Liturgy, Scripture, and You

From the Open Files of: NW Synod of Wisconsin Resource Center (715) 833-1153 Contributed by: Pastor Bill Wilson, Pilgrim Lutheran Church, Superior, WI This file is available in Rich Text Format version for editing

Liturgy, Scripture, and You Week One - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 1 Week One - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 2 Week One - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 3 Week One - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 4 Week One - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 1 - God calls us to worship / We Gather - God meets us in his word / We respond - God meets us in the his meal / We are made the Body of Christ - God sends us on a mission / We leave to be the Body of Christ in the world High Point(s) are the word and the Sacrament Logical flow of events in worship. Not arbitrary or "creative" Times for leadership to preside. Times for congregation to respond. God calls us to worship. * Worship Text/Action What does this mean? Bible Reference 1 Assembly Being Church Exodus 20:8 2 Prelude Gathering Music Psalm 150 (others) 3 Confession/Forgiveness Return to our baptism Rom 6; 1 Jn 1:8-9 4 Entrance Hymn Entrance Procession Ps 100 Ps 122 5 Apostolic Greeting Greeting in God's Name 2 Cor 13:13 6 Kyrie Prayer for God's Mercies Lk 17:13; 18:38-39; Ps 123:2-3 7 Hymn of Praise Praise for Salvation Col 3:16-17 - Glory to God Join the angels' song Luke 2:14 - Worthy is Christ Join the song in heaven Rev. 5:9-13; 19:4-9 8 Salutation Greeting in God's name Ruth 2:4; Lk 1:28 9 Prayer of the Day Theme in prayer form Many refs to prayer Other facts and comments for discussion: 1. Until 4 th century, there was no entrance rite. Early Christians simply gathered for worship and began with the reading of scripture. As Christianity became legal and out of persecution, buildings were built, spaces became larger, processions were added, entry rituals were developed. 2. Kyrie. Greek for "Lord". You might remember "Kyrie eleison", which is second person singular imperative. In short, a command to God to have mercy. Not a shy request. It may be the oldest piece of liturgy that we have today, dating almost 2,000 years. Links us liturgically with fellow believers "way back". Signs that it was used in Jewish worship - pre-Christian. 3. Kyrie. In Greco-Roman world, the cry was "Caesar Kyrios" (the emperor is lord). Christians refused to say this and may have paid with their lives. Their counter-cultural cry was "Christos Kyrios" (Christ is Lord). 4. Several forms of Kyrie in church history. Sometimes in Roman Catholic and other rites, we see, "Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy." See WOV # 772. See LBW p. 168, the Great Litany. Because of the witness of the ancient martyrs and saints saying "Kyrie", we are here today as the body of Christ. Over all the powers in this world today that want to claim power and be lords over us, we claim Jesus as the Lord and Master of our earthly pilgrimage. 5. The Hymn of Praise is what the title says-a hymn of praise to God. We have two options in the LBW: Gloria in Excelsis and Worthy is Christ. The Gloria text comes from die 4th century and possible earlier and was part of daily morning prayer. Was later introduced into the Eucharist. 6. Both the Kyrie and the Hymn of Praise are not meant to be invariable parts of worship. The Hymn of Praise is often omitted during Advent and Lent. The Kyrie is often omitted during the weeks of Epiphany and Pentecost. See "Manual on the Liturgy" (one of the two "brown books" that accompany the "green book") p. 211, for a possible table of Kyrie and Hymn of Praise use. 7. The Prayer of the Day is the presider's prayer and to be prayed to announce the theme of the day and ask God's presence and blessing on the gathering. The Prayer of the Church, later in worship, is the prayer of the people, although, with the size of church gatherings, it may not be possible to be prayed spontaneously by the people. Think of two great prayers of the service: # 1 being the Prayer of the Day (presider's prayer) and the Prayer of the Church (people's prayer). 8. From David Currie's "Born Fundamentalist - Born Again Catholic" (Ignatius Press), we have the statistics that he observed: a (Roman) Catholic mass with 26% being either direct scripture (or very close paraphrase), an evangelical congregation in NW Chicago with 6% of the service as direct scripture, and a fundamentalist congregation in Indiana at 2%. As Lutheran Christians in the greater western catholic tradition, we do not need to hang our heads low and have doubts about the source of our liturgy. Every time we pray and sing the liturgy, we are rehearsing/memorizing scripture. * Table from Mons Teig, Luther-Northwestern Theological Seminary, 1980's [ TOP ]   Week Two - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 2 [ TOP ] The Sunday Morning Service - God calls us to worship / We gather - God meets us in his word / We respond - God meets us in the his meal / We are made the Body of Christ - God sends us on a mission / We leave to be the Body of Christ in the world God meets us in his word. Worship Text/Action What does