The Genius of Lutheran Corporate Worship

In her services of corporate worship the Christian Church presents the eternal verities of God\u27s holy and infallible Word, exhorts to high regard for Christian doctrine and to the application of Biblical teaching, receives the benefits of the blessed Sacraments, and enjoys a fellowship which has its roots in the very Gospel of Christ Jesus. Bearing in mind the character of these momentous objectives of ecclesiastical worship and taking into consideration, too, the words of warning expressed in Holy Writ itself (Eccl. 5: 1), the devout and intelligent Christian attaches to his corporate worship activities thoughts of sancity and consecration, which are created, indeed, through the work of the Holy Spirit. The very objectives of Christian corporate worship help impel the Christian to regard the Church as the holy Christian Church. In her services of worship man appears before the very throne of the one God, who is truly holy and who demanded of his children already in Old Testament times: Ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy (Lev.11:44)

Leiturgia-An Opus Magnum in the Making

The liturgical revival which is wending its way through the churches of Christendom today has made its influence felt also within the Lutheran Church. This movement is not chiefly a seeking after forms and ceremonies, nor is it merely a reaction against irreverent and amorphous worship practices. While excesses are to be noted within the movement, it is hardly just and fair to regard these as inevitable and essential earmarks of this liturgical revival, since revivals and movements in areas other than the liturgical likewise suffer because of the intemperate endeavors of a zealotistic minority

Brief Studies

The Chorale - Through Four Hundred Years

Book Review. - Literatur

Book Review. - Literatu

Lutheran Theology as Reflected in the Life and Works of J. S. Bach

It is interesting indeed to note that much of the Bach literature published in recent years has made special mention of the profound Lutheran character of Bach\u27s life and work

Religious Music Among the Jews

Where were you ... when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? With these words God challenged Job, who is referred to at times as the patron saint of musicians. God\u27s words to Job serve to remind the Old Testament reader that already earlier, in prehistoric times, worship and song had been used together to glorify and extol the Creator. Ancient peoples, including Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and a veritable host of early generations of mankind, recognized that the primary function of music is to honor and worship the Deity. Africans, Asiatics, Mongolians, Europeans, primitive Americans, and people of all sorts knelt to pray and offer praises to God

Miscellanea

Miscellane

From Advent to Shrove Tuesday

Liturgical life and activity have not been at a standstill since the close of World War II. Already more than a decade ago more books on worship and liturgics were being published in English than in any other area of theological literature. It is likely that this is true also today. At present more courses in liturgics are being offered at theological schools of North America than ever before in American history; they continue to increase in quantity and quality from year to year. Services of worship conducted in American churches of our day reflect concern for decorum and order which exceeds that of earlier generations

The Unity of the Church and Her Worship

To possess a good understanding of the worship of the church one must possess as well an understanding of the doctrine of the church. Both, the church and her worship, are unique; each shares significant characteristics of the other. Both are creations of the Holy Spirit; both are spiritual in their very essence. The church can neither thrive nor exist without worship. Christian worship, on the other hand, is inconceivable without the church. The church is not only the locus operandi of all true Christian worship; it is also the agency of the Holy Spirit and as such prompts the local churches to propagate and promote Christian worship among people