This past Sunday afternoon, we had the Total Experience Gospel Choir in concert at Hope. Any of you who know Pat Wright the director and inspiration of that group, know how professional yet free-wheeling she is. There was a piece she warned us in advance might raise some eyebrows, but that it was part of their praise of the Lord. What she thought we might raise our eyebrows over was the movement of the choir in a type of dance that only a Gospel choir could do. When she brought me up at the end of the program to say a few words I said something to the effect that no forgiveness necessary for that number. It had been done with a joyful exuberance of praise. The next day I thought of something else I might have said. " We who dance the liturgy every Sunday morning appreciate bodily movement, gesture and their meanings in service of the Lord's praise. "

It's good for me to think about liturgy as a form of dance. We get so used to it, that we forget that our bodies are moving and giving a meaning in that movement. Standing up is more than a stimulant to keep people alert, it is showing respect for that part of the service. Kneeling at the altar rail and receiving the sacrament or praying is a posture full of the meaning of reverence, because Christ is truly there and the way we conduct ourselves reminds us of that fact. Another gesture full of meaning is the greeting of peace, which is tied to that ancient gesture of a handshake, which shows an openness and trust with another. Not only do we show there is no weapon in our hand, but we say the "Peace of the Lord," which becomes present in the very gesture. Yes we know a thing or two about body movment and gesture.


Another thing from Sunday was having the Hopes School Choir sing in the second service. Everybody very much appreciates their adding their music to our service. Sometimes people will clap, but this Sunday people did not. It had nothing to do with lack of appreciation, it probably had more to do with the fact that no one started it. And the reason no one started clapping was the question of whether it is appropriate. I have wondered that as well in many a service when people spontaneously break out in applause.

"What could be wrong with that?" I ask myself. The children need to know they are appreciated. I would not disagree, but is applause following a choral piece in the middle of a worship service the best time to do that? Would not a personal word to the director and some of the choir members following the service, saying how it added to your worship experience also be an expression of thanks.

Clapping in the service for a musical anthem meant as an offering to God, who is after all the focus of the worship service, shifts the focus to those doing the singing as though it is a performance piece for the enjoyment of the audience. It could actually be considered to be disrespectful of the children themselves who intended it for God; as well as the rest of the congregation who tries to maintain their focus on God.

That's probably coming across heavier than I need to, since applause as a body action can be a worshipful act. But once in a while, it's good for us to be reminded where we are and what is happening, and to realize that worship is a counter-cultural action in our day. We are saying that God, and God only is the one worthy of our praise. And for that matter silence in God's presence is more often than not, quite appropriate.

Sign of the Times

Don Browning, a pastoral counselor, and trainer of such counselors, writes of a change in culture he has noticed. Years ago he write that pastors were trained to suspend moral judgment as pastoral caregivers. The assumption was that when people came for counsel there was a common moral understanding. "I know what I am supposed to do in life, but I have gotten to the place that I cannot do it."
But now the culture has changed, observes Browning. When people come to pastors today, their cry is often not "I know what I am supposed to do; I just can't do it," but "I do not know what I am supposed to do."
Browning says that because people are unsure about what constitutes the shape of a life that matters and what it means to live a life that has moral substance, that pastors have to be willing to speak of these matters. "This does not mean that the church and its pastors should become hectoriing and judgmental moral exhorters, but instead that pastors should call morre freely upon those swaths of scripture that appeal to the wisdom and ethical traditions o0f the faith and should seek to help people discern what the total acceptance and grface of the gospel looks like on the moral ground."

Friends in church make a difference

Here's something significant picked up on Martin Marty's Context
Scholars say their studies found that religious American are three to four times more likely to be involved in their kcommunity than are nonreligious Americans. They are more apt to work on community projects, belong to voluntary associations, attend public meetings, vote in local elections attend political rallies and dontate time and money to causes.
However the increase in civic engagement has nothing to do with ideas of divine judgment or with trying to secure a place in heaven. Rather it's the relationships people make in their churches, that draw them into comm unity activism.
The theory is: if someone from your "moral community" asks you to volunteer for a casue, its really hard to say no. Being asked to do something by a member of your congregation is different from being asked to do something by a member of bowling league. The effect is so strong, that peoploe whoattend religious services regularly but don't have any friends there look more like secularists than fellow believers when it comes to civic participation. It's not faith that accounts for this, its faith communities.