Theological Foundations of Worship (Worship Foundations) , livre ebook

Cover
Endorsements
“To have such a comprehensive resource on different theologies of worship from such a range of authors is like a dream come true. Until now it has been hard to find such a compendium. Like the slow turning of a large diamond, this book displays the many facets of the wonder of Christian worship.”
— Lester Ruth , Duke Divinity School
“Who is the God worshiped by ordinary churchgoers, and how is that God related to the Holy Mystery studied by biblical scholars and theologians? This book attempts to bridge the gap between these two worlds, inviting worshipers to reflect more deeply on familiar acts such as prayer, singing, sacraments, and proclamation, and to consider how their embodied acts cohere with what we say we believe. Worship leaders from a wide variety of backgrounds will benefit from this solid body of work by both senior and emerging scholars in the fields of biblical studies and systematic, historical, missional, and liturgical theologies.”
— Martha Moore-Keish , Columbia Theological Seminary
“‘Christians tend to experience worship more than think about it.’ This provocative phrase introduces readers into a thoughtful exploration of how fundamental Christian doctrines sustain, shape, and are expressed in liturgical practices and vice versa. Written by leading scholars and practitioners, clearly organized, profound but accessible, and ecumenically sensitive, Theological Foundations of Worship is an essential guide for those seeking to gain a deeper understanding of the multifaceted connections between what we believe and what we do in corporate worship.”
— María Eugenia Cornou , Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
“In a pain-full world, worshipers crave the immediacy of a direct experience of God in worship—to feel whole. The desire to feel something instantly each time we gather, however, often takes priority over the need to reflect intentionally on the meaning of worship. The diverse perspectives in this volume’s depths offer an opportunity to reconnect feeling and reflecting with doing. Place this book beside your prayer book, your devotional guide, your hymn book, your favorite sacred video clips, or your spiritual playlist of songs, and let them talk with each other. You will feel more deeply and worship more fully.”
— C. Michael Hawn , Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University (emeritus)
Half Title Page
Series Page
Worship Foundations
How Theology, History, and Culture Inform Our Worship Practice
Series Editors: Melanie C. Ross and Mark A. Lamport
Editorial Advisory Board for the Series
Randall Balmer ( Dartmouth College )
Rhodora Beaton ( Oblate School of Theology )
Peter Galadza ( University of Toronto )
C. Michael Hawn ( Southern Methodist University )
Andrew E. Hill ( Wheaton College )
Monique M. Ingalls ( Baylor University )
Maxwell E. Johnson ( Notre Dame University )
Lizette Larson-­Miller ( Huron University College )
Swee Hong Lim ( University of Toronto )
Martha L. Moore-­Keish ( Columbia Theological Seminary )
Bruce T. Morrill ( Vanderbilt University )
Bridget Nichols ( Church of Ireland Theological Institute, Dublin )
Thomas O’Loughlin ( University of Nottingham )
L. Edward Phillips ( Emory University )
Lester Ruth ( Duke Divinity School )
Don E. Saliers ( Emory University )
W. David O. Taylor ( Fuller Theological Seminary )
Lisa A. Weaver ( Columbia Theological Seminary )
Nicholas Wolterstorff ( Yale Divinity School )
Title Page
Copyright Page
© 2021 Khalia J. Williams and Mark A. Lamport
Published by Baker Academic
a division of Baker Publishing Group
PO Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516–6287
www.bakeracademic.com
Ebook edition created 2021
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4934-3108-3
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations labeled ESV are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2016
Scripture quotations labeled KJV are from the King James Version of the Bible.
Scripture quotations labeled NASB are from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org
Scripture quotations labeled NIV are from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture quotations labeled NJB are from THE NEW JERUSALEM BIBLE, copyright © 1985 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House, Inc. Reprinted by Permission.
