About our Worship Service
According to its confessions (statements of faith) the Lutheran Church is a liturgical church. But what is a liturgy? A liturgy is a particular order or form of public worship. Not all Christian churches are liturgical.
Our liturgy is based upon the ceremonies and traditions of the Roman Catholic Church, to which it is still similar. (Martin Luther never intended to eliminate the Latin mass, only the abuses adopted by the church leadership.) Similar liturgies also exist in the Episcopal Church and in many Orthodox, Methodist and Presbyterian churches. Our liturgy can be divided into four main parts: Gathering, Word, Meal, and Sending.
According to our service book and hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Gathering means the “Holy Spirit gathers us together as the people of God.” In the Word, “God speaks to us in scripture reading, preaching, and song.” During the Meal, “God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ.” And in the Sending, “God blesses us and sends us in mission to the world.”
Before the liturgy begins, the organist may play a Prelude, to help people to prepare their hearts and minds for worship. During this time, the acolyte will light the alter candles and any festival candles.
Gathering
The first part of the Gathering is the Invocation. This is where the pastor, while making the sign of the cross, says, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The congregation, who may make the sign of the cross with the pastor replies, “Amen.” This is a simple creed; we are confessing that we believe in the Holy Trinity. It also reminds us that at our Baptism, we were sealed with the sign of the cross.
Next comes the Confession and Forgiveness. This starts with a prayer of preparation: “Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another. Most merciful God. . .” , followed by a moment of silence for reflection and self-examination. The pastor then begins the confession, and the congregation, while standing, joins in the prayer. Finally, the pastor announces God’s forgiveness of all our sins. The pastor announces the forgiveness of sins because Christ, in John 20:22, commands his disciples “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
(A Baptism or a Thanksgiving for Baptism, may replace the Confession and Forgiveness.)
The Gathering continues with the Gathering Hymn. During this hymn, the congregation turns to face the processional cross as it is carried by the crucifer to the chancel, followed by the assisting minister and pastor.
Following the hymn, the pastor, with outstretched arms, gives the Apostolic Greeting; “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love . . .” The congregation may respond with outstretched arms, replying, “And also with you.” This greeting and response is thought to have originated with the way the Apostles and early Christians greeted each other.
The Gathering ends with the Prayer of the Day, which often focuses on the Gospel or Epistle reading. This prayer changes every week.
Word
The First Reading (except during Easter, when it is from Acts) is from the Old Testament. The lector begins with “A reading from . . . ,” and ends with “The word of the Lord,” to which the congregation replies, “Thanks be to God.”
Next is the Psalm of the Day, which is sung (with the choir or cantor) or read responsively (with the assisting minister or lector). In the 5th century, Pope Celestine decreed that the psalm should be sung antiphonally (back and forth).
The Second Reading, is from the epistles or letters of the New Testament. It begins and ends the same way as the First Reading.
The congregation stands in respect to the presence of Jesus Christ in the next reading.
The Gospel is a reading from one of the four books of the life and teaching of Jesus Christ. After the pastor exclaims “The Holy Gospel according to . . . ,” the congregation replies, “Glory to you, O Lord.” After reading the Gospel, the pastor says, “The Gospel of the Lord,” to which the congregation replies, “Praise to you, O Christ.”
(The Gospel Acclimation may be repeated as the crucifer and pastor return to the chancel.) Then the congregation is seated.
The pastor’s Sermon follows the Gospel reading, and it is usually related to the Gospel or one of the other scripture readings.
After the Sermon, the congregation stands to proclaim the word of God in the Hymn of the Day.
Following the hymn, the pastor and congregation confess their faith by repeating the Creed. There are three creeds professed by Lutherans. The first is the Apostles Creed, which can be traced back to about 215 A.D. The Nicene Creed, which goes back to the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D., is usually said on festival days. The third creed, the Anthanasian Creed, is seldom used except occasionally on Reformation Sunday.
The Prayers of the Church follow the Creed. The Apostle Paul wrote, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving be made for everyone . . .“ (1Timothy2:1). This prayer, therefore, is on behalf of the Church at large. The assisting minister invites the congregation into prayer with “With the whole people of God . . . ,” or similar. The prayer petitions usually follow a pattern:
for the church universal and the mission of the Gospel
for the well-being of creation
for peace and justice in the world
for the poor, sick, lonely, and bereaved
for reuniting us with those who have passed on
for the congregation and special concerns
The assisting minister ends each petition with “Lord, in your mercy,” to which the congregation replies, “hear our prayer.” The pastor ends the prayer with a final petition commending all who pray to God’s mercy, to which the congregation replies, “Amen.”
Meal
The Meal begins with the Peace. The pastor says, “The peace of the Lord be with you always.”, to which the congregation replies “And also with you.” Then the pastor and the congregation greet each other in the peace of the risen Christ.
This portion of the service begins as an Offering is gathered for the mission of the church. A choir anthem may be sung or a song played during the offering. During this time, the assisting minister and pastor will “set the table” for the holy meal.
The assisting minister then leads the congregation in the Offering Prayer.
