They felt that all set prayers could not meet the needs of the congregations.
Some ministers’ alternate- they write a prayer suitable to a particular occasion or compose a prayer, which nevertheless follows a fixed pattern.
Development of Christianity
Jesus chose twelve disciples:
- As companions
- So that they could share his work and cover more ground.
- So that they could continue his ministry after he had left them.
The disciples formed the first Christian Community preaching publicly that Jesus was the promised Messiah, their previous despair and cowardice was replaced by courage:
- They were sure that God had raised Jesus from the dead.
- Jesus had shown understanding.
- Jesus had promised them the gift of the Holy Spirit, his presence in a new way and this inspired them.
The Apostles
The disciples became apostles and they had to tell people about the ministry of Jesus they had experienced from beginning to end, and to be witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus.
Apostle means “sent”- they were sent to do this job.
The first Christians remained good Jews, worshipping in the Temple in Jerusalem daily but they claimed that Jesus was the Messiah who was both human and divine; this created opposition.
Christians met everyday to break bread sharing in a religious meal based on the Lord’s Supper.
Christians and Non-Jews
Some Christians believed that if Jesus had wanted Gentile Christians he would have preached to them himself. Others were willing for them to convert them provided they convert to Judaism first.
Everyone should be allowed into the Church if they shared its beliefs about Jesus.
Christians took their faith with them preaching only to Jews. Christianity was for everyone regardless of race or religion.
The First Christian Council @ Jerusalem
The decisions of the Council was that faith in Jesus was the only requirement for conversion to Christianity and keep the four rules:
- Should not eat food that had been offered for sacrifice in Greek, Roman or other Temples.
- Sexual relations outside marriage were forbidden.
- Animals or birds, which had been strangled, should not be eaten- as they still had blood inside.
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Blood should not be taken in any form
The appeal of Christianity
- Changed the lives of the Apostles.
- Courage – Peter, Paul ready to die for their faith.
- The readiness of the Jewish Christians to accept Gentiles.
- The dissatisfaction of many people with the other religion of the Greek and Roman World.
- Christianity accepted everyone- everyone was equal; Jesus died for all humankind.
- Influence of Christian Kings.
- Encouraged missionary work, adopted language, dress, customs and the religion of the Europeans.
- The flexibility of Christian leaders.
Meaning & purpose of Worship
Contains an element of awe and wonder. There is a sense of being in the presence of something greater than them, which overwhelms them.
God is mysterious, tremendous yet fascinating.
God’s otherness always places him beyond human reach, but worship is designed to make him accessible.
The religious worshiper finds that he is mysteriously drawn to God and this is the essence of Christian worship.
Wonder, fascination and a sense of being overwhelmed are evident in worship.
The Importance of Sunday
Christian worship is always associated with Sunday. The first day of the week is regarded as being of special importance as it was the day on which Jesus rose from the dead.
It is said that on Sunday, all those who live in the cities or in the countryside gather together in one place.
Reasons for worship
Places a strong emphasis upon thanking God and upon Jesus. A service will begin with a song of praise to help the worshipper to express the awe and wonder which he feels in consciously entering God’s presence.
Patterns of Worship
The Anglican, Catholic and Orthodox Churches follow strict patterns laid out in a Prayer Book. It places emphasis on form ritual and pattern.
The nonconformists follow a strict patter because they believe it prevents the Holy Spirit expressing itself through what is happening. They place emphasis on hymns, chorus singing, with many new hymns being written in recent years. Poetry, art, dance and other creative forms are used.
How do Christians worship?
Christians sing hymns to worship God:
- Natural to sing when people are happy.
- Part of the tradition.
- Part of the Jewish tradition.
There were 4 main elements in the worship of early Christians:
- The singing of hymns
- Praying
- Preaching
- The breaking of the bread.
The Eucharist
Based on the meal, which Jesus shared with some of his disciples on the night of his arrest. This suggests that breaking bread was part of the life with Jesus, but sharing food is a universal way of expressing friendship and was an important feature of Judaism.
The Last Supper was a Passover Meal. The meal is a memorial.
It was no ordinary meal, they should remember its significance and behave accordingly.
They are commanded to do so by Christ “This is my body” have provoked criticism among Christians about the Lord’s Supper. Bread and wine became the actual body and blood of God. Transubstantiation was the official teaching of the Church.
