Church Name: Church of the Resurrection
Church Address: 935 West Union Ave Wheaton IL
Date Attended: 9/7/14
Church Category: More Liturgical
The worship service was not too different from what I experienced at
home. I am from a Baptist church but attended on Saturday night, which is
different from Sunday morning worship. Saturday night was more contemporary
songs and Sunday was more hymns. I attended both Sunday and Saturday services
at my church. Church of the Resurrection blended these two worship survives by
combining both hymns and contemporary music together. The worship in itself was
not different from my church besides the instruments and technology used. We
used lights, projectors, and a band and then used paper and not a complete
band. What was different from my church is the way people worshiped with
there bodies. For example kids and adults held ands and skipped around the
sanctuary. At my church this would be seen as children who are not disciplined
and parents who are not in control of there free spirited kids. I thought it
was funny. Another thing that was done differently was the style of communion.
We went to the bread and wine/juice instead of it coming to us via trey and
ushers.
The thing I found most interesting about the worship service would be
the clothing that the church staff dressed in. Coming from a Baptist background
it was very odd to see the pastor dressed in robe like attire along with
others. Also the way that the church acted and the way they were dressed and
the style of the church in a way contradicted themselves. The way the church
was ran and the way the pastor preached was a very modern and almost
non-denominational. He even cracked a few jokes here and there. But the way the
church looked and the way the staff were dressed was very traditional. To me it
seemed that they were mixing modern culture with tradition of the past. This
church is almost a blend of Baptist, and Catholic. It was an odd blend but for
me it did not take away from the service. Adding the tradition added a sense of
connection to the past and also recognition to the culture as it is now.
The most challenging thing I had with the service was probably the women
involvement in the service. In my home church women never got up on the stage
even to make announcements in front of the entire congregation. In my church
they would teach women but never the entire church. They would be very active
in worship. At church of the Res it looked like some of the elders and deacons
were women and they played a part in the worship, service of the communion, the
offering, and reading of the Bible. They were active in every role except for
the head pastoral role. Please do not think I am sexist. This probably sounds
terrible me saying these things this day and age. I am in no way doubting the
ability for women to complete this role I am just not sure that role was made
for them fill. This is not an extreme church. Some churches have women who are
the pastor. This is very disorienting to what I am used to and have been taught.
I don't think that too much was “illuminated” for me in this worship
that I have not already been exposed to. The biggest thing would probably be
the connection to the past. I have been to Catholic churches and this is the same
sort of thing. In my home Baptist church we really do not highlight on
tradition we are more about the personal relationship we have with Jesus. I see
the importance of tradition. It connects us to the past and provides a sort of
material constant to go along with the constants of God. Now that I think about
it, it has a lot to do with symbolizing and representation of God and who he
is. In the middle of the sanctuary is this big ball that holds water and pores
over. Maybe this represents the overflowing properties of God like love,
wisdom, etc… These things can serve as a physical reminder of who God is.
No comments:
Post a Comment