as well. I will be going to an Eucharist Service at Grace Episcopal Church tomorrow at noon. Sunday I will be attending Willow Creek’s satellite church that meets at Roosevelt’s Auditorium Theater.
The next step I plan on taking is starting a Bible Study that will meet at one of the coffee houses in the area. I will put up flyers at the coffee shops, in my building, and any other community bulletin board I can find. I want to gear the Bible study to what would interest people who live here, which is why I want to know what pastors think people need and are looking for in this area.
On the writing front, I am writing an article for Credo, the Nazarene magazine for teens. If it goes well, I might writing regularly for them. First I have to see if I can actually write the age group. And they gave me a whopper of a topic: A Christian Response to Global Violence. Work on the Career Women of the Bible book proposal has kind of come to a stop with everything going on. I am hoping to get back on track with that later this week.
Going through a notebook I found this hymn that I copied out of a hymnal at Mount St. Scholastica, a Benedictine monastery, on one my retreats there. It’s a great hymn, and I thought I would share it. And if you ever get a chance to hang out with Benedictine sisters do it: they are very, very cool.
“Sing a New Church” by Delores Dufner, OSB
Tune: “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”
Summoned by the God who made us
Rich in our diversity,
Gathered in the name of Jesus,
Richer still in unity:
Chorus:
Let us bring the gifts that differ
And, in splendid, varied ways,
Sing a new church into being,
One of faith and love and praise
Radiant risen from the water;
Robed in holiness and light,
Male and female in God’s image
Male and female God’s delight:
Chorus
Trust the goodness of creation;
Trust the Spirit strong within.
Dare to dream the vision promised
Sprung from seed of what has been.
Chorus
Bring the hopes of every nation;
Bring the art of every race.
Weave a song of peace and justice:
Let it sound through time and space.
Chorus
Draw together at one table
All the human family;
Shape a circle ever wider
And a people ever free.
(c) 1991 Sisters of St. Benedict. Published by OCP Productions.
At God’s Politics Becky Garrison interviewed Rev. Dr. Mitri Raheb, a Palestinian pastor. He is the senior pastor at the Evangelical Lutheran Christian Church in Bethlehem.
The conflict in Gaza is a very difficult one. People now are convinced that we are dealing with so much politics, but there is no concern for the “polis,” for the city and community … and that there is too much religion in Palestine and yet too little spirituality. We have too many peace-talkers and only a few peacemakers. Our mission is therefore about caring for the community not through words but deeds. Our mission is to introduce a different kind of spirituality that gives people room to breath. Here at our center we show the potential for our people and country in a way that people can touch with their own hands. It’s all about giving a foretaste of the kingdom to come here and now and in the midst of a difficult context.
In Razzmatazz or Ragamuffins two non-Christians have been paid to visit churches in Toronto. Here are some of their thoughts:
The paid church visitors also made a stop at the Sanctuary, a downtown congregation with deep involvement in the community—particularly with the homeless and poor. The Sanctuary provides free meals and cloths as well as medical care to those in need. One visitor’s first impression was telling:
I could tell then and there we had found what this experiment was set out to accomplish, a church that saw past the money, power and the heighten sense of moral superiority that we have grown accustomed to. Charity, real charity. About time.
He continues…
I was floored, for close to a month now I have been told of all the wonderful things the Christian church provides without any physical evidence of its truth, but here it is, in the flesh. I have to smile, we have traveled to the city’s massive churches where thousands worship and yet we find what we are looking for in a turnout of 35 on Sunday.
This is the only Church where the majority of time, finances and energy is NOT spent on the Sunday service. At Sanctuary, it actually would have been unfair to only score them on their Sunday service, the smallest part of what they do.
At Theolog’s Blogging Toward Sunday, William Willimon wonders why the prayers we pray in church are so different from the way Jesus taught his followers to pray.
In most churches I visit, a time of prayer is often preceded by a time of “Joys and Concerns.†I notice that in every congregation, the only concerns expressed are concerns for people in the congregation who are going through various health crises. Prayer becomes what we used to refer to as “Sick Call†in the army. Where on earth did we get this idea of prayer? Not from Jesus. He healed a few people from time to time, but he doesn’t pray for that. He prays for the coming of God’s kingdom, for bread (but only on a daily basis, not for a surplus) and for forgiveness for our trespasses. It’s curious that physical deterioration has become the contemporary North American church’s main concern in prayer. Jesus is most notable for teaching that we are to pray—not for recent gall bladder surgery—but for our enemies!
Jesus was Samaria sitting by a well when a woman came to draw water. They talk about things: living water, her bad track record with men, the proper place to worship, and the Messiah. In fact, she is the first person Jesus directly says, “I am the Messiah.” The woman runs back to her village to tell the people about Jesus. While she is gone, the disciples tell Jesus to eat. The reason they left was to go buy food. But Jesus says that he has already eaten: that doing the will the one who sent him is his food and drink (see John 4). Here is a reflection that Bob Benson wrote on this passage:
The disciples spread the lunch and told Jesus it was time to eat. But He tells them He has already eaten. They looked around for a McDonald’s bag or some evidence of some lunch. Noth that I think He would throw trash on the ground.
“May be somebody else brought Him some foood,” they wondered.
“And He explained, “I had lunch with my Father.”
We call it work. He said it was meat and drink to Him.
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We called it [enter church program of your choice], but He would have called it lunch. We sometimes called it [program], but He calls it dinner. We may call it Soul-winning, but He says it is fried chicken and green beans and sliced tomatoes and a tall glass of iced tea. Jesus came to do the work of the Father and He liked it as well as He did eating (Bob Benson, In Quest of the Shared Life).
We often think of ministry as work. Probably because we make it that way. As I read this I thought of where a lot of Jesus’ ministry took place: actually eating. Eating in someone’s house: Levi, Simon, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Jesus taught about God and God’s love much more often eating at someone’s house than at the synagogue. He didn’t teach seminars on How to Be the Best Jew in a World Going to Hell; he ate at people’s houses and told them about God, God’s love, and what God wanted them to do: love each other.
What if more of our ministry was like this? A natural part of our life than something else we tack onto our endless to-do list. Now doing God’s work is work. Anyone in ministry knows this. But does it have to be so much work? Do we really have to meet at the church for everything? What if we encouraged our people to invite their neighbors who don’t know God over for dinner? What if we encouraged our people to have friends with people who didn’t know God to begin with? Evangelicalism tends to create its own little culture, a bubble, where everyone we know goes to church with us or is another evangelical. “Evangelism” might now be such hard work or such a scary thing if we would build relationships with people who don’t know God, and invite them over to eat. Or say yes when they invite us over for a barbeque.
May be if we took this attitude more of our ministry would be like Jesus’ ministry: “fried chicken and green beans and sliced tomatoes and a tall glass of iced tea.”