The Quakers and the Salvation Army do not celebrate the Eucharist. God reaches the sinner as he wishes and not in special ways. Every meal should be regarded as a reminder of the Last Supper because Jesus is always present in the hearts of the believers.
The Service of the word
The main service is the Eucharist or Mass. In Protestant Churches less frequent Eucharists, perhaps monthly, quarterly or even annually.
Sunday services focus upon the reading and interpretation of Scripture where the message is related to the life of Christianity.
Introductory sentences
Hymn
Prayer
OT Bible Reading
Hymn
NT Bible Reading
Notices
Offertory
Prayers
Sermon
Hymn
Benediction
Free Church of Scotland
God’s praises would be sung using Psalms. No musical instruments. A Precentor would give the note and lead the singing, sometimes line by line with the congregation following. Sitting for Psalms and standing for the prayers.
Quakers- The society of friends”
Sing no hymns Gather in reflective silence and no one will speak unless he feels prompted to do so by the Holy Spirit. A meeting may last for a hour without a word being spoke, or several people may stand up during that time and share their thoughts with the meeting. Some might pray, another might take the Bible, read a passage, perhaps saying a few words about it afterwards.
They disliked the formality of worship in the Churches they attended where hymns were sung without conviction.
Prayers were read but they did not come from the heart. They emphasised waiting upon the Holy Spirit whilst meeting in gatherings.
The Charismatic Movement
People who feel and want to express an inhibited joy in their Christian faith. In public worship they dance, clap their hand, look in anguish towards the heaven and shout out during the service. It is active participation by everyone present.
They believe in the presence of gifts during worship:
- Healing- people pray for those who are ill
- Prophecy- people pass on God’s messages to others.
- Glossalalia- speaking in tongues, where people find themselves speaking in an unknown language.
- Interpretation- someone with the gift of interpretation so that they can tell the person God’s message
Other gifts include faith, wisdom and discernment; are used for the benefit of the Church to which they belong.
Most famous act of worship is Pentecost.
The House Church Movement
Consists of Protestant Christians.
Fellowship that is more intimate and personal. They meet in one another’s homes to study the scriptures, sing hymns, pray and break bread.
Pattern found in the New Testament. Elders organise and govern it.
They usually start as spontaneous, independent assemblies of a few people, and expand links that have been established between some of the House Groups and a new Church may emerge.
Worship & the sacraments in a Protestant Free Church
The believe in the following:
- The uniqueness of Jesus Christ
- The physical resurrection of Christ from the dead.
- The reality of everlasting life and everlasting judgement.
- The reliability & the trustworthiness of the Bible.
In mass there is much singing of both old and modern hymns alike, with a music group. It is informal but still slightly serious.
All ages are encouraged to feel part of the Community of faith and God is honoured and His word is made relevant.
Through groups, activities and events they pray, study and encourage each other to grow in faith.
They believe that worship is made up of:
- Homage/ submission
- Service
- Respect
They worship:
With their lives,
Singing
Prayer
Preaching
Liturgy.
Communion is celebrated twice a month in which bread & beakers of wine are passed around the congregation and everyone eats @ the same time showing unity.
The meaning of communion is to remember Christ’s sacrifice, to partake of its benefits and to proclaim his sacrifice; attribute our unity to his sacrifice.
Worship should be part of our lives through community events as well as church groups.
The RC Church & the sacraments
Luther & the sacraments
Luther believed in just 2 sacraments: Baptism & the Eucharist.
He believed that a person can be justified by faith and that the Lord’s Supper should not be used as an act on our part to placate God or to earn his favour.
He also believed that refusing to offer the chalice to anyone denied them from what it signified- Christ’s blood.
He rejected transubstantiation and believed in consubstantiation- the substantial presence of the body and blood of Christ co-existing in and with the bread & wine used at the Lord’s Supper.
Luther empties baptism of priestly power. He retained the traditional practice of infant baptism and denied that children are without faith. He claimed that the child is brought into a new relationship with God through baptism.
Calvin & the Sacraments
Calvin believed that a sacrament is a seal, and a visible sign of a sacred thing, or an invisible form of an invisible grace.
He too, only accepted the Eucharist and Baptism. Calvin claimed that the Holy Spirit makes our unity with Christ in the sacrament possible.
