Passing the Peace happens in the liturgy before the offering and our gathering around the meal of the Eucharist. It reconciles us in Christ and with each other before we come to dinner at God’s table. Only Christ can give the peace that heals us from our prickly selves and makes us into one body.
What’s Up With That Long Prayer?
7th Sunday after Pentecost, Lectionary 18 July 31, 2011 The Dance of the Liturgy: Prayers of the People “What’s up with that long prayer?” It was the title of a section of a pre-catechism curriculum I designed as a seminary project in Christian Education. I never got to write the whole curriculum, but I keep […]
The Dance of the Liturgy: Telling our Story
6th Sunday after Pentecost, Lectionary 17 July 24, 2011 The Dance of the Liturgy: The Apostles’ Creed: Affirming our Faith Ricky was on his deathbed. It was pretty clear that he had gotten worse since I’d seen him the Thursday before. Ricky had grown up Lutheran, but had not been to church for 20 years. […]
The Dance of the Liturgy: Jesus Speaks Among Us
The Gospel reading is at the center of our worship as it is Jesus, God’s Word, among us. We rise, we greet his words with singing, we pause to hear his words interpreted by the preacher. We hear God’s word as Law which convicts us, and Gospel which assures us of God’s forgiveness and love.
The Dance of the Liturgy: Radical Welcome
Gathering in God’s name is counter-cultural in our world of self-centered independence. We become Christ’s own body when we are together and become community. We are collected in prayer and lift up the theme’s of the day’s lectionary readings.