Rant: Whatever Became of the Public Reading of Scripture?
| I'm ranting today about one of my usual hang-ups -- irrelevantly so but hey, it's my blog. I've got issues and we all know it. I've been to a couple different churches recently. All of them evangelical and contemporary in flavor. The liturgy of the service goes something like this Music before the service begins Welcome & Announcements More Music & brief prayer Offering Sermon Some sort of dismissal or Welcome Music Video clip Sermon Announcements Offering Music Dismissal or Music before service begins Welcome & video announcements Offering Music Sermon Music Invitation to Prayer at the Altar Music Dismissal No creeds, no pastoral prayer, Lord's prayer or congregational prayer, few altar calls or invitations for salvation, no choir or special music, and occasional communion. These were not charismatic churches so we didn't have any prophecies, words of knowledge/wisdom, healings or ministry time. For whatever reason I understand why those things are not part of the service. Some I don't even miss or wish were part of the service. The thing that has me cussing and I just can't get my head around is why is there no formal reading of the Bible? A short (or in 1 case recently long) passage may be read as part of the sermon by the preacher. Some of the sermons are mildly expository (verse by verse) but I would say all are Biblically based. Some are topical and utilize a variety of passages for a variety of points. The sermons were even good but that's not the point. In total very little of the Bible is read -- several verses at most. Why? I have to hand it to the Episcopalians/Anglicans? Even if they don't believe it or have bizarre hermeneutics, they read more Scripture in one service than some evangelicals read in a month or more! That is not even slightly sarcastic or exaggerated. If they read all 4 lectionary passages as the BCP suggests plus all the Scripture used throughout the liturgy, that's far more than I've heard in the churches I've been in for the past month. Why have churches abandoned reading the Bible as part of the worship? I honestly don't know and if you know, throw me a bone here. Has there been a theological shift amongst evangelicalism regarding the Bible and I missed it somewhere? Or is this just a practical issue: we think public reading or speaking or oration is boring? Maybe we can't find enough good readers for each week? Or maybe it takes up too much time in the service and cuts into our 20 minutes of singing and 45 minute sermon and 10 minutes of announcements & offering. What does it say about our theology of the Scripture? Do we really hold a high view of Scripture if we don't read it publicly? Do we really believe the Word of God has the power to transform lives, or is it only our explanation of the Word that transforms? Do we really think it is inspired or God breathed? "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." "The grass whithers and the flower fades but the Word of the our Lord shall remain forever." |
posted by theultrarev at 5:23 PM
Comments on "Rant: Whatever Became of the Public Reading of Scripture?"
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Anonymous said ... (8:21 AM, November 12, 2007) :
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theultrarev said ... (10:13 AM, November 12, 2007) :
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therealkimaliczi said ... (10:15 AM, November 12, 2007) :
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donnjohnson said ... (11:46 AM, November 12, 2007) :
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Anonymous said ... (2:21 PM, November 12, 2007) :
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Beth B said ... (3:21 PM, November 12, 2007) :
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Luke said ... (8:17 PM, November 14, 2007) :
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theultrarev said ... (9:14 AM, November 15, 2007) :
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theultrarev said ... (9:16 AM, November 15, 2007) :
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theultrarev said ... (9:19 AM, November 15, 2007) :
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Luke said ... (1:20 PM, November 16, 2007) :
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Luke said ... (1:23 PM, November 16, 2007) :
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Beth B said ... (7:37 PM, November 16, 2007) :
post a commentHey ultrarev,
just so you know I read an entire chapter of Scripture in worship yesterday - Job 38.
U asked: "What does it say about our theology of the Scripture?"
It says we don't think we have one. Or even worse we have one but for cosmetic purposes only. I suspect it is the latter more than the former.
U asked: "Do we really hold a high view of Scripture if we don't read it publicly? Do we really believe the Word of God has the power to transform lives, or is it only our explanation of the Word that transforms? Do we really think it is inspired or God breathed?"
See above answer but to put it succinctly I think in practice the answer is "no" to all of the above.
God bless you my friend.
At your comment's prompting I just read Job 38. God has a heck of a resume.
Do we really believe the Word of God has the power to transform lives, or is it only our explanation of the Word that transforms?
Ouch! Great rant, rev. Thankfully, we have public reading of scripture at our church every Sunday - only one passage before the sermon - but it's read! But the more I visit Episcopal/Anglican churches, the more I appreciate the lectionary and the readings from the Book of Common Prayer every week, as well as the weekly celebration of communion. At one very healthy Episcopal church in particular (http://www.bishopseaburychurch.org - one of the famed CT Six) that I've been moonlighting at as an occasional worship leader, I truly feel God is the only focus of our worship, and I believe that is as it should be.
