How are stories acted out in your worship events?

by | September 26, 2011

A couple weeks ago, our theme was “story.” This week, our theme is “dramatic arts.” What’s the difference? These two are related, but not the same.

A story is an account of events – real or invented – that is written or told.

A drama is a story, acted out. “Drama” comes from the Greek dran, meaning “do, act.” Dramas involve actors, not just readers. Dramas involve action, not simply description. Dramas involve three, spacial dimensions. A story in a book literally lies flat.

The dramatization of stories happens everywhere in our culture. The media of television, music video, film, and of course the stage all utilize the dramatic arts. But how are the dramatic arts used in church? What does drama have to do with worship?

The first thing that comes to my mind when someone says “dramatic worship” is ritual. My memory scans back to the times I’ve sat in a Roman Catholic mass or other “high” church Eucharist and witnessed the presiders performing “high” drama. The vestments, utensils, and gestures of the celebrant mimic the costumes, props, and physical actions of the actor in a stage play. The story content is different, but in each, the narrative is brought to life by real-life action, not just words.

“Dramatic worship” also makes me think of the that old 1990’s formula for successful drama in church:

… use a six to eight-minute contemporary sketch (comic or serious) to introduce the topic the pastor will address. -Steve Pederson, Drama Ministry, 19

It’s easy to be critical of this particular use of drama for worship, however I have personally experienced sketches in church that made a powerful, lasting impression on me and the others present, helping promote the transformation that worship is supposed to bring.

How else is drama presented in worship? Some churches write, direct, and perform full-length plays, either in a regular worship service, or as a supplementary event. Others take portions of scripture or other poetic writings and divide them up for a number of people to deliver verbally as a “reader’s theater,” with emotion and expression that isn’t typically present in a regular reading of text.

How exactly are stories acted out in your worship events? Which of the forms discussed in this post have you tried successfully? Are there others you use regularly that aren’t listed here? Share with our readers your experience with drama in worship in the comments of this blog post.

Which dramatic arts are used in your worship events? (Choose all that apply.)

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Have you ever shared prayers with those of another faith?

by | September 19, 2011

Eleven days ago – three days before the memorial of the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks – the New York Times reported that

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg has come under attack by some religious and political leaders for not including clergy members as speakers at Sunday’s official ceremony at ground zero on the 10th anniversary of the attacks.

I don’t know all the reasons for Mr. Bloomberg’s decision. It does seem reasonable to think that he simply chose the easy route – the route through which potential differences of opinion and belief would be kept apart and conflict avoided. Smart.

It’s kind of like that rule you learn as a kid: “If you don’t have enough cookies for everyone, then nobody gets a cookie.” If everyone doesn’t get to pray, than nobody gets to pray. Sad, but fair.

Bloomberg is the mayor of New York City, one of the most religiously diverse cities in the world in one of the world’s most religiously diverse nations. But, much of the rest of the world today is equally diverse. As result, when confronted in our societies with opportunities for acknowledging the sacred, we have only two basic options to choose from:

  1. Involve no one of religious faith (as Bloomberg chose), or
  2. Involve everyone (or at least all those who want to participate).

Clearly, the latter option is most difficult. Immediately, practical problems arise such as, Who do we address when we pray? A generic “god” or multiple “gods”? What about those major religions that don’t always involve a “god”? There is a long, long list of deeper issues related to this.

In your local context, what have you done when circumstances call for the most broad spiritual response? Have you ever shared prayers with those of another faith? If so, who organized this? What did the gathering look like? What did it sound like? Who was present? Who was invited but decided not to participate? Who participated but seemed to do so inappropriately?

This week on Clayfire Curator, our quotes and posts will discuss interfaith dialogue, including the ways we approach interfaith worship – if worship of this kind is even possible at all.

Take a few moments to share your personal experience of interfaith interaction with us in the comments of this blog post.

The leaders of my church have had some interaction with the leaders from our city’s (choose all that apply):

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What is the very first significant story you recall hearing?

by | September 12, 2011

When I was three years old, the book called Boy, Was I Mad by Kathryn Hitte was six years old. I remember my father reading me the story of a young boy who is so mad – exactly why, we are never told – he runs away from home. While away, the boy encounters a variety of interesting experiences: watching a construction site, driving the local junk man’s horse-buggy, observing a swarm of ants dragging a dead bug, taking the bus with his friend to the park to play cowboys and “indians” (yes, this book was written a while ago).

The little boy is drawn into the each experience by curiosity, but then finds himself conflicted, as he remembers he is still so “mad.” How could he enjoy himself if he is supposed to be so sore? At each reminder of his anger, the boy returns to sulking, until he is distracted by something fun again. As the sun begins to set and the moon appears in the still bright sky, the distracted boy accidentally finds himself back at home. Home is not the place he wants to be. Until, that is, he smells the hot food and sees his mother and hears her loving voice and feels the comfort of his own bed.

