The Lure of Liturgical and Sacramental Worship

From the Lent 3, 2019 bulletin, The Anglican Church of the Holy Trinity, North Augusta, SC

Liturgical/Sacramental worship seems to be very different from that of sister churches of other denominations around us, but the fact is that liturgical/sacramental worship is by far the dominant style of Christian worship in the world today.  It has been so throughout the 2000-year history of the Church.  Being situated in the Protestant Bible Belt as we are, this fact often does not seem obvious. 

What has sustained this type of worship over countless generations?  A fellow Presbyter in our diocese, the Rev. Winfield Bevins, wrote a book (Ever Ancient, Ever New, Zondervan, 2019) which focuses on the appeal of the liturgical and sacramental, particularly among many young Christians today.  His book is well worth reading.  I will mention a few points he makes that resonated with me: 

·Liturgical and Sacramental worship is holistic; that is, it looks to the whole Bible, the whole revelation of God in Christ, and the whole person- body, mind, spirit.  

   It is participatory.  Worship is not just something that is to be observed from the pew or something someone else is doing for us.

 ·It facilitates a sense of mystery and transcendence and pulls us away from our focus on ourselves toward a focus on God and His presence among us.

 ·It meets our desire for historical rootedness.

 ·Liturgical worship connects the broader church through common worship that dates back to the earliest Christians.

 ·Sacramental and liturgical worship is Biblically faithful.  It anchors us in the Apostolic Faith that has been codified in not only the Bible but also in our historic liturgies.

Of course, this is not to slight other ways of worshiping which obviously feed the spirit of the faithful and glorify God, but liturgical/sacramental worship has blessed Christians for almost 2000 year now, and it blesses us Anglicans to this day.

Father Rob