"Spirituality by Heart". (original) (raw)

2019, Enlivening the Faith, June Boyce-Tillman, ed, Peter Lang, Ltd

Every Thursday night for nearly twenty years, a diverse group of 30-100 people gather for worship and a meal in a midtown Memphis church. The service is short and loosely follows the Presbyterian litugy: an opening hymn, a sentence or two of confession and prayer, and an acclamation of pardon are followed by a statement of peace and symbolically passing this peace through the handshakes of those assembled. The second section begins with another hymn and contains a scripture selection and short sermon. After a third hymn, an invitation is issued to a communion table with the Eucharist taken by intinction. The irregularity of this service, is that it is not comprised of members of the host church, but primarily filled with the men, women, and children of the streets of Memphis. The leaders of the service are all volunteer lay persons, with an ordained minister who presides over the communion. If there is no minister available, the the service proceeds with more prayers and songs, but no communion. Stereotypes of the homeless are a difficult challenge to surmount, even with well-meaning leadership. For many years the hymns were selected from the denominational hymnal in the pews, led by the accompanist at the piano with his/her back to the audience. These hymns were chosen nearly at random, and, though willing, very few attendees even attempted to sing. The service was flat and a place for the street folk to come into for warmth in winter or relief from the brutal Memphis heat and humidity during the long summer. The congregation represents the least ones that Jesus spoke of and consequently demands more respectful attention from the worship leaders in order to release the spirituality buried in their souls. Out of desperation, a change in liturgy and music presentation was suggested and applied about three years ago. Using the sensitive words of liturgies from the Iona Community, participatory readings and prayers were inserted and call and response and echo songs replaced the wordy verses and complex hymn tunes. For the singing, the musician stands in front of the worshipers and leads the hymns, psalms, and spiritual songs with an unaccompanied, face-to-face manner using physical gestures and expressions to encourage a corporate synergy. No hymnals, no paper, no projections. As with many 'simple' modifications, a more focused preparation of the singing is required, but the results are abundantly fruitful. The group now sings in community with the host church resulting in an almost palpable spirituality. Though the weather is still a factor, the people return, week after week, and look forward to sharing their voices. Digital technology effectively changed Christian worship services from provincial cultural events to ones of global impact and inclusion. The directives of the Roman Catholic services stemming from the Second Vatican council of the early 1960s led to major changes of the music within the services of all sects and denominations. An important difference is that the organ and the piano are no longer the assumed instruments of choice for accompanying congregational singing. After fifty years of incendiary conflict over music within the churches, worship