I now read this story to my three year old son. He enjoys it. He understands “mad” to some degree. I’m not sure he would ever consider “running away from home.” But, he loves the illustrations by Mercer Mayer as much as I did. And, Hitte’s prose, though not rhyming, rolls off the tongue with a pleasantness I have only recognized in one, possibly two other children’s books I’ve read. I think he recognizes it to, to some degree.

This was a significant story for me, as evidenced even in the simple fact that I have chosen to read it to my own son 37 years after having heard it myself.

This week on Clayfire Curator, we consider stories, especially as they are used in worship. Significant stories – stories with an often intangible attractiveness – bring meaning and beauty to our lives. And nearly every story we might call “significant” also holds some real value for worship.

A significant story connects us with a dream we had once or one we have yet to articulate. A significant story reveals our flaws while modeling the kind of people we want to be. A significant story narrates beauty, truth and goodness (even while it narrates ugliness, falsity, and evil) so that we have a basis for a response to the ultimate ground from which those positive qualities emanate.

So, what stories are significant for you? Specifically, our question of the week is: What is the very first significant story you can recall hearing? Share with us at least the story’s title – if not, a bit of the narrative – in the comments of this blog post.

And vote in this week’s poll to register the qualities you find to be most important in a good story.

What makes a good story? Choose up to two answers:

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Can you share a story about when work and worship overlapped?

by | September 5, 2011

Humans lack integrity. Not only do we fail at being the same person in public as we are in private, we also fail when it comes to interweaving the many things we do.

We work. We rest. We play. We worship. Rarely do these things overlap. If they do, it is accidental. We have our calendars with dates and times for everything under the sun. Unlike the exhortation in Ecclesiastes, this kind of schedule segregation can be a bad thing. Why? Well, because, we are supposed to be whole. Just as we are supposed to be seamlessly the same person in secret and in public, we are also supposed to live – work, rest, play, worship, etc. – from a sense of wholeness, a sense that there is a something greater connecting the different things we do.

This week on Clayfire Curator we want to look a little more closely at two specific aspects of our doing that are often starkly delineated: Work and Worship. There is a time to laud and a time to labor. A time to sing and a time to slog. A time to exalt and a time to exert. Or, so we say with our actions. But, what does God say about this?

How should our careers relate to our religion? How do our jobs coincide with our spirituality? Is “mission” the only thing we ought to bring into our work or can we also bring worship?

An answer begins to formulate when we consider worship beyond ritual acts that are done in a specific place at a specific time. Then, a second question arises: What does this mean for worship curation? Doesn’t the worship curator curate in the context of meeting? Yes. And. Why limit ourselves to this?

Give us some feedback on this in the comments of this post. And, if it’s not too much work, cast your vote in the related poll…

Approximately how much of the worship you curate is intentionally designed for outside your main meeting space?

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Is your worship music repertoire old or new?

by | August 29, 2011

I just spent the weekend up in the San Gabriel mountains leading musical worship for a group of seminary students. The group was diverse in its representation of worship traditions. A week ago, I was thinking: Hmmm. How do I choose music for a group that includes Presbyterians and Pentecostals among numerous other worship traditions? My solution: Hit the CCLI top 25 list - and hit it hard! And, be sure that there is a healthy dose of “ecumenical” hymns.

As my guitar player said after he saw the set list for the weekend, “This reads like the greatest hits of 2006.” He was not entirely incorrect. (The current #1 song on CCLI was written in 2004.)

I have the opportunity to lead worship music in several such “random” gatherings a year. It wasn’t long after I first started leading these that I learned a several important strategies for choosing the right songs.

First, hit the CCLI list – and hit it hard! Personally, I despise (this may not be too strong a word) many of the songs on this list, but the fact remains that this list is made up of the songs that are actually being done in congregations all over the place. Second, include at least one hymn in every set. Third, if you want to introduce a brand new song (like one you’ve written or one you are sure the group will not know) choose only one and repeat it often. Fourth, be ready to adjust your set lists as you get a sense of the music people connect with.

Of course, the approach for choosing songs is different in a regular, local church context. In this case, you already know which songs people know and which ones they don’t. You know how many hymns are expected or comfortable for your people. When it comes to introducing new music, you also know the rate at which you can successfully do so.

When I was a full-time music pastor, I worked at a church called New Song. We were very true to our name. We would introduce a new song nearly every week. Sometimes the songs were original. Sometimes they were drawn from the blossoming praise and worship movement that was prolifically provisional for many leaders like me at the time. To help people in our congregation keep up with the new music, we would repeat each new song for three consecutive weeks before giving it a break. This meant that on any given week, half or more of our set list would be new songs.

Other churches go a completely different route, choosing to emphasize songs from the ‘past’ and reserving new songs for special occasions.

What about your songs? Is your music repertoire made up of mostly old or mostly new songs? I realize ‘old’ and ‘new’ are vague terms. This is intentional. Share with us your method for developing your repertoire and give us your definition of ‘old’ and ‘new’ songs for worship in the comments of this blog post.

This week’s related poll…

About how often do you introduce a previously unknown song to your congregation?

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