Our Worship in Church

 

I have always loved the hymn ‘O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness’;

I think it expresses something of the deep desire in human beings to strive to offer worship which, however inadequately, reflects something of the nature of the God we love. So we try to do our best, with words, music, actions, and silence. Our prayers are expressed in many ways, and our worship has many moods to mirror the many-faceted lives of the different people who make up our church community. There are quiet services, solemn and celebratory services, and more informal occasions when children are present. Some like complete simplicity, others prefer more ritual to convey that this is something ‘special’. I guess our two churches comprise a mixture of all tastes. You can’t always predict what people are going to prefer; a number of elderly people have expessed a liking for more informal services, and yet I remember my own son, then aged six, remarking, ‘the trouble with jolly services is that they interrupt me when I’m trying to talk to God.’ Each to their own!

 

Above all, we need to respect one another, and to accept that each of us approaches God in worship in our own ways. There may from time to time be small changes in what we do. For example, we now have a special Gospel

 

book, to remind us that the good news of Jesus Christ is at the heart of our faith; this book is carried down into the body of the congregation, and the gospel is read from there, to symbolise the fact that Jesus himself came among us to proclaim the Kingdom of God – so we turn to face the reader, as our response to this good news.

 

It would be good to have a small working group to review our worship and liturgy from time to time, to think about what we do and why we do it, and how it meets the needs of our congregations. If you would be interested in being involved in this, or if you have any suggestions /comments as to what you value or would like to see, please let me or Julia or Doreen have your ideas.

 

Rosey.