Liturgy for Life:

I had this interesting experience a couple of months ago. I was at an ordination service in our more evangelical/charismatic diocese. We sang several “charismaticy” style songs, could even have been hillsong songs. Around me were a number of people, mostly older, whose eyes lit up and they raised their hands. This excited them. My assessment of them was they were charismatic from way back. While I found the songs a little naff, I was jealous of their involvement and zealousness really. I prayed that I might feel like them. And then we got on to the ordination liturgy, and the liturgy for the great thanksgiving, and the service came alive for me. I don’t know if my eyes lit up, but I wanted to and did lift up my hands in response (I think I was the only one with slightly raised hands at that point) and I was really engaged with what was being said and done. And I wondered afterwards why most people see liturgy as this dead thing, and instead get off on songs with really bad words (some times) and fairly ordinary tunes. How can we help people to experience liturgy as I did on that Thursday evening in a cathedral far away?

Comments

Avey said…
I am not from a liturgical tradition as such, but I like to bring it into my services in Prison. The one thing I and many others find frustrating about liturgy in an Anglican setting is that I really dislike the head down, reading from a leaflet syndrome. For me it becomes too ritualistic to the point where I question whether some have a clue as to where it comes from, why they are saying or reading it or even more importantly, what does it mean?

I like liturgy, but then again I am an INTJ according to Myers Briggs. Maybe shape and form are only meaningful with similar traits? NT Wright is quite critical about some of those time-honoured hymns though in his 'Surprised by Hope'.
9:11 pm
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