Soul Stretching

What we see in the sanctuary where we worship is often more telling than we might realize at first glance.  When I first started preaching, the pulpit stood behind the altar in the center of the worship area.  As the years moved along, it became rather common to see the altar open in the center with the pulpit on one side and a lectern on the other.  What took the pulpit's place at the center of the worship area was a communion table.   Instead of worship being preaching centered, the new arrangement announced that worship would be Table centered. 

 

In my denomination which is the United Methodist Church, the change in pulpit and table placement did not really change much about the worship life of the congregation.  Unlike some Table centered churches which offered the Holy Sacrament every Sunday, the practice continued of offering the bread and wine only on first Sunday.   And it was also true that a communion Sunday was often not as well attended as the other Sundays when preaching was the main event.  Some of those folks who stayed home on first Sunday did so saying, "It wasn't real church."

Perhaps, this speaks of the theology from above running ahead of the theology in the pews.  Or, maybe it speaks of leadership leading without the kind of communication that facilitates a meaningful understanding.  I remember an ash marked guy who came to me after an Ash Wednesday service asking, "What was that all about?" He was a full participant without any understanding which spoke to my failure as his pastor and worship leader.  Doing things because "I say so" or because the church calendar calls for it is a poor substitute for enabling people to have meaningful worship experiences which provide a stretching of the soul.