Center Letter Blog
February 6, 2012
by Inagrace Dietterich
During 2012, The Center Blog intends to explore the theological, biblical, and practical implications of missional worship, which is also the theme of the Center's Convocation in Chicago, IL on July 26-28, 2012.
 Too often we think of worship as an escape from the harsh realities of the world, as a respite from our labors, as a sacred time and space separated from the real world. This is a complete misunderstanding....The liturgy of the gathered community is the epitome, the model, of our lifestyle, of our way of being in the world....Far from being a separate 'religious activity,' our worship is the paradigm for a way of being in the world of politics and economics, the world of responsibility and of labor, the world of relationships.
Shaping a Particular People. Contemporary persons tend to make a distinction between "world" and "church." The world is secular (can be explained without reference to God) and the church is religious (can only be understood by reference to God). In the United States there is indeed a separation of government and church and, contrary to popular opinion, the drafters of the American Constitution did not view this as a "Christian nation." They were far more comfortable with Deism, viewing God as a "supreme architect" of the universe who set things in motion and then stepped back. While admiring Jesus as a great moral teacher, their vision was of a multi-faith society where all are free. Thus the point of religious freedom is both freedom for religion and freedom from religion. Read More...
"You Shall Have No Other Gods Before Me"(Ex. 20:3). Martin Luther gave eloquent expression to the centrality of the First Commandment by referring to it as "the sum and light of all the others." God's claim upon God's people is exclusive. What happens with this people matters; who and how they worship is important. There is in the biblical claim that God is jealous, a "largeness and roughness...a power and intensity....This is a God who will be taken seriously, who will be honored and obeyed, who will not be mocked." Christian worship is not about meeting self-defined human needs, but about honoring God by committing the whole of life to God's service. Read More...
 Worship as "Wild Space. "Worship is not a retreat or escape from reality, nor is it a path deeper into the self, but a direct engagement with ultimate reality: God. Coming into the presence of this God with praise and prayer can be dangerous. Opening hearts and minds-and imaginations-to the scandal and foolishness of the gospel means risking the shattering of human illusions. "Does anyone have the foggiest idea of what sort of power we so blithely invoke?" Annie Dillard asks. "The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies' hats and velvet hats to church; we should be all wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews." Read More...
Worship as World-Making. As the worshiping community focuses upon the God who is the source and center of all created life, who continues to make all things new, not only minds and hearts, but also imaginations are engaged. Worship enables the community to transcend its immediate situation, to envision and dream, to see "a new heaven and a new earth." Worship not only celebrates God and God's world, worship is world-making. Here is the true meaning of worship, its power of judgment and transformation in a God-centered view of reality. Read More...
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