Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Moving beyond Contemporary worship

The upcoming worship conference is being touted as a way to provide outreach opportunities and move beyond contemporary worship.

http://together.wels.net/

http://www.wels.net/cgi-bin/site.pl?worshipConf


As you browse the varies topics you will see a variety of topics. Yet what is highlighted and touted is blended worship. You might recall that infamous Forward in Christ pushing blended worship with a picture of a blender full of fruit on the cover. I guess what they were trying to show is that when you blend worship all you get is mush.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Wow, John, you seem to be attacking, without basis, the very kind of conference that will stress the important elements of Christian worship: solid gospel proclamation, biblical texts and content, importance of the Lutheran worship heritage, etc. check out the brochure more closely and see the emphasis on solid liturgical planning and practice. Those who attend this conference looking for the latest ideas in non-liturgical worship will be greatly disappointed. And, John, if you attend, I have a feeling you will need to apologize for portraying this conference to be something bad or "un-Lutheran." Shame on you for jumping to an improper conclusion.

John said...

I seem to be attacking? I'm just pointing out my perspective. I do see a variety of topics. But what is highlighted in the brochure and on the WELS connection is the blended worship format.

I didn't say it was un-lutheran. I just said the blended worship I have seen is mush.

John said...

I have just thought of something. Maybe I will speak with the worship committee and see if I can obtain press credentials as a blogger and cover this event for all the bailing water readers.

Anonymous said...

I think you should try and see if they will allow it. :)

Anonymous said...

And then you have Greg Jackson over at Icabod who it seems is going Eastern Orthodox. Check out the icon he used on his most recent post. (That is enough proof according to his standards that he is sailing the Bosporus.)

Anonymous said...

The main blended worship workshop is being done by Rev. Aaron Christie. If you know anything about Rev. Christie, he is very, very traditional when it comes to worship. But he acknoweldges that there is good art being produced today. For example, I doubt that the Rev. Christie would use nothing but the Common Service to celebrate Holy Communion. However, he might, on occasion, subsitutite a piano version of the Gloria in Excelsis for the one in Christian Worship. Look up the website of his church in Antioch, IL, and you'll see the rich heritage of Lutheran worship he strives to share with his membership. His knowlege of Luthern worship has few equals. I'd give him the benefit of the doubt, rather than assuming he's going to suggest you worship with blended mush.