December 2013
The Poetry of Lent
How do we speak in worship? What language do we use? Sometimes the best response is silence, awe, and wonder. Sometimes we need to spring to our feet with joy, raise our hands in praise, and clap with the trees of the field. We speak with unscripted words such as “amen” and “praise the Lord” and with scripted but equally sincere phrases such as “thanks be to God” and “hear our prayer.” And sometimes we speak in poetry.
Experiencing "The Bitter Hour"
When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
(arr. Kornelis)
There are some tunes that journey with us and attach themselves to our lives—songs we can’t get out of our heads.
At the Cross
A few weeks before Lent, a team from our church got together to discuss how we could use art in our sanctuary to help us reflect more deeply on Jesus’ sacrifice. We have a history of displaying in our sanctuary and our gathering space various pieces of art that is created by teams of adults incorporating the work of children and teens in our congregation. It was our hope that we could once again come up with an art project that would include contributions from children and teens but not be childish.
Washing Feet and Breaking Bread
Maundy Thursday (“Maundy” meaning “mandate” or “command”) remembers the time Jesus spent with his disciples in the upper room. It was there that Jesus gave the ultimate example of being a servant as he washed the disciples’ feet:
Last Words
This service is comprised of seven movements, each of which focuses on one of Jesus’ seven last words and consists of a gospel reading, a meditation, and a congregational response. It combines elements traditional to the Stations of the Cross, Tre Ore, and Tenebrae services, as well as a few subtle dramatic devices of the Passion Play.
Eyewitnesses
WEEK ONE: “My Son, My Savior!”
Theme: Jesus is both man and God.
Speaker: Mary, the Mother of Jesus
Scripture: Luke 2:6-7, 16-19, 48-51; John 2:1-5; 19:25-27; Acts 1:14
Good morning. I’m Mary, the wife of Joseph the carpenter, the mother of Jesus.
The Three Days
Editor’s Note: While some churches have Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Saturday Easter Vigil services, others find themselves holding one service in which to encapsulate the drama and depth of all that occurred in those three days. It is for that second group of churches that this service is designed. Using Scripture, music, poetry, and art, this service takes the worshiper on a three-day journey from Maundy Thursday to the darkness of the Easter Vigil.
It Is Over. It Begins.
This service, entitled “It is Over. It Begins,” was billed as an art-filled evening of remembrance and hope. It included music, poetry, dance, and visual art arranged around the traditional Tenebrae structure centered on the seven sayings of Christ on the cross.
Lent Prayer Stations
The lectionary cycle for Lent in Year A includes incredibly rich psalms. As poetry, psalms are full of sights, smells, tastes, touches, and sounds. They are a great launching pad for engaging all our senses in worship. This cycle of prayer stations takes advantage of that opportunity.
Serious Joy in Lenten Obedience
Q
Thinking about Lent again makes me feel a bit fatigued, especially when I think about all the energy required to defend and promote all the disciplines of obedience that are so important during Lent. Our congregation resists all of that “spiritual protein.” How can I overcome my congregation’s resistance?
A
Transformational Baptism
The climactic scene of Matthew’s gospel describes the risen Christ standing with his disciples in Galilee as he gives them final instructions. He tells them to go and “make disciples of all nations.” As Jesus invited each of them to follow him and to form a community with each other, Jesus now asks them to invite others to come into communities of discipleship. He institutionalizes his own method of community organizing: inviting people into relationship with a leader and then with each other.
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