To start the Great Thanksgiving, the pastor greets the congregation with the same Salutation used earlier, “The Lord be with you,” (chanted) and all give thanks (also chanted). Liturgical chant has a long history going back to the time of Luther in Germany and even further back to the apostolic church and to the Old Testament.
The pastor continues with a prayer thanking God for his blessings through Christ. This prayer ends with “. . . we praise your name and join their unending hymn:” and the congregation immediately sings “Holy, Holy, Holy. . .” (Sanctus), which begins with the cherubim’s praise from Isaiah 6:3, and ends with “. . . Hosanna in the highest” (Benedictus) from Matthew 21:9.
The pastor then comes to the high point of the Great Thanksgiving, the Eucharistic Prayer, which relates the story of Christ instituting the first Communion with his Apostles. After the words of institution, the congregation says (or chants) the Mystery of Faith: “Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again.” The pastor then finishes the prayer, and the congregation responds with, “Amen.”
Next, the pastor and congregation together pray The Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer appears in two places, with slight variations, in the New Testament; Matthew 6:9-13 and in Luke 11:1-4.
After The Lord’s Prayer, the congregation sings The Lamb of God, or Angus Dei. This was introduced into the church by Pope Sergius, about 700 A.D. It is based on the words of John the Baptist as he proclaimed Jesus the Son of God (John 1:29).
The Pastor then extends the Invitation to Communion for all.
During Communion, the congregation will sing a Communion Hymn, which relates to our belief that the body and blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ, is truly present in the bread and wine of Holy Communion.
When the congregation has received Communion, and the pastor and assisting minister have “cleared the table,” the pastor will say the Blessing, to which the congregation replies, “Amen.” Then the assisting minister will lead the congregation in the Post Communion Prayer. (During some festival services, a Post Communion Canticle is also sung, between the Blessing and the Post Communion Prayer, thanking the Lord for his gifts of salvation.)
The pastor gives a Benediction to end the Meal. Making the sign of the cross, the pastor blesses the congregation with a simple Trinitarian blessing from the 11th century. The congregation, who may make the sign of the cross with the pastor, replies, “Amen.”
Sending
The sending is the shortest part of the liturgy. As the candles are extinguished and the crucifer leads the assisting minister and the pastor from the chancel, the congregation sings the Closing Hymn, or Sending Hymn, which summarized Christ’s mission, through us to the world.
In the Dismissal, the assisting minister admonishes the congregation to “Go in Peace and Serve the Lord,” to which the congregation replies, “Thanks be to God!”
As the congregation leaves the sanctuary, all are invited to participate in the Passing of the Peace, while the organist plays a Postlude.
Our liturgy is based upon the ceremonies and traditions of the Roman Catholic Church, to which it is still similar. (Martin Luther never intended to eliminate the Latin mass, only the abuses adopted by the church leadership.) Similar liturgies also exist in the Episcopal Church and in many Orthodox, Methodist and Presbyterian churches. Our liturgy can be divided into four main parts: Gathering, Word, Meal, and Sending.
According to our service book and hymnal, Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Gathering means the “Holy Spirit gathers us together as the people of God.” In the Word, “God speaks to us in scripture reading, preaching, and song.” During the Meal, “God feeds us with the presence of Jesus Christ.” And in the Sending, “God blesses us and sends us in mission to the world.”
Before the liturgy begins, the organist may play a Prelude, to help people to prepare their hearts and minds for worship. During this time, the acolyte will light the alter candles and any festival candles.
Gathering
The first part of the Gathering is the Invocation. This is where the pastor, while making the sign of the cross, says, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The congregation, who may make the sign of the cross with the pastor replies, “Amen.” This is a simple creed; we are confessing that we believe in the Holy Trinity. It also reminds us that at our Baptism, we were sealed with the sign of the cross.
Next comes the Confession and Forgiveness. This starts with a prayer of preparation: “Let us confess our sin in the presence of God and of one another. Most merciful God. . .” , followed by a moment of silence for reflection and self-examination. The pastor then begins the confession, and the congregation, while standing, joins in the prayer. Finally, the pastor announces God’s forgiveness of all our sins. The pastor announces the forgiveness of sins because Christ, in John 20:22, commands his disciples “If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”
(A Baptism or a Thanksgiving for Baptism, may replace the Confession and Forgiveness.)
The Gathering continues with the Gathering Hymn. During this hymn, the congregation turns to face the processional cross as it is carried by the crucifer to the chancel, followed by the assisting minister and pastor.
Following the hymn, the pastor, with outstretched arms, gives the Apostolic Greeting; “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love . . .” The congregation may respond with outstretched arms, replying, “And also with you.” This greeting and response is thought to have originated with the way the Apostles and early Christians greeted each other.
The Gathering ends with the Prayer of the Day, which often focuses on the Gospel or Epistle reading. This prayer changes every week.
Word
The First Reading (except during Easter, when it is from Acts) is from the Old Testament. The lector begins with “A reading from . . . ,” and ends with “The word of the Lord,” to which the congregation replies, “Thanks be to God.”
Next is the Psalm of the Day, which is sung (with the choir or cantor) or read responsively (with the assisting minister or lector). In the 5th century, Pope Celestine decreed that the psalm should be sung antiphonally (back and forth).
