ST. LUKE'S UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

WHAT'S HAPPENING AT ST. LUKE'S? . . .

PASTOR MARIE'S PAGE . . .

My husband generally views himseld as easygoing. But there are a few things that will ruffle his feathers. One is to move the living room furniture around without giving him plenty of warning. They say this is a flaw found especially in oldest children. Still, a great many of you assure me Roy is not the only one with such propensities.

One of you brought a parallel concern to me recently. It had to do not with living rooms, but with worship. And the question was of course, "Why do some churches sometimes have the sermon at the beginning of the hour and why do we sometimes have it at the end?" I realized the concern at once. Worship, after all, is the living room of our religious life. So I want to say a few words about the change.

First, the practice is not new. In fact John Calvin, the founder of the Reformed tradition of the Presbyterian Church, believed strongly that after a congregation confessed its sins, the people were free to hear the Word of God. That includes the scriptures first and then the sermon. Prayers, music of joy and the offering were, according to Calvin, proper responses to the good news of God's Word. And until as recently as the 20th century, that form was the predominant one in Presbyterian Churches. Today it has become dominant again, being the suggested order of many books of worship.

Second, some pastors and administrative boards have believed that this form in most cases offers a better flow of worship and maintains attention more faithfully. Many of you in this church has commented that you prefer listening to the sermon at a tme when your mind and heart are concentrating. And equally important, many of you have felt as I do that the music and prayers seem to carry even more vibrancy in this new order.

Partly hten to recover the strength of our denominational tradition, and partly because it seems to make sense, I plan to try a new format every so often, but with the administrative boards' blessing. If you have concerns about the way our living room looks -- the order of worship-- speak with me about your concerns regards to our worship format.

I'm glad to talk with others who get ruffled feather over the same things that I do.

With The Excitement and Challenge of Being Your Pastor,

Pastor Marie