I went on some church visits in Edinburgh today with Dom. Our aim was to explore how worship is developing in different types of congregations within the SEC. We’re partly exploring how we would shape an agenda for worship development with our congregations. I find it surprising that, with all the focus that there has been on becoming inviting churches, etc., etc., there seems to have been less concentration than one might expect on worship. Our worship is primarily eucharistic. But that can be a piece of culture which, at worst, defines us on a ‘take it or leave it’ basis. At best, the eucharist becomes a meeting place for people of all sorts of different traditions and none – and offers the integrity and reality of worship which may meet the needs of some of the people who are searching for the spiritual in our secular society. But how?
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Oh, Tim’s suggestion sounds great. I’d love the chance to attend something like that. Shall have to remember to suggest such to my rector.
`But how?’
You hit on my favourite hobby-horse of the moment. The eucharistic liturgy has got to be the way it is through some historical processes and for some reasons. If you want to gather the congregation closer, let there be explanation, education and understanding of the history and theology; let the congregation share their viewpoints too in a seminar on the thing (“‘ere you on my pew – what goes through *your* mind saying this lot?”).
We had something like this at St John’s last Sunday as a special extra session, attended by about 30-35 of us; I thought it rocked. I’m hoping it’s the first of many such events.