How We Worship

With our voices, hearts, minds, bodies, and souls...
Diversity in Worship Liturgies
Worldwide, there is significant diversity in worship liturgies, practices and styles among Lutherans. Words like "high-church" and "formal" may be used to describe some Lutheran worship styles, while words like "low-key" and "informal" may better describe some others.

Participatory Worship
Lutheran worship centers on God's activity through the public proclamation of the Word and administration of the Sacraments according to the Gospel. Worship is the "work of the people." In other words, worship is participatory rather than a spectator event.

Keeping Tradition
Generally speaking, Lutherans have kept those components of worship which date back to the earliest centuries of the Christian church. Usually, Lutherans follow the church calendar and observe the seasons and celebrations of the church year (Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Easter, and Pentecost).

Reflection and Confession
Lutheran worship generally includes opportunity for reflection and confession, the pronouncement of God's forgiveness in Jesus Christ, the singing of "psalms, hymns and other spiritual songs," the reading of scripture passages, a sermon, the recitation of the Nicene or Apostles' Creed, the receiving of tithes and offerings, prayers for the community and the world, and the celebration of the Sacraments (Baptism and the Lord's Supper).

The Lutheran Bottom Line
Article Seven of the Augsburg Confession states that the Church "happens" whenever there is an "...assembly of believers among whom the Gospel is preached in its purity and the holy Sacraments are administered according to the Gospel." Article Seven's intent is to define the Church, but in doing so it also defines worship. Where else do Lutherans gather around such things?

So worship, then, is the giving away of the Gospel an evangelistic event, if you will, that announces the Good News of Jesus to all within earshot. This, then, is our bottom line. Worship that is truly Lutheran worship announces to us in Word and Sacrament what Jesus has done for us in his dying and rising. True Lutheran worship declares in its preaching, music and liturgy that in Christ captives are set free and sinners are forgiven. The stakes are high. Article Seven insists that if our worship services are characterized by anything else other than this proclamation then whatever we are doing is not Lutheran worship; it is not even Christian worship.

taken from ELCA.org at http://www.elca.org/evangelism/leaders/worshipevan.html