Occasional Papers
from
The Cathedral

A forum for the People of the Diocese of Connecticut      Published by Christ Church Cathedral

The Very Rev. Richard H. Mansfield, Jr., D.D. - Provost
Volume One, Number Four May, 1993

  

The Rev. Canon Richard T. Nolan, Ph.D. - editor
November 1991

     

Liturgical Evangelism:
The Witness of Worship

  
Fr. Lord

The Rev. Canon Richard A. Lord, S.T.M.

Rector of Christ and the Epiphany Church, East Haven, CT, and Honorary Canon Scholar of Christ Church Cathedral.

     The evangelization of the unchurched and the renewal of baptized Christians have become primary concerns for almost every historical Christian denomination. While some denominations are turning to mass evangelism, ”church growth” programs, or “seeker services” for the unchurched, local parish clergy want an evangelistic method that not only assists the process of conversion, but one that brings people into the full life of the church and keeps them there. I know. I am one of them.

     Unlike the pattern in the three decades after World War II, when people typically sought out clergy or parishioners before they came to church, most unchurched visitors today makes their first formal contacts with the institutional church as unannounced visitors to “check out” Sunday morning worship services.(1) As a result, Sunday morning worship has become a moment of evangelism whether local congregations like it or not - indeed, whether they are prepared or not. The critical question is thus not whether we will choose to do evangelism but whether the challenge of evangelism that is ours is being effectively met.

     After more than ten years of pastoral experience with the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, the Episcopal Church is now in a position to shift the liturgical discourse from what is technically and historically correct to what is effective and evangelistic, to what can bring good news to people. Many congregations have come to believe that good worship is itself effective evangelism. These congregations seek to design Sunday morning liturgies that can connect the churched with the unchurched, that can evangelize members and visitors alike. They are concerned not only with liturgical competence, but with the overall witness of the worshipping community. This concern is at the heart of what I describe in this paper as liturgical evangelism.

The Witness of Worship

     What is evangelism but the announcement of the good news that Jesus’ death and resurrection have released the life and values of the new age of the kingdom of God into the old order of disintegration, sin, and death? Our liturgical texts proclaim this with forceful clarity. They make public statements about the Christian faith which most of us would not be so bold to make in personal one-on-one conversations. If liturgy is “the public work of the people of God,” then perhaps we can acknowledge that liturgy enables us to say and do in public what we would hardly feel comfortable to say and do in private.(2) In hymns of praise, prayers, scriptures, preaching, and sacramental celebration, the good news of God’s reign in Jesus Christ is proclaimed. The Gospel story is proclaimed both to the faithful and to seekers whose commitment and participation in the Christian faith is not yet initiated or decided.

     For many persons who have been incorporated into the church, the first link in the chain that led to their conversion was worship. Participation in worship was an evangelizing moment, a time when through all the facets of the liturgy, God’s saving action penetrated one’s heart and mind. Worship alone cannot fulfill the whole scope of the church’s evangelistic mission, yet it clearly has been known to foster conversion and renewed commitment in the lives of Christians down through the centuries.

Welcoming the Stranger

     We need a more intentional connection between liturgy and evangelism. When liturgy is seen not simply as a means to mission, but as a way of participating in Christ’s mission to the world, then an intentional ministry of invitation and hospitality becomes an evangelical imperative. The liturgical proclamation of the Word and the celebration of the sacraments are a part of God’s mission to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ. It is appropriate to invite others to the worshiping community.

     When we invite people to make their way with Jesus in the worshiping community, or when unannounced visitors seek to observe or participate, we must be prepared to receive such guests with appropriate hospitality. Hospitality to the stranger is a primary biblical metaphor that serves to link liturgy with evangelism. The understanding that this metaphor provides is rooted in the biblical description of God as the ultimate host of corporate worship. For the early church, as for us, it is from God’s hospitality that our call to be hospitable to the stranger grows. The biblical and early church tradition bears witness that hospitality to strangers is not a peripheral matter in Christian liturgy, but in fact is central.

