Thursday, February 07, 2008

Now that is Worship!

We did setting six, for the first time, in the new ELW last Sunday. That was a very worshipful experience. It is not like going to a funeral. It made me think of the joy of salvation, the release from sin that we all receive. Although I realize that worship should not be taken lightly, I do wonder why my strong impression of worship from my childhood was that there was no joy, no smiling, only seriousness.
Was that just the trend of the time or did it reflect a different theology?

4 comments:

  1. Setting Six is our standard setting . . . it comes from This Far By Faith: An African American Resource for Worship. It is an excellent setting.

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  2. We've used This Far by Faith to sing out of, but not the liturgies in it. We started using the ELW last fall by using songs and the liturgy already familiar to us from the Green Book. Since I never did like the liturgies in the green book, that wasn't an impovement for me. But we sure do like the WOV liturgies, so we have kept that book as well. I'm surprised that they aren't in the new ELW.

    I will say that I can't imagine some of these liturgies being played on an organ or by a person will slow musical skills. They take a talented, lively type of piano player.

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  3. I've not experienced that one yet. Glad it spoke to you.

    We are just starting to transition to some ELW stuff here at the mission church. I've been introducing elements of it into the current LBW settings they have been using. Last night we did the Ash Wednesday service from the red book and then shifted back to green for the remainder of the liturgy. We do worship folders instead of bulletins, so blending the books is pretty easy.

    The ELW did preserve some of the WOV stuff in the service of the word setting. I am pretty sure the Kyrie and Gloria from setting 5 is in there.

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  4. PS, I tagged you over at my place. It is a fun and easy book meme.

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And what do you think?