The increasing darkness represented
the darkness of Golgotha and our own human sin. The music of this
service represented the passion of the events of this night. After
reading the story of the crucifixion, the chancel was stripped.
As the worshippers watched, students removed the Bible, the communion
elements, the candelabra, the basin and towel until there was
nothing left in the chancel. This action caused us to think about
the willingness of Christ to empty himself for us. Then a tall
ladder was brought in and the student who had played Jesus climbed
up the ladder to place a black cloth on the cross. The only light
shining in the chapel was illuminating the cross. The service
ended in silence. Since there was not the traditional benediction,
I was concerned that people did not know when to leave. So after
ten minutes I got up to give people freedom to leave. But all
the worshippers continued to sit in silence to ponder the love
expressed in that draped cross.
A youth group from a local church attended the service and after
the service was over asked me to share with them. I asked them
to share what they had experienced from this worship. They shared
that they saw how worship has inherent drama. The story of Christ’s
life was made real for them in this night’s worship.
The next day, Good Friday, we had a service of the Stations of
the Cross. The different stations depict the road which Jesus
had to walk to the cross. We projected the stations on a screen
below the black-draped cross. At each station a faculty member,
student, or staff member read the Bible passage related to that
station and then offered a time of silence to ponder that station.
They then led us in prayer.
The Tuesday following Easter was our seminary’s formal
Easter worship. The worship was led by our first year M.Div. worship
students. As members of the seminary community approached the
chapel, two music students played the flute and the violin welcoming
the worshipers to come and celebrate the resurrection of our Lord.
The chapel that had been stripped bare on Thursday night had been
transformed. In the center of the chapel was an empty tomb with
the stone rolled away. Lilies and orchids shouted that Christ
was risen. The black cloth on the cross had been changed to a
gold cloth to represent the risen Christ. Each worshiper was given
a paper lily to wear made by the students. The music was joyful
and the Halleluiahs which had been absent in our worship during
the season of Lent returned. Three students gave witnesses of
how the resurrection of Jesus had changed their lives. One student
played Mary Magdalene. One student played a Taiwanese grandmother
who had lived through the White Terror. A third student played
a young African man with AIDS. All shared how resurrection hope
has made them new creatures in Christ. As the students planned
for this service, they divided into four small groups to plan.
One group, called God’s Word, planned the scripture and
proclamation of the Word. Another group, called Liturgy, planned
the call to worship, the prayers, the responses, and other parts
of the worship. A third group planned the music for the service.
A fourth group, called Media, arranged the inside of the chapel,
as well as the flowers given to each worshippers.
Worship is inherently dramatic. Worship doesn’t necessarily
have to use drama to be dramatic. The story of salvation is drama.
We tried to model several principles of worship during our seminary’s
Holy Week. We wanted to involve as many of the members of our
community as possible, so worship was not a spectator activity,
but allowed us all to be changed by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Worship should also elicit a response. We follow Jesus through
the last days of his life and on to the empty tomb so we become
new creatures in Christ. Worship doesn’t just happen in
the chapel. Chapel worship leads us to live a resurrection life
in our families, in our jobs, in our churches, and in society.
Worship uses many different ways to communicate. We don’t
just use our ears. God has given five senses and good worship
involves all five senses. Because we all learn and grow in different
ways, worship uses a variety of forms.
Worship is the most important thing we do. So worship should
be and can be interesting and creative. The story of the Bible
is a wonderfully rich story. We should never make it boring. As
Tom Driver has said, “to be boring in worship is to bear
false witness” (from The Magic of Ritual: Our Need for
Liberating Rites that Transform our Lives and Our Communities).
John McCall
The 2004 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
96 |
