Attend a church service of a tradition, either high church or low church, that you don’t normally attend

Worship Tradition Assessment Instructions

CHRI 2373: Christian Theology and Tradition

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Basic Requirements:

Attend a church service of a tradition, either high church or low church, that you don’t normally attend
250+ word reflection on your personal trip, including a selfie of you at the service or in front of the church
In the reflection, do not just walk through each element that occurred, rather focus only on the central elements
This material is worth 100 points. (-15 point per day late)
Stipulations:
- Please briefly include this information in your reflection:
  - your current church affiliation (if any),
  - whether your current church (if any) is a High Church or Low Church tradition and which model (ancient, reformed, revivalist) it follows
  - The type of church tradition you expected to attend, either High Church or Low Church. This must be the opposite of your historical/current tradition.
- The report must include the following:
  - the name and affiliation of the church the student attended
  - the date you attended the service
  - a completed assessment
- Online church services or Convocation (or other campus worship services at HBU) may NOT be used for this assignment.

Assignment Summary:

In the interest of bridging the gap between theory and practice, students have the opportunity to attend a worship service at a Christian church. As Christianity developed over the past two millennia, a variety of traditions have arisen. While there are a number of ways to describe the variety, one simple way is to separate traditions into High Church and Low Church traditions. We explain this distinction in Engaging Theology chapter 10. These approaches to ecclesiology are reflected in their worship styles, with High Church traditions following an Ancient model and Low Church traditions following a Revivalist model. To help you understand the background and distinction between please watch this YouTube video about Worship Traditions: https://youtu.be/SPwTUHHNTJQ.

To help you appreciate the diversity, you will attend a church tradition that worships in a different style and is in a different denomination than that to which you are accustomed.

If you usually attend[1]	You must visit
a Low Church (aka Revivalist) tradition	a High Church (aka Ancient) tradition
a High Church (aka Ancient) tradition	a Low Church (aka Revivalist) tradition
a Reformed tradition[2] (i.e., Presbyterian or Methodist)	a High Church (aka Ancient) tradition

You will then submit a 250 word (+/- 10%) theological reflection paper about your experience. To aid in your assessment of this experience, a Worship Assessment Worksheet is appended to these instructions.

From your observations, your 250 word reflection should answer the following questions about the tradition and theology of the service:

What tradition/style does this worship service represent?
What doctrines were reflected in the service and how do these relate to the topics we have covered in class through Engaging Theology?
1. What doctrines was/were reflected in the songs?
1. What doctrines emerged in the sermon/homily?
1. How were these doctrines explained and applied?
1. (How) did the four sources of theology play a role in the service: scripture, tradition, reason, and experience?

Notes and Reminders:

In your paper, don’t just give a play by play of the service or a detail of all the issues on the survey form, since there’s not enough space for that; rather, focus on the unique or important elements. This includes how the architecture and flow of worship reflected the tradition, and how the service helped communicate specific theological doctrines.

Churches are usually very welcome to have visitors. As you visit, you should remember, however, that worship services often carry great meaning for people, so you should be respectful in your time there. Also, you might quiet strongly disagree with something you see. You are welcome to note your disagreement in the report, but you should do so in a respectful manner.

Almost any church will be appropriate, but you may only attend theologically orthodox Christian traditions for this assignment. In particular, you may not attend a Mormon (Latter Day Saints) or Jehovah’s Witness service. If you are in doubt, please ask your professor.

Online church services or Convocation (or other campus worship services at HBU) may NOT be used for this assignment.

Tips for Visits:

With regard to clothing, it is usually safest to wear business casual clothing to a service. However, many churches will note on their website if they are more relaxed.

In Catholic and Orthodox churches, the Eucharist is usually reserved for those who are members of that tradition. Feel free to go forward with your row, but just keep your arms crossed over your chest (like an X) and the priest/server will give you a blessing rather than the elements.

Assessing a Church’s Worship Tradition

There are three general worship models that churches follow: Ancient (Word/Table), Reformed (Word), and Revivalist (Music/Sermon). Ancient traditions are also often called High Church and revivalists are often called Low Church. Reformed traditions tend to lean more high church but can sometimes look more like a low church. Here are some general differences between high and low churches:

	High Church	Low Church
Building Style	Traditional Church building (Steeple, Stained Glass, etc)	Modern building or multipurpose (school, coffee shop, etc.)
Visual Focus	Altar at the front	Pulpit at the center of a stage
Seating	Pews w/ kneelers	Chairs or Theater seating
Church Leader	Have “priests”	Have “pastors”
Dress	Priests dress in robes	Casual dress
Music	Sing hymns	Contemporary music w/ full band
Worship Center	The “sanctuary”	The “auditorium”
Prayer	Scripted; prays together	Spontaneous; Just person on stage prays
Communion	Weekly communion	Monthly communion
Sermon length	10-20 minutes	30-60 minutes
Other:	Stands while reading scripture	Call people “brother” and “sister”
	Says the creed	Alter call at the end
	Hymnals & a bulletin	AV Screen w/ song lyrics & announcements
	Higher barrier to entry	Feels more inviting; low barrier to entry
	Processional at the beginning

Note that most church have aspects of both high and low church styles in them. Think of this distinction as more of a spectrum than a binary.

The main difference in the three models listed above is what they emphasize during their services. Ancient traditions tend to emphasize reading the Bible and communion, Reformed traditions tend to emphasize reading the Bible and the sermon, and Revivalist traditions tend to emphasize the sermon and the music. These questions, with the key on the next page, will help you think through the worship service to assess which model the church you visit follows.

