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AKA Pew Aerobics Ways to Involve Your Body in Worship: AKA Pew Aerobics Cue Posture or Gesture Entering or leaving the pew Profound bow to Cross/Altar: Not in BCP Opening Acclamation Sign of the Cross: invokes Christ: Not in BCP At the reading of “Holy Gospel of our Three-part sign of the Cross on head, lips and Lord Jesus Christ…” heart; for comprehension: Not in BCP As you reply to the Gospel Profound Bow towards the processional cross; announcement, “Glory to you, Lord for Emmanuel, God among us: Not in BCP. Christ…” At the end of the Gospel as you reply, Profound Bow towards the processional cross: “Praise to you, Lord Christ…” Not in the BCP Nicene Creed: “I believe in Jesus Christ Nod or head bow; cf. Philippians 2. Not in BCP “came down from heaven” until “on the Profound bow, to mark the Incarnation, third day he rose again…” Crucifixion and Resurrection: Not in BCP Absolution of sin Sign of the Cross; to invoke the grace of Christ: Not in BCP Holy, holy, holy (Sanctus) Profound bow for the ineffable God; the song of the Seraphim in Isaiah 6:1-3: Not in the BCP. “Blessed is he [the one]“ (Benedictus Qui Sign of the Cross, for we are being sent as the Venit) one original was sent. Not in BCP “Do this in remembrance of me.” (Jesus’ Profound bow, silence, to remember. Not in Words of Institution) BCP When we ask for our sanctification: i.e., Sign of the Cross; invoke Christ. Not in BCP “Sanctify us also...” At the name of Jesus Nod or head bow. Not in BCP. cf. Philippians 2. After the Great AMEN [hint; this is the Profound bow; if kneeling, sign of the cross; a only Amen that is all capitalized in BCP] moment of silence for the whole. Not in BCP At the Blessing Sign of the Cross; invoke Christ in us to be borne out to the world. Not in BCP 1 Pew Aerobics Recovering Kinetic Worship from Tradition The Rev. Jaime Case, Rector of St Luke’s ~ San Lucas More on the website stlukeswa.church under “Unraveling the Mystery” During Sunday and Wednesday services, you may have notice call the “rite” are only part of the liturgy. It’s easy to appreciate people around you participating in worship in small ways that that singing is a liturgical action. There are also other actions, are different from your own practice; for example, crossing some of which we practice at SL2. For instance, walk, stand, sit, themselves, kneeling, nodding, bowing or even genuflecting. kneel, cross yourself, bow, even genuflect might be seen here My wife Amy remembers entering an Episcopal church for the on a given Sunday. These body postures and gestures are first time, and with alarm, noticing the kneelers. Raised in a called “ritual.” In ritual we bring the body along to participate predominantly Roman Catholic neighborhood, she was in our Sunday worship. The Incarnation is embodied divinity, familiar with what is tongue-in-cheek referred to as “pew ritual is embodied prayer. The whole of the Eucharist is aerobics,” but had no idea how to do it “right,” and feared liturgy. Liturgy is the “work” or “service” of the people. marking herself out quite visibly as a newcomer, or worse, Anthropologists have studied ritual, which for them includes someone who didn’t belong there. the words, are fundamental to creating civilizations: They My experience was a bit different: while attending an function as repositories of wisdom, truths to be handed on Episcopal boarding school in Baguio City, Philippines, I was from generation to generation, and worldviews that transcend taken by my father to the Episcopal Cathedral of the the individual. They can also function to enact “truth”, Resurrection. Although a Methodist pastor, he preferred encounter it, critique it and refine it. All this works in a supra- worshipping there because the service and the preaching were consciousness of the whole community, something the in Ilocano, an indigenous language spoken by the people he ancients called metaphysics. It’s not scientific, but the use of served. There I regularly experienced standing, crossing, ritual and religion is powerful and transformative.1 bowing, and I had heard the tower bell ring out during the During the Protestant Reformation, liturgy was also reformed, Sanctus and after Jesus’ words of institution. In the humble, which in many instances meant stripped of excesses. As the open aired church without cushioned kneelers, we also knelt. reformation became more radical it reached the extreme that What is your experience with and attitudes toward these banned all vestments, candles, written prayer, creeds, works of gestures and postures of worship? Are they practices that you pious art, movement, adornments and even music. The ideal have picked up along the way in other Episcopal