On Worship

The Twelfth Sunday after Trinity

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire or deserve: Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen. 

Worship has been described as the principle duty of a Christian, but how is that duty fulfilled? As touched upon previously, worship means ascribing worth to something or someone. It is therefore something we do to God; it is not something we can come to passively experience. JI Packer goes so far as to suggest that, “[w]e are constructed so that no activity ever brings us such deep joy as does the worship of God, once we are enabled (through new birth in Christ and through the liberating power of the Holy Spirit) to plunge into it.”

This makes generally clear the concept of worship. It is something done by us that shows how we ascribe worth to God, and at the same time gives us joy owing to how God created us. But how do we worship? What constitutes worship?

There are many different ideas on what constitutes worship. JI Packer concluded his thought by suggesting that, “worshipping on earth is training and rehearsal for heaven.” This reflects the concept of worship as a mirror of heaven, a practice for our eventual joining of the Church Triumphant in heaven, ceaselessly praising God with all the other saints and angels in heaven. Others view worship as more of a form of service to God. It is show of devotion to God for who He is and what He has done. Among many evangelical circles, including some Evangelical Anglicans, it is viewed merely as an affirmation for believers, an opportunity for peace and refreshment amidst the turmoil of the world. Still others view it as a form of communion with God and other Christians. Worship becomes an opportunity to share our relationship with God with other believers in community. Still to others, worship is more of an external act, a proclamation of the Gospel; an opportunity to make a profession of belief to non-believers about the God we worship. Among charismatics, there is also a notion of worship as being an arena of transcendence, a way of meeting with God beyond ourselves.

Examining any local parish, it would be possible to see multiple ideas of worship in action, regardless of whether or not that parish identified itself as being evangelical or charismatic or anything else. Most parishes will not be alike, emphasizing one idea over another, and excluding a third completely. For instance, a parish rooted in Low Churchmanship might largely ignore the concept of worship as a mirror of heaven, and instead focus more thoroughly on ideas of service to God and affirmation for believers. A parish of a more High Churchmanship might conversely have greater focus on worship as a mirror of heaven and communion with God and other Christians.

What is important is that whatever lens or idea is used to frame worship, it ultimately be done in the original context of ascribing worth to God. Worship must always focus on God, glorifying and affirming him, and should never shift that focus away from God towards the individual. Worship is not about making ourselves feel better. As JI Packer says, we receive joy from worshipping God. We don’t need to make it about us in order to receive joy from worship!

Coming to Holy Communion on a Sunday morning is thus in and of itself an act of worship; in doing so we proclaim God’s worth of our time each week. But beyond that, how do we worship?

Holy Scripture commands us to, “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength,” (Mk 12. 30). How does that apply in the context of worship?

Properly, worship focuses on God. The best worship, however, focuses on God with all our five senses, in order that we display our love as Christ commanded. In doing so, we are actively engaging all that we are in worship. Worshipping God with some senses may seem more readily apparent than others. It is simply to think of how we worship God with hearing, listening to the Gospel or singing beautiful hymns, but what of our senses of smell or touch?

As mentioned there are two simple ways in which we engage our hearing in worship. First, there is the receptive way. When we listen to the Gospel and other lessons being read from Scripture, we ascribe worth to God. We similarly engage our hearing when we listen to the homily expounding on the nature of God. Alternatively we can be active towards God and engage hearing through our own words and songs. When we pray, in and of itself it is an act of worship, but when we pray together, it becomes a second act of worship, seeking to make our prayers beautiful to the ears. The same can be said of when we use our voices to sing, joining the Angels in their unending hymn to God. In both of these cases, our hearing is engaged in filling our hearts and minds with the love and praise of God, and the revelations of His nature.

Sight is another obvious way to engage our senses in the worship of God. From a prepared altar to stained glass windows or other decorations around the church, our eyes can be constantly engaged. Banners in liturgical colours remind us of historic events or seasons and of God’s nature and relationship with us. Clerical garments and altar decorations similarly have specific meanings. Just as our hearing is engaged receptively, our sight can be similarly engaged as we watch the cross processed to the sanctuary or other actions carried out during the service.

The most common way to engage our smell is through the use of incense, a practice dating back to the early Church. The use of incense throughout the service carries with it different meanings. When the Gospel is processed amidst the people to be read and is censed, it is meant to bring to mind the devotion and prayers of missionaries of the Church in bringing the Gospel to the world. During the offertory, the censing represents God’s grace being imparted. During the consecration and preparation of the gifts the incense is offered as adoration for God.Even when incense is not used, there are other smells which can be engaged in worship. The altar will be adorned with candles, and while unscented still produce a smell from the burning of the wick, particularly once they have been extinguished at the end of the service.

The sense of taste is engaged when we receive God’s grace through the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!” (Ps 34. 8) The mouth is the gateway to our body, and when we engage our tongue in the consumption of the body and blood of our Lord, the taste reminds us of the gift we have received, the constant refilling of God’s grace and our duty of thanks towards Him.

Finally, our sense of touch is somewhat surprisingly one of the more versatile of our senses in the context of worship. There is something about the physicality of touch that lends tangibility to the intangible aspects of worship. We touch others to pass the peace in preparation for giving of offerings to God. We touch ourselves when we cross ourselves at the invocation of the trinity and other points during the service. We touch the baptismal font and cross ourselves to renew our baptismal vows. Taken more broadly, touch can involve all aspects of our physical activity. When we kneel to pray or stand to sing.

Worship is best when it engages our whole minds and bodies, and when every aspect of our being is engaged in ascribing worth to God. Holy Communion provides a feast of worship for each of our five senses, but in order to translate a candle or a stole into worship, we must engage our senses with the intention of worship.