What in heaven’s name are we singing?
I was at a workshop last week, when the person leading morning worship asked us to sing “Days of Elijah”. This was greeted enthusiastically by those present and they joined robustly in the song – while I stood there open-mouthed wondering, “What in heaven’s name are we singing?”
For those unfamiliar with the words (as I was) here is a sample – first verse, chorus, and final refrain:
These are the days of Elijah
Declaring the word of the Lord
And these are the days of your servant, Moses
Righteousness being restored
And though these are days of great trials
Of famine and darkness and sword
Still, we are the voice in the desert, crying
“Prepare ye the way of the Lord!”
chorus:
Behold he comes, riding on the clouds
Shining like the sun, at the trumpet’s call
So lift your voice, It’s the year of Jubilee
And out of Zion’s hill, salvation comes.
There’s no God like Jehovah,
There’s no God like Jehovah,
There’s no God like Jehovah!
The lyrics raise at least three questions for me about what we sing in worship:
- Why do many of our newer songs, especially those coming out of the more conservative wing of the church, persist in using images from the Hebrew Scriptures (which some still refer to as the Old Testament) as the primary language of worship? We are those who know the revelation of God in Jesus of Nazareth and are called to live as Jesus’ followers in bringing to birth the presence of God’s reign. Are we really living in days like those experienced in the time of Elijah, Moses, Ezekiel, and David – or are we living in days of hope because God’s love and grace have been revealed to us in Jesus the Christ?
- Why do we think that cobbling together pseudo-biblical phrases, as in the chorus above, actually means anything? Do people believe that such language is somehow more worshipful? And who is the “He” it refers to? This is just a mish-mash of words that neither honours God, nor elucidates the faith community asked to sing them.
- Why, as in the final refrain, do some parts of the church persist in using the title “Jehovah” to speak of God? It is not a biblical word. In fact it’s not even a proper word being a miscegenation of consonants from one Jewish name for God and the vowels from another. It’s like us taking the consonants from “Jesus” and the vowels from “Christos” and forming a new word “Jisos” as a shorthand name for Jesus Christ. We wouldn’t do it! So why do it to the language of our Hebrew ancestors in the faith?
We can do better than that in our worship of God.
Posted by Rob
Recycle? No, Precycle!
Its been around for ages. Our grandmothers did it. Some of us have done it for a long time. Even though we didnt know it’s name. Or that it was fashionable. “Precycling” is catching on as the latest fad, a timely manifestation of green marketing.
What does this trendy new buzzword actually mean? It’s apparently another way of saying “conserve.” As in, re-using plastic water bottles rather than tossing them and buying another one. Re-using plastic and paper bags. Buying large quantities rather than single-serving packaging.
Precyclers remove themselves from junk mail lists, read paper-based media online and even carry around “precycling kits” consisting of cloth napkins and silverware—anything to reduce waste and not contribute to the recycling bin.
“It’s not just about how you dispose of [products and packaging] anymore,” said Melissa Lavigne, director of marketing for The Intelligence Group [the people who came up with the word]. “It’s about being conscious about products you buy in the first place. That’s the idea behind precycling.”
Read the full post here
The you can leave a comment to let us know some of your grooviest precycling practices?
posted by Louise
Comments on the Pope’s visit
Two articles commenting on the recent visit of the Pope to Australia:
1. Written by Associate Professor Andrew Dutney, senior lecturer in theology at Flinders University and director of the university’s Centre for Theology, Science and Culture.
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,,24047541-5006301,00.html
2. Written by Alexander Downer who was Australia’s Foreign Affairs Minister, 1996-2007.
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,,24085821-22202,00.html
Posted by Charlene
More thoughts on being authentic
A couple of things have been buzzing around my head since I posted my first blog.
One is about imagery for the “kingdom of heaven” (Matthew) or “kingdom of God” (other biblical writers). I know that there are many followers of Jesus who have no problems with using this terminology. “After all, it’s scriptural”, they would say. Which is not a dig at my colleagues who have a more conservative theology or more literal understanding of the Bible. There are people I know of a more liberal or progressive theology, who are uncomfortable about changing images they find in Scripture, especially if they are quoted as being on the lips of Jesus. But the “king/kingdom” language is more problematic for others, including me, because it is non-inclusive male- oriented language but more so because it is language of domination and a language of exclusion (who’s in and who’s out). In worship, I have used “reign” instead of “kingdom” but even that doesn’t hit the spot for me. I want to speak of the sphere of God’s action – which is love, grace, presence (which is very Trinitarian – not that trinity is the be-all and end-all descriptor of God). So what words and images shall we use to describe the sphere of action of unbounded love, unmerited grace and unlimited presence? Any clues?
The other is to do with my choice of the word “hope” to be the one-word encapsulation of the significance of the kingdom of heaven/God (whatever we shall call it). For me the locus of the kingdom of God, and therefore the locus of our hope is in this world, this life. There are some for whom the only real locus of hope is in life beyond this life – whatever that may mean – but for me that draws the emphasis away from what it means to discover and participate in kingdom life now.
