Tradition and worship: stability, variety, and grace
Tradition can be valuable and even vital, but worship “traditions” can also become rigid habits that shut out humility and grace. This reflection asks whether “contemporary” worship is truly less traditional and encourages churches to examine preferences without turning them into walls.
- All of us need some sameness and framework in worship, but not an impenetrable rut.
- “Traditional” and “contemporary” can both carry traditions—just different ones.
- Our first response should be humility and grace toward others’ worship preferences.
By Mark A. Taylor
Tony Campolo tells about some Jewish college students who insisted on missing his class for every Jewish religious holiday.
“What’s with you guys,” he chided them. “Why are all these days such a big deal to you? You don’t even believe the Bible!”
“Ah, but you don’t understand,” they told him. “It’s our tradition!”
Is contemporary worship less “traditional”?
Tradition is valuable, even vital. But in some church circles tradition has gotten a bad name. Indeed, as Becky Ahlberg indicates in “Where Have All the Choirs Gone?” traditional is a word too many say with a sneer, especially when they’re talking about worship.
But is “contemporary” worship really less traditional? Some would say no; we’ve simply left one set of traditions for another.
How is it where you are? Think about how much or how little variety you experience from week to week in the worship service you attend. Can you predict most of what will take place before you enter the church auditorium? Do you always participate in Communion and the offering in the same way? Do attendees or leaders insist each week on the same order of service, length of sermon, and set of musicians?
When tradition becomes a rut
Now, of course, some sameness is good. All of us want and need a measure of tradition in our lives. It provides stability, equilibrium, a framework. When someone asks how our family celebrates Christmas or observes birthdays, for example, we feel uncomfortable without a ready list of answers. We could not function in a world where everything was new. And when someone asks what happens at our church’s weekend worship gatherings, it’s good we have something specific to tell them. We would not keep attending worship where we had no idea, week after week, what to expect next.
Some contemporary Christians are trading new traditions for very old ones (see “Is This the End of the Worship Fad?” by Ken Read, October 9, 2005). They’re finding meaning in ancient forms, ritual, and liturgy. John Wakefield looks at more recent history this week (“The More We Change”) to remind us that some of what seems new today has actually been with us before.
Our response to all of this should first be humility, and then grace. Let’s quit insisting that our preferences are somehow better than someone else’s.
But at the same time, let’s examine the difference between establishing traditions and creating a rut. To be sure, everyone needs framework but when that framework grows into an unscalable, impenetrable wall, the work of the Holy Spirit may be shut out. We dare not allow that happen let alone become a tradition!
A word of thanks
This is the last week for Mike Shannon’s biweekly column, “Leader’s Toolbox.” We’re grateful for the resources he has shared, and as we told him when he submitted this final entry, we’ll look forward to future articles he’ll write for us. It is a big challenge to produce such a feature month after month, and we greatly appreciate Mike’s faithfulness as well as his knowledge. Thank you, Mike!
Author: Mark A. Taylor
Mark A. Taylor, who served as Christian Standard editor from 2003 to 2017, retired in June 2017 after almost 41 years with Standard Publishing (Christian Standard Media).
