Old Light On New Worship

“What is at stake is authenticity. . . . Sooner or later Christians tire of public meetings that are profoundly inauthentic, regardless of how well (or poorly) arranged, directed, performed. We long to meet, corporately, with the living and majestic God and to offer him the praise that is his due.”—D. A. CarsonWorship is a hot topic, but the ways that Christians from different traditions view it vary greatly. What is worship? More important, what does it look like in action, both in our corporate gatherings and in our daily lives? These concerns—the blending of principle and practice—are what Worship by the Book addresses.Cutting through cultural clichés, D. A. Carson, Mark Ashton, Kent Hughes, and Timothy Keller explore, respectively:· Worship Under the Word· Following in Cranmer’s Footsteps· Free Church Worship: The Challenge of Freedom· Reformed Worship in the Global City “This is not a comprehensive theology of worship,” writes Carson. “Still less is it a sociological analysis of current trends or a minister’s manual chockfull of ‘how to’ instructions.” Rather, this book offers pastors, other congregational leaders, and seminary students a thought-provoking biblical theology of worship, followed by a look at how three very different traditions of churchmanship might move from this theological base to a better understanding of corporate worship. Running the gamut from biblical theology to historical assessment all the way to sample service sheets, Worship by the Book shows how local churches in diverse traditions can foster corporate worship that is God-honoring, Word-revering, heartfelt, and historically and culturally informed.

In Story-Shaped Worship Robbie Castleman attempts nothing less than to uncover the fundamental shape of worship. Right worship doesn't require a traditionalist return to earlier forms of church, she argues, but a fresh response to God in light of the revealed patterns of worship we find in the Bible and church history.

This fully updated second edition is a selective annotated bibliography of all relevant published resources relating to church and worship music in the United States. Over the past decade, there has been a growth of literature covering everything from traditional subject matter such as the organ works of J.S. Bach to newer areas of inquiry including folk hymnology, women and African-American composers, music as a spiritual healer, to the music of Mormon, Shaker, Moravian, and other smaller sects. With multiple indices, this book will serve as an excellent tool for librarians, researchers, and scholars sorting through the massive amount of material in the field.

The cultural shift since 2001 is very different than that of the 60's and 70's. It is a culture tired of noise, turned off by phoniness, sick of glitz, and wary of the superficial. It is a culture that is searching for an authentic encounter with God, longing for depth and substance, craving quiet and spiritual contemplation, and moved by visual, tactile forms of communication." "The New Worship Awakening" examines the wide array of worship styles, from traditional to contemporary, currently in practice in today's churches. Webber makes a compelling case for renewing the vigor of the spiritual life of the church through two means: grounding worship in the biblical narrative while at the same time integrating an understanding of worship traditions throughout history. Through astute observations and personal experiences, the author emphasizes that Christ can be encountered through the arts, the services of the Christian year, the Sacraments, the singing of hymns and folk songs, the passing of the peace, the Liturgy, and many other means that incorporate Christian worship styles through the ages. He makes the all-important point that worship today celebrates the same Christ who walked the earth two thousand years ago, and that in true and lively worship there is divine action. "There is an action from above: the Holy Spirit delivers Christ and the benefits of Christ's death and resurrection to the worshippers."

The services and resources in the Iona Abbey Worship Book reflect the Iona Community's commitment to the belief that worship is all that we are and all that we do, both inside and outside the church, with no division into the sacred and the secular. The material draws on many traditions, including the Celtic, and aims to help us to be fully present to God, who is fully present to us - in our neighbour, in the political and social activity of the world around us, and in the very centre and soul of our being. Each year, thousands of visitors make their way to Iona and many are changed by their time on this small Hebridean island which has been a powerful spiritual centre over the centuries. The Iona Community believes that we are brought to Iona not to be changed into 'religious' people, but rather to be made more fully human. Our common life - including our services - is directed to that end.

A completely revised and expanded edition of this collection of liturgies for morning, day, evening, Holy Communion and healing services and there are revised liturgies from the original edition. Aimed primarily at participative worship with shared leadership, it includes optional methods of scriptural reflection and prayer with symbolic acction. There is also a preface of comments on leading worship, dealing with all the issues which ordained clergy never tell lay people but presume they should know.