He believed that the Holy Spirit raises us through the sacrament so that we might be united with Christ in heaven. He says that grace is that which raise the elect to God.
Calvin agreed with Luther that the laity should be able to receive both the bread and the wine. He also said that the Eucharist should be celebrated weekly.
Baptism- sign of cleansing; person’s death and renewal in Christ; brings unity in him & his blessing. Confession of sins.
Infant Baptism- Christ received little children; circumcision showed that children were to be included in the covenant people of God.
Luther & the Church
Luther believed that the medieval Church had become corrupt and what sparked the reformation for him had been the selling of indulgences.
Luther did not wish to break away from the Church but wanted it to be reformed from within and it to become a body reflecting the spirit of what God intended the Church to be like.
The function of the ministry was:
- To teach
- To administer the sacraments
- To hold the “power of the keys” (pronounce absolution or forgiveness of sins)
Luther’s basic definition of the Church was that of the communion of saints- saints referring to all Christians.
In this community he believed that:
- All are called equally
- Everyone has a function
- None was superior in his calling to another
- To be faithful in that calling was the mark of holiness, the sign of the communion of saints.
Calvin & the Church
Calvin believed that the marks of a true Church were that the Word of God should be preached & the sacraments be rightly administered.
He sees the Church as being at one level a community of Christian believers seen by all and on another level a fellowship of saints and the company of the elect that can only be seen by God.
Calvin claimed that the Church is divinely ordained.
The Anabaptist & the Church
The Church- an alternative society.
They believed that the Church had simply ceased to exist because of its involvement with the state and all the political and human power struggles, which went with it. They thought that the true church was in heaven.
They wanted to establish a Church on New Testament principles.
The Incarnation
It is recorded in both the Old & the New Testaments.
It is very important, as Jesus was able to reveal God & redeem mankind because he is God and man. Early Church teachers fought against docetism- the heresy/ false teaching that God’s son only appeared to be human.
Advent
The beginning of the Church calendar. It means coming and remembers the first coming of Jesus & looks forward to his second coming.
Advent Sunday is the nearest to St Andrew’s day 30th November.
The Western Church no longer fasts though the serious nature of Advent is marked by the use of purple. The Advent Calendar is a popular feature in the celebration of Advent and the progressive lighting of Advent candles.
Christmas Day
25th December was likely to have been chosen to oppose the feast of the pagan “Birth of the unconquered sun” which had been replaced by the Birth of the Son of Righteousness.
The crib is a feature of the nativity celebration and is likely to go back to Francis of Assisi who made the first model of the crib in 1223. The Christmas tree is connected with the cross. The modern popular Christmas owes much to Charles Dickens.
Santa is the American transformation of St Nicholas, the patron Saint of sailors and of Russia, is also the Patron Saint of children. FC is a reminder of divine generosity essentially connected with the festival.
Epiphany
Means “manifestation” referring to the manifestation or appearance of God’s Son to the Magi. It is celebrated in honour of Christ’s baptism. In the Eastern Church a solemn blessing is said over the baptismal waters; in the West it lost its character as a feast of Christ. It has become the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles in the persons of the Magi.
From the 6th Century their names are given as Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar. Magi means wizard or sorcerer but in the Gospels it refers to member of a sacred caste.
They gave the gifts of:
- Gold- kingship of Christ, the King of Kings
- Frankincense- his deity and Priesthood
- Myrrh- his healing powers & to his sacrificial death
These were prophetic gifts, which told of the coming works of Jesus.
Advent
Lasts four weeks and ends on Christmas Eve. Advent is the time of “comings”, celebrating the coming of:
- John the Baptist (told in Luke’s Gospel)
- The coming of the Messiah
- The Second Coming of Jesus back to the earth
The readings during Advent show:
- Jesus was the Son of God
- Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah.
Advent is a preparation for Christmas and a time for fasting & prayer. The altar is covered with a purple or violet cloth- colour of repentance. There is an evergreen wreath containing 4 candles: 3 purple, 1 pink. The wreath symbolises eternal life. The flame of the Advent candle is a reminder of Christ being the “light of the world”.
Epiphany
Celebrates the showings forth of the birth of Jesus, the baptism of Jesus and the first miracle of Jesus.
