What is Liturgy?

What is liturgy?

The greek word is simply “service.”  It’s any ritual or work we do for God.  Romans 12:1-2 says your reasonable service to God is presenting your bodies a sacrifice to Him.  So liturgy isn’t even confined to formal worship. 

But when we say we have a “liturgical” worship service, what does that mean?

 

First level: Planned, not spontaneous

        Not acting spontaneous when it isn’t.  The Crystal Cathedral’s Hour of Power was called “The show” by its producers for a reason.

        Prayers are written ahead of time.  Scripture readings are planned.

        Many Baptist churches do this, with a printed bulletin.

        Screens contribute to the spontaneous feeling.  You get a sense of “let’s all just do this,” instead of the understanding that church leaders have picked the songs they want you to sing this week.

        (Do you bring a Bible or notebook to a service you expect to be spontaneous praise to God?  Not usually.)

 

Second level: Formal, not casual

Closely related to the first, here people tend to dress up more than street casual.  From suit and tie heights, down to at least a collared shirt.  There is a sense that we aren’t just here to express ourselves to God, but that we are in His special presence, and so we should act and dress differently than we do in any other setting.  This is Orthodox Presbyterian Church, and some conservative PCA churches. 

(Do we dress the same for the office that we do for church?)

 

Third level: incorporating helpful aspects of the higher liturgy.  

We sing the Lord’s Prayer, and Sanctus each week, for example, and often incorporate the lectionary into our opening litany. 

 

Fourth level: bells and whistles.  

This involves robes or collars.  Candles, incense, and processions, even.  This is “high liturgy,” a la Lutheran, Episcopalian and Roman liturgies.  Another aspect of this is not deviating from form (Book of Common Prayer) prayers at all.

 

I’m a third level liturgist, along with my congregation.  I have yet to go to robe or collar (don’t know that I ever will), but neither am I trying to act spontaneously in the main worship order moves.  (I often am spontaneously, involuntarily, emotional in reading Scripture, but that’s a separate issue.)  CREC churches range from second to fourth level churches, which is fine.

 

These aren’t hard and fast categories.  Many congregations are second level in one part, and third or fourth in another aspect.  Let a thousand flowers bloom, without judgment.  Just maintain Scriptural principles:  have a reason from the Bible for everything you do.