Posts Tagged “spectacle”

Church has changed a lot since I was a kid. At least it has in some churches. (The one my family attends is virtually unchanged from the church of my youth – which is exactly why we go there.) The new trend in churches seems to be to have a rock concert (with “Praise Team” musicians) with a sermon attached. The theory goes that if you can change church into something that will get the muddled asses…um “huddled masses”…yearning to see free bread and circuses, you can get them to attend church. The problem with that idea is that when you take all the mystery and majesty out of a church service, you remove what really appeals to worshipers. As a professional musician, I’ve got nothing against rock concerts, especially concerts where the lyrics are positive and uplifting. But a rock concert is no substitute for worship. A concert can be a religious experience, but I’ve yet to see a concert that can rival the Sacrament of Holy Communion from the Book of Common Prayer (1928) for a way to get closer to God. Read the rest of this entry »