Dedication
From Khalia: To the communities that have shaped my worship theology and practice, the women of my faith community whose lives of faith inspire me to continue the pursuit of understanding God’s dynamic movement among us, and to the great cloud of witnesses who have gone before me and journey with me
From Mark: To my daughters and daughter-in-law: Rachel, Michelle, Emily, and Amy
Contents
Cover i
Endorsements ii
Half Title Page iii
Series Page iv
Title Page v
Copyright Page vi
Dedication vii
Preface Khalia J. Williams and Mark A. Lamport xi
Series Introduction Nicholas Wolterstorff xvii
Introduction N. T. Wright xxiii
Part 1. Biblical Practices of Worship: Exegetical and Biblical Theology 1
1. Old Testament and Worship Andrew E. Hill 3
2. New Testament and Worship Pheme Perkins 20
Part 2. Theological Principles of Worship: Systematic and Historical Theology 35
3. Creation and Worship W. David O. Taylor 37
4. God and Worship Don E. Saliers 53
5. Humanity and Worship Ronald T. Michener 66
6. Christology and Worship Bruce T. Morrill 81
7. Pneumatology and Worship Khalia J. Williams 95
8. Eschatology and Worship Maurice Lee 107
9. Ecclesiology and Worship Rhodora E. Beaton 120
10. Mission and Worship Eugene R. Schlesinger 135
11. Mystery and Worship Ivana Noble 150
12. Sanctification and Worship Lizette Larson-Miller 167
Part 3. Cultural Possibilities for Worship: Practical and Apologetical Theology 183
13. Cultural Considerations and Sacred Significance of Time in Worship Anne McGowan 185
14. Ecology and Worship Teresa Berger 202
15. Individualism and Community within Worship Practices E. Byron (Ron) Anderson 218
16. Secularization and Worship James K. Wellman Jr. 232
17. Christian Worship in the Context of Other World Religions Peter C. Phan 245
Epilogue: Pursuing a Theology of Worship Martyn Percy 261
Acknowledgments 277
Contributors 279
Index 285
Back Cover 291
Preface
Khalia J. Williams and Mark A. Lamport
T hree concepts occupy our minds and motivate us to explore theological considerations of worship in this book.
First, Christians tend to experience worship more than think about it. Believers treasure comfort with familiar patterns of worship, acts of ritual, and behaviors of movement and inherently resist contemplation of comprehensive or coherent theology of worship. To some degree, our human nature prompts us to coast when we can and push aside the difficult process of analysis. Understandable, yes, but those who are charged with worship and ministry leadership should have an intentional connection of what they profess to believe (theoretically) and what they plan and perform (practically) as worship. After all, God’s very being and action drive us to seek God, demand that we imitate God, and compel us to praise God. And, as Ron Highfield rightly deduces, “We cannot know God without passion, longing, seeking, following, and praising. To know him is to praise him, for he is most worthy of praise.” 1
Experiences in Christian worship simultaneously reveal the profundity of our waywardness and the magnificence of God’s being. Illuminations, therefore, that emerge from worshipful encounters are part of our Christian formation—the first part to recognize our lack; the second part to will personal reform; and the third part to act, and in doing so, to be reshaped individually and corporately. As Don Saliers, architect of fifteen books on the relationship of theology and worship as well as the author of chapter 4 in this book, points out, “In worship, people are characterized, given their life and their fundamental location and orientation in the world.” 2 As the church worships, faith is incubated, and the believer’s place in the world is more clearly understood. As Debra Murphy observes, “In corporate worship the lives of Christians are formed and transformed, Christian identity is conferred and nurtured.” 3
But Nicholas Wolterstorff, from whom you will soon hear in the series introduction to follow, is concerned that all too often biblical and theological doctrines have been displaced, discarded, or forgotten in favor of therapeutic, relational, or managerial knowledge drawn less from the canonical Scriptures than from the canon of contemporary popular culture. 4
Jim Wellman, one of the editorial advisory members for this series and the author of chapter 16 on secularism and worship, points to the prevalence of “megachurches” as evidence of this shift in focus. He argues that worship in megachurches is designed to touch, create, and respond to a set of six desires in human beings: welcome, a “wow” moment, a charismatic figure, invitation for de