Tag Archives: Worship

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 4:44 am on December 16, 2015
Tags: Welcome, Worship   

Welcoming Spaces For Worship — Rev. David J. Schreffler

barn worship

December 16, 2015

“In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest: Thus says the Lord of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the Lord’s house. Then the word of the Lord came by the prophet Haggai, saying: Is it a time for you yourselves to live in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?” Haggai 1:1 – 4

“But it is locally true that G-d has always chosen a place for His local habitation with men. The place where His people meet with Him should be suitable for such an occasion, neither in barn nor opera-house, Jewish Temple nor…Mosque, factory nor theater, but in a Christian Church. On such an occasion church should harmonize with the divine purpose in worship. Architecture, sculpture and painting tell the pictured story, while the other arts, poetry, music, and eloquence, tell the same story to other sense-perceptions and fill the storied temple with the words and spirit of worship.” (“Fundamental Principles of Christian Worship” in Memoirs of the Lutheran Liturgical Association, Volume I, 1906;  J. C. F. Rip (1856 – 1933), “For All The Saints” volume III, p. 66)

It has been an honored tradition for Lutherans to hold their worship services in a church. This honored tradition has held together for almost 500 years. When the early German Lutherans came to America following the devastation of the Thirty Years War (1618 – 1648) they came to escape disease, famine and starvation. Upon arriving, they built churches in the center of their living spaces. It soon became clear that their faith lives, critical to their survival, we’re not adequately being met with the sparse number of pastors coming from Germany. Pastors like Justus Falckner, the first Lutheran to be ordained in America (November 24, 1703), came to see to the spiritual needs of the people. Even in the earliest times in this country, worshiping in a church with ordained leadership was the norm and practice.

Today, well, we are seeing the emergence of alternate worship services and alternate worship spaces. It is no longer possible to maintain large worship spaces that require large sums of money for upkeep. With the change in the numbers of worshipers, it is becoming clear that the worship space must also change. But, whether it is in the home, in the fire hall, or in the barn, in this day and age all can be transformed in music, art, picture, and word to be welcoming spaces for worship.

Pastor Dave

Unknown's avatar Rev. David J. Schreffler 4:44 am on July 13, 2015
Tags: , Worship   

New Does Not Mean the “Old” Was Wrong — Rev. David J. Schreffler

July 13, 2015

“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed throughout the world. For I am longing to see you so that I may share with you some spiritual gift to strengthen you— or rather so that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” Romans 1: 8, 11-12

“…to give pertinent guidance to (persons of leisure and persons who work, persons of misfortune and those who have never experienced misfortune) is no easy task. Just as the same food and medicine is not appropriate to every bodily ailment, so neither is the same treatment and discipline proper for the guidance of souls. Some persons are better motivated by words, others by example. Some respond best to confidential correction, while others seem unmovable except by public rebuke. The pastoral principle: variability. All persons are not to be treated in the same way.” Gregory of Nazianzus (330 – 389) Oration II 28-33 “For All The Saints” volume IV, (p. 162-164)

“That we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” I think Paul is drawing an important distinction — one that people often forget about — that each person’s faith experience, faith expression, and faith understanding is not the same. Not everyone grew up in a church, and if you did, each of our experiences of church will be unique: unique experiences in ministries, unique worship expressions, and unique personalities, even if we all attended a “Lutheran” or “Methodist” or “Evangelical” church. Those experiences, or a lack of experience, will form how we look at worship, ministry, and the people of our congregations right now.

Many people see worship as an expression of their life’s experiences, and so don’t like to see things change — as humans we live to promote sameness. Many will think that if their experience of worship or ministry has been done a certain way for X number of years, by suggesting changes, or introducing changes, their first reaction may be “Do you mean to tell me we have been doing it wrong all these years.” New ideas or new ways of thinking about worship, ministry and ecumenism should be looked upon as mutually edifying — not as a critique of how things have been done in the past.

New ideas or new ways of expressing our faith are not automatically critical of past expressions — they are simply new ways that the Holy Spirit may be working in a person’s life, or the life of the congregation. May we see new ideas in our worship, ministry and ecumenism as blessings — not as critiques.

Pastor Dave