Church Worship Tradition Assessment

Church’s Name: ___________________________________________
Church’s Denomination:_____________________________________
Describe the congregation’s demographics (age, ethnicity, gender, economics, etc.):
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Architecture
- In what type of building was the service held? Traditional (Steeple, stained glass, pews)

Modern Church Building Multipurpose (school/gym/coffee shop) Home

What is the visual focus of the worship area (i.e., what is prominent or what do you notice first when you enter)?

Pulpit/Lectern AV Screen Band Altar/Communion Table

Baptistry Empty Stage Choir Other:_____________

What symbols are used in the church?

Stained glass Cross Crucifix Icons Candle

None Other:________________________

Whom do the acoustics and amplification tend to favor? (E.g., when there is singing, do you hear only the leaders/band or can you hear your neighbor?)

Leaders (Choir/Band) Congregation

What kind of seating is used?
- Style of Seating: Pews Chairs Theater Other:________
- How is seating arranged? ____________________________
- What does this encourage? ___________________________

Worship Service Structure
- How long was the service? 45-60m 1h-1h15m 1h15m-1h30m 1h30m+
- Approximately how much time (in minutes) is spent on each of the following aspects?
  Communion_____ Prayer______ Preaching_____ Reading Scripture_____

Singing_____ Giving_____ Creeds_____ Other( )____

How much of the Bible is read? Can you list any of the verses? ______________________ __________________________________________________________________________
- Does the church follow a lectionary? Yes No
- Is there a psychological climax of the service? _____________________________
- Which act(s) dominate(s) the gathering (i.e., what is the apparent focus for planning and leadership)? Lord’s Table Prayer Preaching Reading Scripture
  Singing Creeds Other:__________

Communion
- Do you know how often it is celebrated? Weekly Monthly Quarterly Annually
- Do you know which service it is celebrated in?

Sunday Morning Sunday Night Wednesday Night Home/Small Groups

Final Assessment

Ancient (Word/Table) Reformed (Word) Revivalist (Music/Sermon)

Key Evidence (this is not your reflection. Use this section like notes to help you write your reflection later):________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

Worship Tradition Assessment Key

Church’s Name: No correlation
Church’s Denomination: Based on the denomination, these are “typical” traditions they follow, but many churches and denominations have different formats. As a result, focus most on the style of worship rather than the name on the building.
1. Ancient: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican/Episcopal.
1. Reformed: Presbyterian, Lutheran, Methodist.
1. Revivalist: Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, Charismatic, Bible Church, Community Church. [[Church of Christ, Christian Church=Revivalist+Table]]
Describe the congregation’s demographics: No correlation
Architecture
1. In what type of building was the service held? No necessary correlation
1. What is the visual focus of the worship area (i.e., what is prominent or what do you notice first when you enter)?
  1. If the altar is central it is likely Ancient.
  1. Having the pulpit/lectern in the center means it is probably Reformed or Revivalist.
  1. A band as central, often points to Revivalist.
1. What symbols are used in the church?
  1. The greater the use of symbols, the greater likelihood of an Ancient service.
1. Whom do the acoustics and amplification tend to favor? (E.g., when there is singing, do you hear only the leaders or can you hear your neighbor/the congregation?)
  1. If the acoustics favor the leaders (and performance), then more likely Revivalist
  1. If the congregation (and participation), then more likely Reformed or Ancient.
1. What kind of seating is used?
  1. Theater seating is often correlated with Revivalist.
  1. Pews are more likely Ancient or Reformed

Worship Service Structure
- How long was the service?
  - Services over 1h15m tend to be Revivalist.

b.-e. These questions combined will help you assess things. Here are some general trends with each tradition:

Ancient: Mix of all items, uses the lectionary, sermon not more than 15 min, and communion.
Reformed: Some prayers, singing, reading of scripture, but sermon is main aspect.
Revivalist: Lots of singing, sermon longer than 15 min, often few short prayers, often no reading of scripture, and no creeds.

NOTE: The type of music (or of instruments) does NOT matter for the categories. A revivalist service can have an orchestra and traditional hymns, but if it the structure of the service is sing and preach, then it is Revivalist.

NOTE: Revivalist and Reformed both tend to have long sermons, so you have to look at other elements besides a long sermon to make the distinction.

Communion
- Do you know how often it is celebrated?

Weekly: Ancient. Monthly or less often: Reformed or Revivalist

Do you know which service it is celebrated in?

Sunday Morning: Could be any tradition. If celebrated outside the main Sunday services: Revivalist (i.e., Sunday is focused on integrating outsiders [evangelism], rather than reaffirming the community of insiders).

Final Assessment

Ancient (Word/Table) Reformed (Word) Revivalism (Music/Sermon)

Moving from Ancient to Revivalist, there is an increasing focus on inclusion of outsiders. The Ancient service is often more complex and harder for outsiders to follow because it is designed for those already a part of the tradition, which allows more theologically depth. The Revivalist service is built around making church accessible to outsiders. This means that accessibility is sometimes valued more than theological depth. This raises important questions about the place of evangelism and doctrine in the service.

[1] If you do not attend church (nor were raised in church), you may visit any tradition.

[2] By “Reformed”, we’re discussing the worship style rather than merely those theologically Reformed.

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Attend a church service of a tradition, either high church or low church, that you don’t normally attend

Attend a church service of a tradition, either high church or low church, that you don’t normally attend

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