© 1991 Jack Rogers
© 1991 The Christian Fellowship of Students of The Urantia Book
This column addresses the concern for contemporary aids to worship. We welcome material which you may be inspired to write and share.
Many clergy are faced with a serious dilemma in contemporary worship. With changing social attitudes and a growing restlessness within the institutional church, many see the need to change our worship forms.
One of the most obvious aspects of this dilemma is the concern for sexist language in hymnody. New hymnbooks are being published yearly with notable omissions of traditional “favorites.” In many congregations this has increased the tension between the clergy and their parishioners: the desire to change worship forms set against a background of strong and embedded traditions.
This column will explore new worship forms while keeping this tension in mind. The primary emphasis will be on music as we consider the traditional and contemporary hymns, psalms, songs, choral responses, and liturgical settings. We will also examine how insights from The Urantia Book can help guide our efforts.
On a practical level any examination of our worship forms may be disturbing to some laity. However, The Urantia Book encourages us to continue striving for new discoveries in our worship expressions. It calls us to reflect the need for more firsthand religious experience and it encourages the emergence of a new spiritual leadership willing to depend solely on the teachings of Jesus. Its authors remind us that we should not be surprised when new worship forms begin to manifest themselves. These forms, however, should be carefully balanced between the traditional and the contemporary social pressures. It is therefore wise to structure a gradual and evolutionary approach to changes in worship.
This column will seek to support that change and offer encouragement to the ministers who strive to introduce new ideas, new songs, new liturgies, and new directions in the worship setting. To stimulate thinking in this direction, here are some possible future column topics:
“Are we Throwing the Baby Out with the Sexist Bath Water?” Modern attempts at eliminating sexism are removing from new hymnals many old favorites. Is this justified? What insights does the The Urantia Book have on sexism?
“New Hymns: New Wine in Old Skins?” Are contemporary hymns really expressing a new message or simply restating traditional theology? A new and global perspective seems to be emerging amidst the traditional language.
“What Hymns Teach our Children” Familiar hymns are powerful teaching tools. Should we examine their theological messages more carefully? How can new theological perspectives be taught through the introduction of new hymns?
"Is This Really a ‘New Age?’” Does New Age hymnody make a significant contribution to worship, or should we ignore it?