     From the worship setting of the Jewish home meal (kiddush) emerges much of Jesus’ ministry. He is often described as a guest at someone’s table, and many of his most moving parables are told around a meal. Indeed, his eating and drinking with sinners particularly offends the religious leaders of his day. Most important, in these meal settings, Jesus emphasized the inclusive nature of the kingdom of God, which he often compared to a monarch’s feast or wedding banquet. At his final meal, Jesus took bread and wine and gave himself to the company of strangers who had become his disciples. He linked these actions and words regarding his life and ministry to the breaking in of God’s kingdom. In this meal, through his self-giving, self-sacrificing presence, their lives were opened to the saving mystery of Jesus Christ.

     The biblical metaphor of hospitality involves far more than the modern notion of seeking to make people feel comfortable, or feel “at home” with the liturgy. ”User friendly” might be an acceptable term for software, but not for liturgical evangelism. Even though simplicity is an important virtue, it must be recognized that many aspects of a biblically centered faith cannot be oversimplified. The eucharist on Sunday morning is a celebration of the Gospel and its primary focus is the worship of God not the employment of gimmicks or techniques to increase worship attendance. Given that primary focus however, the liturgical rites of the church need to invite the participation and understanding of as wide a spectrum of people as possible.

     The goal for liturgical evangelism is not to turn the Sunday morning liturgy into an evangelistic crusade. Rather, the goal is to allow the evangelizing elements that are basic to the historic shape of the liturgy to work for the renewal of the baptized and the conversion of the uncommitted. By necessity, liturgical evangelism will be directly related to the church’s rites of Christian initiation. The renewal of the ancient church’s catechumenate provides a liturgical means of guiding the conversion of the unbaptized, and incorporating them as well as those renewing their faith into the body of Christ.

The Parish Eucharist as a Structure for Liturgical Evangelism

     How might the concerns of liturgical evangelism inform and shape the parish eucharist on Sunday morning? As the Eucharist is celebrated in the Episcopal Church today, there are four phases that make up a full eucharistic rite: (1) entrance; (2) service of the Word of God; (3) the Eucharist; and (4) the dismissal. A brief description of each will help to show how the sequence of liturgy not only unfolds the gospel story of God’s love in Christ but also guides the worshiper through the experience of that love.

     The main purpose of the entrance rite is to form a worshipping community - to gather physically, mentally, and spiritually for the celebration of the Gospel story in word and sacrament. There is a fundamental transition that occurs as people move from places of home and employment to gather as the church, and this transition needs to be considered in preparation for the liturgy. From the perspective of liturgical evangelism, the entrance rite involves an intentional awareness of the stranger or newcomer. Long before the doors of the church are opened, a ministry of welcome and hospitality has been planned.

     The act of gathering, including the intentional care and welcome of newcomers should not be thought of as taking place before the liturgy begins, but rather as being itself the beginning of the liturgy. The act of gathering is supported by careful attention to the small visual and auditory details that happen as people enter the sanctuary. If the act of gathering is left to happen in a haphazard way, then a message of disinterest will be conveyed. Liturgical evangelism asks the question, “What will the stranger or newcomers think and feel as they enter for worship on Sunday morning?” “What will enhance or inhibit their openness to hear with depth the Gospel story proclaimed in the word and sacrament that is to follow?” Looking at the liturgy through the eyes of those entering for the first time would help develop an appreciation for the act of gathering as a critical element of the liturgy itself.

     Howard Hanchey describes congregations who take this approach as “mission-minded” congregations. They view the presence of strangers and newcomers not as coincidental but as providential. Hanchey writes:

     Forget bringing a friend to church. If mainline denominations simply incorporated 90% of everyone who visited them in any given year, church growth would be assured. We don't need to “bring a friend” to grow, as important as that may be for other reasons. We simply need to respond more effectively to the “friends” God is already and always bringing us(3)

     The Service of the Word of God - the reading of Scripture and the ministry of preaching - stands close to the center of liturgical evangelism. Scripture is one of the central means of awakening people to the reality of God’s reign in Christ and the possibilities of a new way of being in this world. The Word is not merely the text being read, it is the presence and purpose and power of God revealed in the events and relationships recorded in those texts. The reading of Scripture puts the gathered assembly in remembrance of how God acted in history and how God acts now in our lives.

