Thank you for
accepting the role of Worship Leader for the 8th Day Worship. These Guidelines
are to help you prepare as the leader for the Sunday worship. Inward preparation
and familiarity with the order of worship help the service flow smoothly.
1. Preparing the
Week Before the Service
a.Check with the worship team's contact person regarding who is preaching and
whether there are any special events occurring during the worship service.
b. If the preacher comes from outside of 8D, find out some background
information for your introduction to him/her on Sunday. The coordinating group
may ask you to call the preacher to get this information. Also, if you talk with
the preacher, ask if s/he is planning on staying for the entire service as s/he
is usually the first to receive communion from the liturgist.
c.If the words for Communion are not written into the liturgy, you need to
select the words of institution that you will be using during the lifting of the
bread and wine (see standard Words of Institution and other scripture references
at the end of these guidelines). During this part of the Communion, the worship
leader recites these words from memory, so we ask that you spend time memorizing
the words before the service.
2. Sunday
Morning, Before the Service
a. Arrive for worship by 10 a.m. to check with your contact person about any
last minute changes, to get the names and numbers of hymns and of other persons
participating in the service.
b. If there is an outside preacher, make sure that s/he understands how we do
communion and that s/he is expected to receive communion first, then offer it to
you, then stay to offer it to next person in line. c. Join
the mission or coordinating group and other worship participants in prayer.
3. Setting the
Tone During the Service As the
worship leader, you are in charge of the service. You set the pace and tone,
introduce the other participants, the different parts of the service, any
changes in the order of worship, and remind people when to sit and stand. Let
the liturgy speak for itself. You don't need to make your own additions except
for those places indicated in these guidelines. A few reminders follow.
a. Vary the way you introduce the different parts of the service. Avoid
repeating, "Now is the time to . . . " for each new section. Avoid using the
phrases, " __________ will bring ______ or _____ will be brought by ________ ."
We are not introducing performers or naming sponsors.
b. When there are changes, introduce these at the appropriate time in the
service. There is no need to apologize profusely for these changes as we
sometimes must be flexible.
c. Timing is an important part of the role of liturgist. Speak slowly. Leave
spaces of silence to help slow down and center the worship for the congregation,
especially at transitional points in the service (children leaving; silence
after confession; after preaching; community prayers; communion).
d. Preparing for the unexpected -- Occasionally, the unexpected will happen. A
worshiper may become tearful, angry, seem to need to share, or need a group to
gather around him/her for prayer. Or, you as the worship leader may feel
confused, distracted, or not know exactly what to do. Try to meet the
unexpected need of others in as sensitive a way as possible. It's okay to
spontaneously ask the community to gather for special prayer and change the
order of the service. If you feel you need help, ask for it! At one past
service, the worship leader said, "Friends, I don't know exactly how to proceed
. . ." and then suggested a change in the service which the congregation
supported. Again, it's okay to ask for help or for suggestions.
GENERAL ORDER OF WORSHIP
NOTE: For each section of the worship that follows, the instructions to the
worship leader are given at the beginning of each section.
CENTERING IN
SILENCE Liturgist Announces Congregation Seated No later than
10:20 a.m., announce the beginning of centering silence.
WELCOME &
INTRODUCTION Liturgist Announces Congregation Seated You may choose to
read the meditation in the liturgy as a way of gathering the group from silence.
Then say, "Good morning. Welcome to the worship of the 8th Day Faith Community.
NAME greeted you at the door. NAME(S) are leading the music today. I am NAME
and will be your worship leader today."
CALL TO
WORSHIP Liturgist Begins Congregation
Stands Ask the
congregation to stand and join you in the call to worship.
INVOCATION Liturgist Begins Congregation Stands Ask the
congregation to remain standing and join you in saying. HYMN Liturgist Announces Congregation Stands Announce numbers
of the hymns in Glory and Praise and page numbers in the New Century Hymnbook or
in the song folder .