The Second Reading, is from the epistles or letters of the New Testament. It begins and ends the same way as the First Reading.
The congregation stands in respect to the presence of Jesus Christ in the next reading.
The Gospel is a reading from one of the four books of the life and teaching of Jesus Christ. After the pastor exclaims “The Holy Gospel according to . . . ,” the congregation replies, “Glory to you, O Lord.” After reading the Gospel, the pastor says, “The Gospel of the Lord,” to which the congregation replies, “Praise to you, O Christ.”
(The Gospel Acclimation may be repeated as the crucifer and pastor return to the chancel.) Then the congregation is seated.
The pastor’s Sermon follows the Gospel reading, and it is usually related to the Gospel or one of the other scripture readings.
After the Sermon, the congregation stands to proclaim the word of God in the Hymn of the Day.
Following the hymn, the pastor and congregation confess their faith by repeating the Creed. There are three creeds professed by Lutherans. The first is the Apostles Creed, which can be traced back to about 215 A.D. The Nicene Creed, which goes back to the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D., is usually said on festival days. The third creed, the Anthanasian Creed, is seldom used except occasionally on Reformation Sunday.
The Prayers of the Church follow the Creed. The Apostle Paul wrote, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercessions and thanksgiving be made for everyone . . .“ (1Timothy2:1). This prayer, therefore, is on behalf of the Church at large. The assisting minister invites the congregation into prayer with “With the whole people of God . . . ,” or similar. The prayer petitions usually follow a pattern:
for the church universal and the mission of the Gospel
for the well-being of creation
for peace and justice in the world
for the poor, sick, lonely, and bereaved
for reuniting us with those who have passed on
for the congregation and special concerns
The assisting minister ends each petition with “Lord, in your mercy,” to which the congregation replies, “hear our prayer.” The pastor ends the prayer with a final petition commending all who pray to God’s mercy, to which the congregation replies, “Amen.”
Meal
The Meal begins with the Peace. The pastor says, “The peace of the Lord be with you always.”, to which the congregation replies “And also with you.” Then the pastor and the congregation greet each other in the peace of the risen Christ.
This portion of the service begins as an Offering is gathered for the mission of the church. A choir anthem may be sung or a song played during the offering. During this time, the assisting minister and pastor will “set the table” for the holy meal.
The assisting minister then leads the congregation in the Offering Prayer.
To start the Great Thanksgiving, the pastor greets the congregation with the same Salutation used earlier, “The Lord be with you,” (chanted) and all give thanks (also chanted). Liturgical chant has a long history going back to the time of Luther in Germany and even further back to the apostolic church and to the Old Testament.
The pastor continues with a prayer thanking God for his blessings through Christ. This prayer ends with “. . . we praise your name and join their unending hymn:” and the congregation immediately sings “Holy, Holy, Holy. . .” (Sanctus), which begins with the cherubim’s praise from Isaiah 6:3, and ends with “. . . Hosanna in the highest” (Benedictus) from Matthew 21:9.
The pastor then comes to the high point of the Great Thanksgiving, the Eucharistic Prayer, which relates the story of Christ instituting the first Communion with his Apostles. After the words of institution, the congregation says (or chants) the Mystery of Faith: “Christ has died. Christ has risen. Christ will come again.” The pastor then finishes the prayer, and the congregation responds with, “Amen.”
Next, the pastor and congregation together pray The Lord’s Prayer. The Lord’s Prayer appears in two places, with slight variations, in the New Testament; Matthew 6:9-13 and in Luke 11:1-4.
After The Lord’s Prayer, the congregation sings The Lamb of God, or Angus Dei. This was introduced into the church by Pope Sergius, about 700 A.D. It is based on the words of John the Baptist as he proclaimed Jesus the Son of God (John 1:29).
The Pastor then extends the Invitation to Communion for all.
During Communion, the congregation will sing a Communion Hymn, which relates to our belief that the body and blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ, is truly present in the bread and wine of Holy Communion.
When the congregation has received Communion, and the pastor and assisting minister have “cleared the table,” the pastor will say the Blessing, to which the congregation replies, “Amen.” Then the assisting minister will lead the congregation in the Post Communion Prayer. (During some festival services, a Post Communion Canticle is also sung, between the Blessing and the Post Communion Prayer, thanking the Lord for his gifts of salvation.)
The pastor gives a Benediction to end the Meal. Making the sign of the cross, the pastor blesses the congregation with a simple Trinitarian blessing from the 11th century. The congregation, who may make the sign of the cross with the pastor, replies, “Amen.”
Sending
The sending is the shortest part of the liturgy. As the candles are extinguished and the crucifer leads the assisting minister and the pastor from the chancel, the congregation sings the Closing Hymn, or Sending Hymn, which summarized Christ’s mission, through us to the world.
In the Dismissal, the assisting minister admonishes the congregation to “Go in Peace and Serve the Lord,” to which the congregation replies, “Thanks be to God!”
As the congregation leaves the sanctuary, all are invited to participate in the Passing of the Peace, while the organist plays a Postlude.