this mean? Bible Reference 1 First Reading hearing the law and prophets Lk 4:16-21; 24:27,32 2 Psalm Sing Bible Hymn Book Psalm 95 3 Second Reading Hearing the Word (Epistle) 2 Tim 3:14-17 4 Verse -Lord, to whom shall we go -Return to the Lord Short Bible Song -Alleluia for the Gospel -Lenten prayer/son John 6:68 Deut 30:2; Num 14:18 5 Gospel Reading with Acclamation Hearing the Gospel Jn 20:30-31; Luke 1:1-4 6 Sermon Proclaiming Christ 1 Cor 1:17-25; rom 10:5-17 7 Silence Apply the Word to Life Luke 1:38; 2:19 8 Hymn of the Day Theme of the Day in Music Luke 2:14 9 Creed Confess faith of the Church 1 Tim 3:16; Phil 2:11 10 Prayer of the Church Greeting in God's name Ruth 2:4; Lk 1:28 11 Peace Sharing God's Peace Mt 5:23-24; Eph 2:13-19; Jn 20:19, 21,26; Jn 14:27; Rom 16:16 Other facts and comments for discussion: 1. Everything thing in part 1 is the "Entrance Rite" - the way in which we come into worship, "settle in", invoke God's presence, and pray a prayer that lays out the theme of the day. 2. The Lectionary is a series of biblical readings that takes three years to complete. As Lutherans, we are not bound to the lectionary, but we most often use it to give our congregations a balanced diet of the story of salvation in three years. 3. Reading scripture publicly in worship has roots in Jewish worship before the time of Christ. Remember that "scripture" to the very earliest of Christians was what we call the Old Testament. Eventually the early Christian writings became the New Testament. 4. Does using a prescribed lectionary limit God's Word? It is possible that it may at times-not everything in the Bible will be read in the 3-year cycle. However, using a prescribed lectionary and disciplining oneself to preach from it does provide a standard that engages all the major themes of the faith. When preachers have free reign to choose scripture each week, a congregation may hear certain scripture that fits a particular need of the congregation. It is also possible that a free-reign way of choosing scripture may result in preachers choosing texts that fit their own agenda and bias. Using a lectionary also disciplines preachers to deal with texts that they may find difficult and might otherwise avoid. 5. Year 2002 is called the "A Year" and focuses on the Gospel of Matthew. Year B focuses on Mark, and C Luke. The Gospel of John is read periodically throughout the lectionary. 6. The verse used to be called the gradual in former liturgies. 7. Note that the peace has to do with reconciliation rather than wishes for a good morning. 8. The Prayer of the Church may be prayed by the pastor or an assisting minister. It could also be prayed by individuals in worship if the worship space allows for it. [ TOP ] Week Three - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 3 [ TOP ] The Sunday Morning Service - God calls us to worship / We gather - God meets us in his word / We respond - God meets us in the his meal / We are made the Body of Christ - God sends us on a mission / We leave to be the Body of Christ in the world God meets us in his meal. Worship Text/Action What does this mean? Bible Reference 1 Offering Sharing God's gifts 2 Cor 8-9 2 Offertory -Let the Vineyards -What shall I render -Prayer and praise -Offering our thanks -Isaiah 5:1; Ps 23:5; Jn 6:35-51 -Ps 116:12-19 3 Offertory Prayer Offering our Lives Rom 12:1 4 Great Thanksgiving Thanks centered in Jesus' salvation Luke 22:17; 1 Cor 10:16 5 Sanctus (Holy x 3) Sing Holy & Hosanna Is 6:3; Rev 4:8; Ps 118:26; Mt 21:9 6 Pryaer of Thanksgiving Words of Institution amidst God's saving acts Mt 26:17-28; 1 Cor 11:2326; Ex 12:1-28; Lk 24:30-31, 35; Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4 7 Lord's Prayer Concludes our table prayer Mt 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4 8 Lamb of God Sung prayer to Christ Jn 1:29; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Jn 6:53-58; 1 Cor 10:15-17 9 Holy Communion Receive Christ body and blood. Confess faith of the church. Jon 6:53-58; 1 Cor 10:16-17 10 Prayer of the Church Greeting in God's name Ruth 2:4; Lk 1:28 11 Communion Blessing Blessed with the benefits of Christ Mt 5:23-24; Eph 2:13-19; Jn 20:19, 21,26; Jn 14:27; Rom 16:16 12 Post Communion Canticle -Thank the Lord -Lord, now you let Thanks for Salvation -Thanks leads to telling -Now we can live or die Luke 2:29-32 13 Post Communion Prayer Thanks for Communion 14 Silence Pondering great gifts [ TOP ] Week Four - Introduction and Holy Communion Liturgy - Part 4 [ TOP ] The Sunday Morning Service - God calls us to worship / We gather - God meets us in his word / We respond - God meets us in the his meal / We are made the Body of Christ - God sends us on a mission / We leave to be the Body of Christ in the world God sends us on a mission. Worship Text/Action What does this mean? Bible Reference 1 Benediction Putting God's name on the people of God Nm 6:24-26 2 Dismissal Sent to serve the world in God's name Luke 7:50 3 Postlude Processional music out to our vocations 4 Next Sunday Anticipation of worship [ TOP ]

[ ADULT ] • [ HOME ] © Copyright 2002 by the Northwest Synod of Wisconsin Resource Center. Please see our usage policy. NW Synod of Wisconsin Resource Center