     For this reason it is critical that the reading of Scripture and preaching be carried out with commitment and personal preparation. When Scripture is proclaimed in a perfunctory manner and preaching is reduced to the personal experience or latest concern of the preacher, then the living and active Word is lost and liturgical evangelism remains an empty proposition. The ministry of the Word should be carried out by those who know how to read and who have a desire to communicate something for the benefit of the whole assembly.

     Hospitality to the stranger is demonstrated when the sermon does not violate the Christian message in its method. Good evangelistic preaching does not impose belief. It is not coercive, nor does it seek to manipulate a desired response from the hearers. The truth of the Gospel when clearly and honestly presented needs no further justification. The preacher is called to present what he or she believes in a way that respects the integrity and value of the hearers while maintaining the urgency of the message(4)

     When is it appropriate to draw a sermon to a challenging conclusion and ask for a specific response of commitment to Jesus Christ? Though conversion is rightly seen as a process that deepens and extends over time, there are “evangelizing moments” along the way, moments when the need to invite personal response to the Gospel seems natural and right. How can we make such an appeal without violating the moral freedom of the person to choose for themselves? This is an important and delicate matter, one that should not be trivialized by associations with perspiring television evangelists employing slick motivational techniques.

     The model provided by evangelical and Pentecostal churches, that of the “altar call” and the long walk to the front of the church for a personal prayer of confession and acceptance of Jesus as “personal Lord and Savior,” may not seem appropriate in the context of a liturgy of Word and sacrament. Nor does an invitation to respond to the gospel need to be defined as an initial turning only. It may be that for some, but there are a variety of individual turning points we reach on the pilgrimage of faith.

     I have found one approach particularly helpful and quite natural in the context of the eucharistic liturgy. Immediately following the sermon, one can ask for a period of silent reflection. It can be an “evangelizing moment” of great power allowing the Holy Spirit to register, imprint, convict and convert. I find that if I am sincere and matter of fact about this silence the congregation will not feel that any emotional pressure is being exerted. If the sermon has included a challenge to turn from a life lived without reference to the rule of God in Christ, I may simply suggest a prayer of commitment in a concluding collect, “Lord, have mercy on us and forgive us. Come into our lives and help us to follow you in the way that leads to fullness of life. Amen.”

     A more pragmatic concern, though no less important to the enterprise of liturgical evangelism, concerns the danger of what might be called a “more is better” rubric. If the Service of the Word of God is prolonged with lengthy readings, psalms, tracts, sermons, and announcements, the brain is numbed and the dismissal is eagerly awaited. While we do not want to convey a “rush ‘em in and rush ‘em out” mentality, it is important that the physical requirements of the liturgy be carefully considered. The value of brevity may find resistance among those who hold that the liturgy is a fragile heritage that must be handed down intact and with great care. But whose needs are being met when clergy and musicians are so absorbed in their own words and ceremonial that the service seems to drag on and on – the stranger’s? the congregation’s? God’s? In such an environment, I suspect the opposite of liturgical evangelism may take place.

     The story of the saving work of God in Christ, and of his loving reign in the midst of human life is not only spoken, it is enacted in the Eucharist. The movement of the eucharistic prayer is characterized by simplicity. It reenacts in word and action Jesus’ experience at the Last Supper in which he “took, blessed, broke, and gave.” The four Eucharistic prayers provided for alternate use in Rite Two of The Book of Common Prayer, are rich in proclamation of the Gospel story.

     The climax of the eucharist is in the final act of giving and receiving the bread and wine. The invitation is given, “the gifts of God for the people of God.” The people then move forward to receive those gifts in faith. Brian Wren’s wonderful hymn set to the American folk melody Land of Rest captures this profound moment of Christian worship:

      I come with joy to meet my Lord, forgiven, loved, and free, in awe and wonder to recall his life laid down for me. I come with Christians far and near to find as all are fed, the new community of love in Christ’s communion bread(5)

     It has been said that the Episcopal Church has an altar call every Sunday - a call to encounter the Lord in the sacrament of bread and wine. Eating and drinking at the Lord’s Table is an experience of the Gospel story. It enacts the death and resurrection of Jesus in such a way that the whole person is engaged in worship.