CONFESSION Liturgist
Leads Congregation Seated After leading the
congregation in the confession, allow 2-3 minutes of silence for individual
confession. Time it at home, to see how 2-3 minutes feels. During the service,
the silence will seem longer to you than it really is. New liturgists always cut
it too short!
ABSOLUTION Liturgist Reads Congregation Seated The absolution is
either read by the liturgist or the congregation. If it is read by the
congregation or there is a congregational response, you will need to remind them
to join you.
PASSING OF THE
PEACE Liturgist Leads Congregation
Stands Liturgist says:
"May the peace of the Lord/Christ be with you." Congregation responds: "And also
with you." Liturgist: "Let us pass this peace to one another." You are welcome
to vary or adapt these words in your own unique style.
HYMN Liturgist Announces Congregation Stands
READING OF THE
SCRIPTURES Liturgist Announces Congregation Seated The scriptures are
read in English and Spanish. Announce persons who will be doing both. Avoid
saying, "will be brought by" - sounds like a commercial!
PREACHING Liturgist Announces
Congregation Seated Introduce preacher
by name and affiliation (part of 8th Day, other church community). If preacher
is from outside 8th Day, give a longer introduction. After the sermon, leave a
few minutes of silence for reflection.
OFFERING Liturgist Announces Congregation Seated Announce the name
of the person who will be taking the offering and then be seated. After the
musician(s) have finished, read the words in the liturgy if provided; otherwise
say a brief prayer yourself. Then, lead into community prayer.
COMMUNITY
PRAYERS Liturgist Leads Congregation
Seated Invite
congregation to center in silence, and then offer their prayers of thanksgiving
and intercession, aloud or silently. After some silence, you can choose to begin
the prayers or wait for someone in the congregation to begin. Allow plenty of
time for prayers, with silence in between. When it seems to you that the
congregation has finished with spoken prayers, close with a brief prayer in your
own words.
COMMUNION Liturgist
Leads Congregation Shares From the podium,
introduce communion by inviting all to participate in the celebration. Announce
that members of the congregation can either drink directly from the cup by
coming to the two lines at the rear of the table, or dip the bread in the cup by
coming to the two lines at the front of the table. introduce communion. Then
read the words in the liturgy if any and move to the words of institution.
COMMUNION
CLOSING Liturgist Prays Congregation
Seated Close the time of
communion with the closing in the liturgy, or, in its absence, with a brief
prayer in your own words.
HYMN Liturgist Announces
Congregation Stands
WELCOME OF
VISITORS Liturgist Announces
Congregation Seated Announce that at
this time in the service, we like to meet our visitors. Ask visitors, one
section at a time, to stand, introduce themselves (name, where from and how they
came to be with us, if they wish). If the person speaks softly, it helps to
repeat the name. Mention the fellowship period after the service, where we share
coffee and teas, and learn more about each other.
ANNOUNCEMENTS Liturgist Invites Congregation
WORKING
TOGETHER Liturgist Announces Briefly, remind
the congregation to help restore the Potter's House to whatever order is
appropriate and to bring liturgies, hymnals and folders to the back counter.
BENEDICTION Liturgist
Leads Congregation Stands Move quickly from
announcements to benediction. No pause or silence needed.
STANDARD WORDS OF INSTITUTION AT COMMUNION
On the night
before his death, during supper (On the night when he was celebrating/eating the
Passover meal with his disciples), Jesus took a loaf of bread, and having said
the blessing, he broke it, gave it to his disciples and said: Take this and eat;
this is my body, broken for you. Then he took a cup of wine, and offering thanks
to God, he gave it to them, saying: Drink from it, all of you. For this is my
blood, the blood of the New Covenant, shed for many for the forgive-ness of
sins. I tell you, never again shall I drink from the fruit of the vine until
that day when I drink it new with you in the kingdom of my Father/kingdom of
God. Scripture
references for the Eucharist are:
Matthew 26: 26-29
Mark 14: 22-25
Luke 22: 14-19
I Corinthians 11: 23-26
Using the above 4
scripture passages, feel free to adapt as seems appropriate to you! |
