The Liturgy of Official Proceedings
“All rise for the Honorable Judge Janelle Havercamp”. Everyone stood. The order was given by the bailiff at the beginning of a court proceeding I was recently witness to. “You may be seated”, Judge Havercamp said and we all sat. The judge called the court to order (not a normal phrase you hear in everyday life) and announced the case number that would be adjudicated. She asked if all the necessary parties to the proceedings were present, calling on specific people for a response. The representative for the state then proceeded to briefly outline what was the purpose of this hearing and the judge authorized him to call a witness (another term you don’t usually use outside of a courtroom).
If you’ve ever watched a movie or TV show that included a courtroom scene, this probably sounds pretty familiar to you. As someone who doesn’t attend court very often, I found myself feeling a little out of place, not quite in sync with what was going on. The attorneys and regulars to the court all knew what to expect next and were ready for it. I was a half-step behind, not prepared for the next turn of events.
But as I saw case after case being quickly handled, I realized that there were patterns and rhythms I could follow. You could quickly learn what to expect next because the cases followed a predictable script. Perhaps it was this that created a connection in my mind between how a court operates and what takes place in church. Or maybe it was the frequent standing and sitting. But there is definitely some similarity between official proceedings and the liturgy of a church service. And I think as we look at it, we’ll see there is good reason for it.
Defining Liturgy
The word liturgy comes from a Greek word that indicates a public duty or work performed by a person to the state. In Greece, a person might at their own expense supervise the public baths or gymnasium. And the Bible uses this word in regard to the work done by a priest on behalf of the people. So, from the beginning, “liturgy” had an idea of public service done in a specific way, whether religious or civil.
In modern usage, this word indicates the ritual order of a religious service. In churches like the one I attend, this order is fairly rigid and spelled out for worshippers to follow along in our church bulletin. And while you might think your church doesn’t do that “liturgy” stuff, the reality is that all churches do. In the charismatic churches I grew up in — which were about as opposite of the rigid liturgy of the Presbyterian church as they could be — you could still expect that the service would open in prayer, followed by three songs, then the offering, then another song, then the preaching, then a final prayer and close the service. As wild as things got in those churches, for the most part, things would happen in that order.
In a Presbyterian church that uses a stricter liturgy, you can expect to open with a call to worship, often a reading from the Psalms. Then a hymn, then a prayer of confession and the assurance of forgiveness. Another hymn, the offering, another hymn, a prayer of intercession for the church, the sermon, a hymn of response, the benediction, and close. I’m leaving a couple of things out, but you get the idea. And for each of these elements, we find an example in Scripture and put them in very intentionally. This is our liturgy.
Seeing Church Through the Eyes of a Newcomer.
My family had a young lady at church with us this past Sunday. She had not been to church in many years, not since she was very young. And the church she had been to was a Baptist church. So, stepping into a Presbyterian church was quite a bit to take in. We tried to help her follow along with the service, but she was clearly struggling. I remember my first services in a Presbyterian church, and I could easily empathize.
Why do we stand and sit so many times? What is the deal with singing the Gloria? Everyone seems to know the words already! And nowhere, NOWHERE in the church is the Lord’s Prayer the way we say it. You’re just sort of expected to know it apparently. The young woman remarked, “That’s a lot of standing and sitting. And a lot of prayer”. I’ll take that last part as a compliment!
The same would probably be true of any church. You know when to stand and sit, when to bow your head and when the prayer is over. For someone completely new, this can be a bit confusing and even overwhelming. It certainly helped me see our service with new eyes and begun to think of ways to help make the service more accessible to those completely unfamiliar with church without changing anything essential about the service.
The Need for Liturgy
Depending on what church you go to, you might not think much of our manner of worship. Why do we need such a structured and inflexible worship? And this is what I was thinking about when I was in court. Whenever official business is taking place, there is a “liturgy”. Courtroom proceedings may be unfamiliar to us, but from seeing these things on TV, we generally wouldn’t be surprised to see a witness asked to swear that they will tell “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth”. When the President is inaugurated, we know it will take place in January, he will at some point his left hand on a Bible, raise his right hand, and repeat after the Chief Justice the oath of office. When Congress meets, there will be certain rules to who will speak, when, and for how long.
So long as we think of our church services as merely informal gatherings of people for a common cause, our rigid, intentional liturgy might not make much sense. But if this is an official gathering of God’s people to reaffirm the covenant as commanded, then this becomes something different entirely. We are now following extremely specific instructions on how to approach the King on his terms and in fulfillment of our covenant obligations. And that’s why the worship at my church seems so rigid and inflexible.