Churches, or was to get back to an older, more sincere form of worship. The experienced elsewhere, in a Roman Catholic context? Or are radical end looked to the apostolic period, such as the first they completely alien to your worship experience? Or century house-church, of which we have scant records in somewhere in between, picked up through popular culture religious texts or anthropology. Early house churches have (e.g. crossing one’s self in fear!), or explicitly frowned upon in been unearthed from the 200’s that show considerable stricter Protestant traditions? Do you find such kinesthetic decoration and adornment, as well as designs clearly for actions (having to do with the corporeal self and its gathered groups2. Today there is a wide variety of expressions movements) comforting or even necessary to fully especially in a liturgical church tradition like our own. experiencing a worship service, or are you, like Amy in the As human being in the 21st Century (post-modern period) we story above, curious but not understanding their purpose can experiment our ritual expression. We can take the old and/or afraid to embarrassed to do it “wrong,” in front of God symbols, and through loving critique, adopt or redefine those and everyone? Some have embraced the way the body is Commented [APC1]: Instead of points 1-3, above, physical actions.3 We are incarnate, and so we can incarnate possibly conclude this issue with what anthropologists have included in worship, some have rejected it, and some are just our worship. As with the words (rites) it helps to look at observed about kinesthetic practices in worship. I think it unsure. Speaking for myself, I find that these actions, some of tradition and have some grasp of the deeper intent of ancient would also be instructive to give some of the background ancient and of unknown origin, deepen my experience, gestures for a 21st Century church, and move forward in about how and why the Protestant and Reformed traditions connecting me to centuries of liturgical tradition. meaningful ways. got all horsey about this stuff, and why and when they ditched it. It would not be wrong to think of liturgy as the words we say in prayers in the Sunday Eucharist. However words, which we 1 Ritual Theory, Ritual Practice Catherine Bell. Oxford Press 2009. 2 Google Dura Europos. The Great Transformation, by Karen Armstrong. Alfred A. Knopf, 3 See The Second Naivete, by Paul Ricouer. He has an idea relating to 2006. Ritual and Religion in the Making of Humanity, by Roy A. reading the Bible in a post-modern context: “Beyond the desert of Rappaport. Cambridge University Press, 1999. Religion in Human criticism, we wish to be called again.” P. Ricoeur. Evolution: From the Paleolithic to the Axial Age, by Robert N. Bellah. Harvard University Press, 2011. 2 Ways we ALREADY involve the Body in Worship: Rubrical and Non-Rubrical [i.e.., prescribed by the Book of Common Prayer or not.] Cue Posture or Gesture The entrance procession Standing is prescribed by the BCP4. The Profound bow as the Cross Passes is not mentioned in the BCP Opening Acclamation Sign of the Cross: invokes Christ, is not mentioned in the BCP Song of Praise (Gloria, Kyrie Standing is from the BCP or Trisagion) Sitting for the readings Rubrical. [In the early church we all stood. Pews are a product of the wealthy not wanting to stand the whole time.] Gospel Procession Stand to hear the Gospel is in the BCP. Profound Bow towards the processional cross is not mentioned in the BCP Waiting until the Preacher Not mentioned in the BCP. Also sitting is not indicated. tells us to sit for the sermon Nicene Creed “All Standing” says the BCP. Prayers of the People No indication in BCP. We stand. Old school, kneels. Confession No posture is indicated, except for the Bishop or the priest, who is to “stand” to say the absolution. Old school kneels. Absolution of sin Sign of the Cross; to invoke the grace of Christ, is not Rubrical. The Offerings are brought “The people stand while the offerings are presented and up placed on the Altar” is mentioned in the BCP After the Holy, Holy, Holy “The people stand or kneel” say the BCP. (Sanctus) Posture to receive None specified in the Rubrics. We have people standing or Communion at the rail kneeling. Post Communion Prayer None specified. We stand. Old school kneel until recessional. Blessing and Dismissal None specified in the BCP. 4 BCP stands for the Book of Common Prayer, our official prayer book. There are many in the Anglican Communion countries and languages. 3 What the Celebrant is Doing Cue Posture or Gesture Upon entering the rail at the start of the Profound bow to Cross/Altar: Is not service found in the BCP.
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