I appreciated your words here, rev. They have me thinking a lot this morning about a lot of things. :-) God bless you! -Kim
We are a Covenant Church and read at least 3 texts each week: two before the sermon (even a responsive Psalm once in a while from the Covenant hymnal) and then one during the sermon. You hit on a good topic. I heard of one person who is "taking a sabbatical from the Bible" so that he/she can spend more time in prayer!?!? I think we've lost or sense of devotion to the word and substituted devotion to "my ideas".
Brother Evans! Fly through Madison some weekend and come visit us! We like and use and read the Bible in our services. And, believe this or not, but in a former church, we were accused on being "too Biblical!
with infinite hope, Jimmy Doo
Here at Valley Covenant Church in Eugene Oregon, Steve often preaches from the lectionary, and we use the lectionary readings. Typically the psalm is read responsively.
On All Saint's Sunday I was lector. When it came time to for the Gospel readings, I moved from the pulpit down to the center of the aisle, and invited everyone to turn and "orient" themselves around the Word, even as the saints in heaven encircle the Living Word. Some people "got" it, some people didn't.
As for the reason why scripture is held in low esteem...don't get me started! :-) I tend to rant about how the West made a "subjective turn" in the late middle ages, leading to the bifurcation of faith and reason, with "faith" taken more and more taken to be a subjective, internal, private matter, and "reason" more and more the objective, external matter.
Postmodernism has seen that stretch and snap so that now "there are no facts, only interpretations" (Nietzsche) and popularly, "there is no truth, only opinions." In that climate, words no longer are vehicles for truth, but means of manipulation. What "speaks" now are our guts, and "guts" don't operate according to ideas.
Sometimes I must admit I feel like those of us who value words and images, who have not taken the "bifurcation of faith and reason" road are trying to hold back the sea. Then I remember Psalm 19.
UltraRev:
Here is the Order of Worship for our non-traditional service, which is complete with candles and a music team of voices, guitars, keyboards, etc.:
Welcome and announcements
3 songs (at least one a hymn, done w/ piano, guitar, voices, drum machine)
Invocation somewhere among the three songs
Pastoral Prayer (leading into...)
Lord's Prayer
Passing of the Peace
Setting the Table (brief description of the context of scripture)
Scripture (may include silence or Lectio Divina)
Engaging Scripture (guided interactive discussion)
Song of Response
Confession
Communion
Song of Sending Out
Benediction
We do communion by intinction every Sunday EXCEPT the first Sunday, which is communion in the traditional service.
Scripture is, in many ways, the center of this service.
Beth, I get the whole post-modern thing but I wonder what the real thinking in pastor's head is when s/he plans a service and doesn't include a Scripture reading. The people I'm talking about are evangelicals with contemporary services. Do they think, "Well, the Bible is my truth not theirs so I don't want to shove it down their throats?" Is it, "Reading the Bible is so boring and it won't be entertaining enough?" Or similarly, "People just don't connect to reading the Bible out loud any more." Or is it some theological position about the Bible being narrative and not propositional truth, and we don't use the Bible like that (in a public reading sort of way) any more (and never were supposed to)?
In all of those cases they seem to allude to the belief that the Scriptures are some how lacking impact or something useful. Furthermore, it would seem they believe that God doesn't speak through the Scriptures anymore. How did evangelicals get there?
Jimmy Doo, I don't get through Madison much though I'm willing. Are you interested in having an evangelistic festival there? Go to my youtube site and watch the SWEA video.
Luke, I really like your order of worship. Simple and biblical.
I was in your state this week, over in Ashtabula ... a not so thriving metropolis with some good people.
UltraRev:
One of the things that I really like about it is that instead of a sermon, we have "guided discussion." The question we want to present is, how does this part of the Word resonate in your life? Hearing how different people see it and relate to it is a major part of making the Word relevant and immediate.
I remember an old definition of the LECTURE style of teaching as "a system whereby the contents of the teacher's notebook are transferred to the student's notebook without passing through the mind of either party."
I sometimes wonder how that same wit would define "sermon."
...and I saw that you were heading to Ashtabula. You're always welcome to come a little further west and drop in! We'd love to see you.
The search process is starting to gear up. Dick Lucco met with us last night. We have teams working on parts of the church and community profiles...
How did the evangelicals get there?
I try to give an answer here:
http://medievalmind.
blogspot.com/
2007/11/answering-ultrarevs
-question-
ideas-have.html
Bottom line: we've bought into a philosophy of language that undercuts scripture, enabling people to view it as boring, irrelevant, private, or just plain foolish.