     Liturgical evangelism is concerned that baptized worshipers not only participate in the sacramental form of the eucharist, but also the inner experience. The Prayer Book Catechism defines sacraments as “outward and visible signs of inward and spiritual grace, given by Christ as sure and certain means by which we receive that grace.” Communication through the language of sacraments cannot be reduced to logical verbal statements. It is not verbal language. Sacraments communicate on an intuitive level and convey realities known more to the heart than to the head. The sacraments are evangelical. They call forth responses of faith and trust that are often deeper than the mind can describe.

     Though the eucharist is the fellowship meal of the baptized, its celebration in word and sign remains a vehicle of gospel proclamation for those who are present, whether eligible to receive or not.

     The final movement of liturgical evangelism is dismissal. The people have entered into the presence of the Lord; they have heard God speak through the readings of Scripture and the sermon; they have responded in prayer and thanksgiving; and have shared in the spiritual nourishment of sacramental bread and wine. The proclamation of the Gospel story, through word and sacrament leads finally to the sending forth of the people into the world where the daily practice of loving and serving God is a continuation of their worship.

     The liturgy ends with three simple acts: (1) a blessing that emphasizes the sending forth of the congregation; (2) the dismissal such as “Go in peace to love and serve the Lord”; and (3) a recessional hymn if employed, during which the lectors, acolytes, ministers of communion, choir and clergy process out, marking the end of the liturgy and the beginning of service in the world. The fourfold movement of the Eucharist dramatically reenacts the gospel story of God’s love in Christ and leads worshipers through an experience of that love. The Parish eucharist provides a biblically shaped structure for worship conceived as liturgical evangelism.

Conclusion

     In this paper I have suggested a closer relationship between evangelism and worship. Liturgy is an evangelistic activity because it celebrates the Gospel story of God’s love in Christ through Word and sacramental sign. Worship in word and sacrament is an integral part of God’s mission to restore all people to unity with God and to each other in Christ. The Sunday morning parish eucharist can lead people to an experience of God’s reconciling love wherever they may be on the journey of faith. The devout, the seeker, the stranger, are all embraced by the Gospel story and invited to take their next good step of faith.

     In the twilight of the twentieth century, the church needs to recover its distinct identity, an identity enacted and celebrated through liturgical worship. Baptism initiates a person into a community that takes its identity from the death and resurrection of Christ. Worship strengthens that identity and liberates the worshiper from seeking a false identity through nationality, race, economics, or any other human institution that is susceptible to the forces of evil present in the world.

      As historic churches embrace a new commitment to evangelism, they should make a wise use of the evangelistic structures they already possess. The eucharistic liturgy on Sunday morning is one such structure. We need eucharistic celebrations that offer a thoughtful, sustained, relevant presentation of the Christian faith in word and sacrament, embodied in prayerful and lively congregations. The challenge for people and clergy today is to become what we say we believe. Part of the difficulty well may be that the eucharistic liturgy (at least on paper) is more faithful than we are! The liturgy will not do itself. When it is done by people who have appropriated the Gospel story for themselves and are prepared to rehearse that story with spiritual sensitivity and joy, then worship will be truly evangelical. In the words of Vatican II: ”The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the church is directed; it is also the fount from which all her power flows.”6

(1) Kennon L. Callahan, Twelve Keys to an Effective Church: Strategic Planning for Mission (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1983), 23.

(2) This line of thought is further developed in Frank Senn’s timely and relevant new book The Witness of the Worshipping Community: Liturgy and the Practice of Evangelism (New Jersey: Paulist Press, 1993).

(3) Howard Hanchey, Church Growth and the Power of Evangelism: Ideas That Work (Massachusetts: Cowley Publications, 1990), 144.

(4) See Paul V. Marshall, Preaching For The Church Today: The Skills, Prayer, and rt of Sermon Preparation (New York: The Church Hymnal Corporation, 1990), 41-44.

(5) Brian A. Wren,@I come with joy to meet my Lord@ vss. 1-2, Words: Copyright 8 1971 by Hope Publishing Company.

6 Austin P. Flannery, ed. The Constitution of the Sacred Liturgy,” Documents of Vatican II (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1975), 6.