Which brings me back to another theme I touched on in my earlier blog – authentic living. Recently, I was privileged to spend two weeks learning from David Augsburger and the lasting memory I have of those two weeks is that David gave us of himself. Everything he taught had an integrity, an authenticity because it came from the very way he lived. (David would probably blush and offer a humble self-effacement at this point.) But he stirred in me the thought that if I could live with similar integrity and authenticity, that would be hopeful living for me and for those I encounter on the journey of life. If at the end of my life, I left an impact on others – individuals and communities – such that they said, “Here lived one who was an authentic follower of Jesus”, what a legacy that would be. And I wouldn’t need to worry or fear about what came after death!
Posted by Rob
Authentic Christianity?
I’ve just been reading an article in the Catholic e-zine Eureka Street with the title “In bed with the secular spirit” ( go to article here). It begins with a quote from a Catholic college teacher bemoaning “Some of my students turn to Madonna for spiritual inspiration … and they’re not thinking of the mother of Jesus”. In response to this, the author explores what it means to be on a spiritual search in a secular age which has developed a culture of authenticity. You need to read it for yourself. I was stimulated to make two responses, one more surface response to the teacher quoted, but the other arising from a deeper place within.
The immediate response was to say to the teacher, “How are you exploring this issue with your students?”. The underlying tone of her comment suggested to me that deep down the teacher wanted to say to her students that they were on the wrong path. But I want to say that rather than becoming exasperated with those who seem to be seeking spiritual guidance or nurture in what we might (falsely) claim to be secular places, we need to be exploring with them both their questions and the answers they seem to be getting from such sources. What hope, what meaning, what insight about life, what understanding of God are they discovering in Madonna? Let’s join them on that journey and we all may learn from each other about deeper things.
But my other response, coming from my own search, is to say that alongside this journeying with people, we need to be able to say what we have discovered that is authentic for us. For me, that is the search to discover what is uniquely Christian. What is it about the life of Jesus that, if lived out in my life or the communities of faith in which I belong, would make a difference – a difference that would not otherwise be present? This came into focus last Sunday as my wife and I led worship with minister Leanne at Blackwood Uniting. The gospel reading for the day was a series of images that Jesus gave us about the kingdom of heaven (with apologies to those who find “kingdom” language unhelpful – but that’s what Matthew has Jesus call it in his gospel). As we explored those images in worship, we were challenged to find one key word that encapsulated our understanding of God’s kingdom. I listened to all the responses that came from congregation members and wondered which of them was unique i.e. do we Christians have an exclusive handle on love, compassion, justice, etc.? For the record, the word I offered was “hope” but I’m still exploring in my mind why I thought that was the critical answer.
Journeying with others on the spiritual quest is vital, no matter how we would judge their sources. But even more vital is that we carry with us, and share appropriately the sources, questions, and answers that are leading us towards what we hope is an authentic following of Jesus.
Posted by Rob
Being spaces
Just back from another meeting in the cafe on the corner. Dont know why we dont just move our offices down there. It’s becoming more like a “home away from home”. Especially since they’ve put in lovely comfy sofa chairs to lounge in. And it is a much nicer office away form the office, believe me! Trendwatching.com call these third places “being spaces” and describe them as “commercial living room-like settings in the public space” whose purpose is to accomodate consumers “outside of the home and office, becoming a relevant and useful part of their daily lives, offering them surprise, discovery, empathy, transformation. A place to lounge, hang out, try things out, work, or relax. Or all this at once.” (full article here) Imagine if we could describe churches like this! Church being relevant and useful – that is not hard to imagine; surprise, empathy, discovery and transformation – that happening at church is not too big a leap of the imagination either but a place to lounge, hang out, relax, try things out … now that’s getting a bit harder to picture. There’d be no pews in sight, that’d be for sure! Some churches are already taking up the challenge of creating a “third place” (neutral, relational, comfortable space) within their domain – you will have heard of cafes that are also churches, and perhaps of a play zone for children - but what about a gym, a laundromat, an art gallery or a greenhouse? You can read about some churches who are offering these kinds of third places in this Leadership Network article: third20place
Getting the washing dry at this time of the year when you work all day is a real problem. Let me know when your church has set up a laundromat and I’ll plan to have a meeting there each week!
Cheers, Louise
Faster Pastor
I’m just about to be off to another Ministry of Pastor working group meeting. At the moment we are working on tools to help Presbyteries assess the core competencies that are required before anyone can begin working in a position of Pastor. The core competencies have to do with being able to demonstrate an understanding of the Basis of Union, Uniting Church polity and ethos and the Code of Ethics. You probably already know that the Ministry of Pastor was a decision made at the 11th Assembly (2007). Basically, this proposal was a simplification of all the lay specified ministries that have been in existence since the beginning of the Uniting Church. If you are interested you can find out all about the Specified Ministry of Pastor here
Being involved in this work has got me thinking a lot about the meaning of Ordination. I used to think of the Ordained as kind of like the guardians of ”the Faith” – those who protected the unique tenet’s of, in our case, orthodox Uniting Church-ness. It seems though that Pastors (a Specified Lay Ministry) are going to be required to have these skills also. What do you think Ordination means? If you are Ordained – what does it mean to you? Love to hear what you think!
Ciao for now, Louise