Lent
Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and runs all the way through to Good Friday. Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday & runs through until Easter Sunday.
Lent is a time of fasting & spiritual preparation in a lengthy run up to Easter. Jesus was led into the wilderness where for forty days he was tempted by the Devil. Christians seek to follow the same path of self-denial as Jesus before living through the events leading up to his crucifixion.
All the fat in the house is used up on Shrove Tuesday when pancakes are made to provide a last opportunity for people to enjoy a feast before the fast of Lent. The Ash Wednesday service marks the beginning of the time of self-denial and penitence, which only ends with the forgiveness of Easter Day. In the ceremony ash (a symbol of penitence) is smeared on the foreheads of worshippers.
Mothering Sunday
The fourth Sunday of Lent is Mothering Sunday because:
- Heaven as “mother”
- Congregations visited their mother church for spiritual refreshment.
- Visiting mothers with presents on this day.
On this day the fast of Lent is suspended though after the day was over it was imposed again until Good Friday.
Palm Sunday
On Palm or Passion Sunday Christians minds go back to the time when Jesus rode into the city of Jerusalem on a donkey. The crowd spread the coats on the road in front of him- the welcome was one normally reserved for a King. Palm crosses are given out in Church to remind them of the beginning of Holy Week.
Jesus rode on a donkey to fulfil a prophecy from the Jewish Scriptures. Jesus was making a public declaration about the nature of his future ministry & work. Donkeys were always though of animals of peace. The Messiah, the one for whom their ancestors had been waiting for centuries to lead the Jewish people in a successful uprising against the Romans, was the bringer of peace.
Maundy Thursday
Jesus washed the feet of his disciples; this was the task of the lowest servant to teach his disciples a very important lesson about the kingdom of God.
He changed the traditional Jewish Passover meal by instructing his followers to break bread and drink wine in memory of his death.
Good Friday
The Easter weekend starts with Good Friday, the most solemn day in the year, known as Black Friday.
Special services often running from noon to three o’clock allow people to meditate on the crucifixion of Christ.
The story of the crucifixion from the 4 Gospels is read and time is spent in silent or guided meditation.
There is no Communion. The Church is emptied of moveable items and the permanent ones covered. In RC churches paintings mark out the 14 Stations of the Cross. The worshippers stop, kneel and recite appropriate prayers. @ 3pm when Jesus died the cross is covered and placed in the middle of the church. It is slowly uncovered as members prostrate. They listen again to the story of the Passion of Jesus.
In Orthodox Churches it is known as Great Friday where an icon of the dead Christ is carried in and lowered into a stand. People gather around with candles as though it were a funeral.
In Britain Churches join together behind someone carrying a cross- as of witness showing others that Christians are strongly united in bearing witness to the death of Jesus.
The crucifixion is part of the good news that the gospel is based on. It was the last attempt by all the powers of evil and darkness to thwart the purposes of God.
Holy Saturday
A day of quiet anticipation. The Church is thoroughly cleaned and the best furnishings & vessels brought out in preparation for Easter Day. Flowers remind everyone of spring and new life and a symbol for that new life which is to become apparent when Jesus rises from the dead.
Easter Sunday
Orthodox Churches have a coffin decorated with flowers to remind worshippers of the dead body of Jesus. At midnight the Paschal Candle is lit and Christ is rise. The candle is then brought into the dark Church. The doors of the Church are thrown wide open- rolling away of the stone from the door of the tomb. The candle symbolises the light of the resurrection of Jesus, which gradually overcomes the powers of darkness in the world. The light is passed to remind everyone that the Good News of Jesus is similarly passed from believer to non-believer.
The RCs have a main Easter service at midnight with the Easter Vigil. Light from the Paschal candle is passed to everyone to light their candles from.
Anglican and Free Churches have sunrise services. Easter Day sets the tone for the coming year; it reaches its climax with this event. The Church waits for the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost but the essential elements of its message are now in place.
Jesus death
Jesus died as an innocent man. The death of Jesus was a victory over all the powers of evil. By his death Jesus was able to pay the penalty that God had placed on humankind for its sinfulness. The death of Jesus was a means of “buying back” the sinful past of humankind.
Atonement- making at-one-ment or a “bringing together in harmony”.
The death of Christ is seen as an “eternal” act in which Christians share as they worship together.