Introduction
God, who is Spirit, took on human flesh and blood in Jesus Christ. This is the incarnation. Lutheran worship recognizes that the move is God coming down to us and not us ascending up to God. We cannot “shed” our bodies; we were created materially. Since this is part of God’s good creation, He does not seek to get rid of the physical but rather having made us as physical beings He adapts to us and our needs. As parents know, you have to meet your children where they are at and in a way that connects to them–who they are and of what they are capable. God knows the limits, abilities, and needs of His creation and He comes to meet us at where we are. And He has come to connect with us on our level, even physically coming in our flesh. He instituted means to continue to do this. Thus, recognizing God’s movement toward connecting with us in a tangible way, Lutheran worship approaches worship in the same way, preserving our need as people to connect physically with one another and with God.
We note, then, that an aspect of incarnational worship is that we also follow in our Lord’s example. Thus, there is a preference for being physically gathered together for worship, that Jesus sends us physically to talk to other people and visit people, that Jesus set up pastors as representatives, and so forth. All these are connected to His example and to His continued presence among us (you might consider how Christians are called ” the hands of Jesus” in helping our neighbors because they are members of His body). This fits into how we proceed in worship. Physical and tangible aspects of worship help us to connect with and understand the spiritual reality of God, Who stands outside of His Creation and yet personally interacts with it.
Building Structure and Design
Churches, like Mt. Calvary, are designed with many different aspects in mind but central to it all is an intentional focus on our Triune God and how He relates to us, namely in His action through Jesus Christ. On a basic level, the space is created for hearing God’s Word and for receiving His gifts. From this point forward, the function of the space is to help us to think about our Lord and God and His Word as well as relate to Him. In the first regard, sign, symbols, and so forth are created to help us think and teach about the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and how God has related to us. In the second, we adorn the space with honor both to help us in recognizing and honoring God as well as to express our appreciation, thanks, and praise of the Lord God for all His benefits and blessings. There are many ways to accomplish this and yet there have also been handed down agreed upon “standards” and “commonalities.” So, you will find a lot of variety and freedom in church structure and building as well as many similar practices and symbols as they are drawn either directly from Scripture or from common ways of expressing that teaching from Scripture.
Chanting and Singing
Depending on the service, Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church utilizes some amount of responsive chanting and speaking and a lot of singing. We even have a choir that sings, especially in the seasons of Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, and Easter. Consider how music has a prominent place in many cultures and events. The Church is no less a space for music and we utilize it in a way that is both celebratory, reverent and respectful. We celebrate God’s victory and at the same time retain an element of decorum and honor because we are in the presence of the King of kings and Lord of lords–God Almighty, Creator of the heavens and the earth!
Use of Smells (incense, etc.)
Smell is an important and powerful sense and can bring back some of our earliest memories. Some churches use incense (as in the video above) and some use scented oil as part of the baptismal rite. Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church currently does not utilize either but recognizes the value and freedom that churches have in engaging all our senses. We also recognize that allergies are an issue for some people.
In our building, the smell of coffee and baked goods is not uncommon. In the worship service, though, the smells people encounter are from the building itself, from the wine used in communion, and during Easter, from the flowers located in the sanctuary (the front of the church).
Reverence Expressed with the Body
Sometimes Lutherans joke about “Lutheran calisthenics” because we have many changes from standing to sitting and vice-versa, not to mention those congregations that have opportunities for kneeling. Christians are free to stand, sit, knee, bow, genuflect, and so forth. In our Christian freedom we can physically express our reverence toward God as well as our unworthiness. Such practices such as folding hands and bowing our heads when praying can help us focus our time and attention on the Lord and our conversation with Him. Christians are also free to sit and listen and not engage in such movement but we do encourage it because of the way it aids us physical beings in worshiping our Lord with our whole bodies and how such engagement helps us personally since we are physical creatures.
Reverence at Communion involves Adoration of Christ
It is not idolatry to recognize the true reality of Jesus’ words in the Lord’s Supper. Certainly, it is wrong to regard such a practice as earning you God’s favor or to engage in such reverent behavior without faith. But to physically recognize our Lord’s presence among us is not wrong but encouraged. Thus, we, at Mt Calvary Lutheran Church, recognize our Lord coming to dwell with us under bread and wine by the power of His Word by lifting up the elements, by drawing near to His altar, by bowing heads and bodies and/or kneeling to receive them, and by those distributing the elements refraining from bowing while carrying them. You are free to likewise recognize God’s presence in these ways and even more.
However, such reverence should never take away from the importance of faith in the words of our Lord nor take the place of His instructions to us of taking and eating and taking and drinking in unity at His meal.
Pastor’s Washing Hands Before Communion
While the pastor at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church doesn’t practice the hand washing rite before communion (although he will either wash his hands in the sacristy, that is in the back, or use hand sanitizer), notice that the connection between the physical and the spiritual in this rite. The emphasis is not on washing away germs but rather on being prepared for the meeting with the Lord in His Supper. Thus, the import of the practice is a return to our baptism, wherein the Lord God cleansed us to be a holy people who enter in and meet with Him at His Table. We are coming before God, not on our own merits, but on account of His redemption of us through the blood of Jesus.
Silence in Worship
Moments of silence in worship give us time to contempt our sins and God’s great grace. They give us time to think about our Creator and to reflect on His Word and even apply it to our own lives. Some times are even set aside to give us time to pray and converse with our Lord and God.