Luther and the non-Christian "worship service"
In his essay “The German Mass and Order of Devine Service” (January 1526) Martin Luther explains how a Sunday meeting should be carried out. Specifically, these are his instructions (I’ve removed some of the details so that it is easier to see the outline):
[a] At the beginning then we sing a spiritual song or a psalm in German, in primo tono, as follows : Ps. xxxiv.
[b] Then Kyrie eleison, to the same tone, but thrice and not nine times. . . .
[c] Then the priest reads a Collect in Effaut in unisono, as follows : ‘Almighty God,’ etc.
[d] Then the Epistle, in the eighth tone. . . . The Epistle should be sung with the face turned to the people, but the Collect with the face turned to the altar.
[e] After the Epistle is sung a German hymn, ‘Nun bitten wir den heiligen Geist,’ or some other, by the whole choir.
[f] Then is read the Gospel in the fifth tone, also with the face turned towards the people.
[g] After the Gospel the whole congregation sings the Creed in German, ‘ Wir glauben all’ an einen Gott,’ etc.
[h] Then follows the sermon…
[i] After the sermon shall follow a public paraphrase of the Lord’s Prayer, with an exhortation to those who are minded to come to the Sacrament…
[k] Then the Office and Consecration proceeds, as follows : ‘Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the same night’(i Cor. xi. 23 ff)…
[l] The elevation we desire not to abolish but to retain, for it fits in well with the Sanctus in German, and means that Christ has bidden us to think of Him…
[m] The Sanctus in German, ‘Jesaia dem Propheten das geschach,’ etc.
[n] Then follows the Collect : ‘We thank thee, Almighty Lord God,’ etc.
[o] With the Blessing : ‘The Lord bless thee and keep thee,’ etc…
This looks very familiar. In fact, besides the various portions in German and/or Latin, this “order of service” is similar to what I was accustomed to experiencing while I was growing up in Baptist churches in Alabama. Sure, we called “The Blessing” by a different name (the Benediction), and we didn’t sing or speak the various creeds to one another each week. But, overall, our Alabama Baptist liturgy was very similar to Luther’s German/Latin liturgies. After moving to Georgia and North Carolina, and visiting church meetings in other parts of the USA and the world, I’ve also found that Luther’s “order” is very similar to the order of church meetings around the world.
Here’s the funny part… if you call it funny… Luther did not think this “order” was best for the church. Instead, he intended this “order” (whether in German or in Latin) to be for unbelievers. This is a quote from the beginning of Luther’s essay – which is often overlooked:
Both these kinds of Service (German and Latin) then we must have held and publicly celebrated in church for the people in general. They are not yet believers or Christians. But the greater part stand there and gape, simply to see something new: and it is just as if we held Divine Service in an open square or field amongst Turks or heathen. So far it is no question yet of a regularly fixed assembly wherein to train Christians according to the Gospel: but rather of a public allurement to faith and Christianity.
Did you catch that? What the church today calls a “church service”, Luther says is not for the church at all – that is, not for Christians. Instead, he designed his “Mass and Order of Divine Service” for the sake of attracting those who are not Christians. In fact, he later describes what he thinks a meeting would look like for those who are already Christians (see my post “Luther and the Church“). However, without considering Luther’s purpose, we blindly follow his design. I wonder if we’re missing something…
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I am a PhD student in biblical theology and a web developer. My interests include PHP and ecclesiology. My dissertation topic is the purpose of the gathering of the church in the New Testament. By God's grace, I try to live what I am learning about the church.
Alan,
You said,”we blindly follow”.
You said it all! What more can one say?
1Very Interesting Post. As a guy serving in a Lutheran church, it was very educational. Maybe, I will use this as part of confirmation class.
Aussie picked up on the phrase as well that I was going to touch on. I think that many times, we “copy” or “follow” and we do it WITH OUT the original intent.
When we do it with out the original intent, we mise well not do.
Thanks for giving me something to ponder.
2Hey Alan,
Does this mean that Luther was the first advocate of a seeker-sensitive worship service? It kind of sounds that way.
Of course, I do not think God ever intended for us to have “seeker-sensitive” services where the service is designed for the unbeliever. It seems to me that 1 Corithians 14 demonstrates that the sincere and participatory nature of believers in assembly is a greater testimony to those who do not believe.
What are your thoughts?
3That’s incredible. The institutional church opted to follow the format designed for unbelievers. All I can say is, it’s no wonder why the church is in its present condition. Wow!!
Blessings,
4Gary
Very interesting point Alan. I’d not heard the statement made at the beginning of his essay before.
5Aussie John,
But, if we don’t “blindly follow” then we’re considered rebels and heretics.
Jeff,
I’d love to hear how others in the Lutheran church answer Luther’s introductory statement.
Scott,
I don’t know if Luther is the first advocate of a “seeker-sensitive worship”, but he certainly seemed to see the purpose of these public “divine orders” as attracting unbelievers to Christ.
Gary,
I’m not sure if Luther designed this service. Much of it came from the Catholic mass.
Joel,
I read it in a seminar, but we didn’t discuss it. We jumped straight to the “order”.
-Alan
6Thanks for enlightening us on this. What is interesting, I am arminian and I see the similarities.
Another truth to add to the scene, American Family Association says “only six percent of all people who call themselves Christians, truly understand the core message of the Bible”.
Doesn’t this mean that the formality Luther invented may be helping to bring people into the church. However, the church is failing to go beyond the inspiration of the liturgy.
Jim
7Jim,
You’re probably right about few people (even those who call themselves believers) understanding the core message of the Bible. Of course, its not surprising since they have been told so many times that they can’t understand Scripture without education or training.
-Alan
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