A Litany of Confession

You may see the article I was originally working on (which was about worship renewal and the church growth movement of the 1980s and 90s) in the coming weeks. It was prompted by what Graham Kendrick wrote in an article in a recent issue of Worship Leader magazine, along with Sally Morgenthaler’s foreword to a book on alternative worship that I bought on clearance at LifeWay yesterday. I just couldn't get it into a form concise enough to satisfy the space available (1/2 page 8.5 x 11) in the time I had to devote to it.

Instead of what I started to write, I want to share a litany Morgenthaler cited in her foreword to Alternative Worship: Resources from and for the Emerging Church. It comes from a Christmas Eve mass that was, according to her, “brilliantly contextualized for a rave community in Glasgow, Scotland.” To try to describe a rave to those who have never encountered that term in such a context before would be an interesting exercise that I choose not to engage in at the moment. That deep worship of God can happen in such a context strains my brain, but we must realize that the way we’re familiar with is not the only way, nor is it even the best way.

Leader: We confess that we live in an age that what a person has can be seen as more important than who they are. • In an attempt to have, we are in danger of losing our very selves. • In an attempt to have, we have left many on the margins of society.

All: Author of creation, we cannot see Your face • Have mercy on our blindness, send to us a sign of grace.

Leader: We confess that we run around seeking comfort and security, but we have failed to go on our own spiritual journeys. • In doing this, we have sacrificed relationships and justice for personal passions. We’ve been wrong, we’ve been deluded, we’re sorry.

All: Author of creation, we cannot see Your face • Have mercy on our blindness, send to us a sign of grace.

Leader: We confess that we live in an age where trust is in short supply; • Where the press tells us all that there is to fear and we hide in our fortress homes. • We have failed to foster compassion and left the vulnerable uncared for. • We’ve been wrong, we’ve been deluded, we’re sorry.

Say and receive these words of forgiveness:

All: God, who is both power and love, • Forgive us and free us from our sins • Heal and strengthen us by the Spirit • And raise us to new life in Christ our Lord.

That’s enough to think about for now. The peace of Christ to you.