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Why do you go to church on Sunday?

Why do you go to church on Sunday?  I would assume there are many reasons, but what is the primary reason that you get up on a cold, snowy Sunday morning and get your butt to church?  Further, why has the Church of Jesus Christ consistently gathered together on Sundays (among other days) for the last 2000 years?

Throughout my 34 years of church attendance I would have proffered a variety of answers to that question.  As a child I'm sure I went to church because I had to, to see my cousins (who happened to be my best friends), to get bread and wine (weekly communion for the win), etc.  As my faith matured in adulthood these reasons remained, hopefully deepening, but to them were added concepts like rest and theological training.

As I moved into Anglicanism I was struck by the deliberate focus on worship.  Why do Christians gather on Sunday morning?  To worship God!  Are teaching and fellowship important?  Absolutely!  Are they aspects of worship?  Certainly!  Is either the primary reason we gather?  Not a chance.

You may be thinking that this is quite obvious and that I am obviously an incredibly simple fellow.  You may be correct, but, having grown up in a tradition that strongly emphasized theological training and fellowship as reasons for church attendance (even Communion, which we celebrated weekly, was viewed primarily as a didactic act), it has been refreshing to see the Sunday gathering primarily as a time for worship.  In a world where Reformed and Evangelical Christians see a church service as little more than an academic lecture with a musical prelude (is it any wonder that many church members have decided to stay home and watch their church's livestream?), I believe it is important to recapture the primacy and beauty of entering into the presence of God as a covenant people to offer thanksgiving and praise.  

We would not, however, do well to swing the pendulum too far.  We would not want to reduce worship to a mere emotional experience anymore than we want to limit it to a scholastic exercise.  Our worship should engage our whole selves--our minds, bodies, souls, and spirits.  So how do we strike the balance between these incomplete extremes?

The Anglican Tradition, in unity with the ancient catholic Church, conceives of worship as Word and Sacrament.  An Anglican service, like many other liturgical services, is comprised of two primary sections: the liturgy of the Word and the liturgy of the Sacrament.  The first half of our service includes Scripture readings, a homily, recitation of the Nicene Creed, the Prayers of the People, and confession of and pardon for sin.  The second half of the service is the celebration of the Eucharist (alternately known as Communion, the Lord's Supper, the Lord's Table, etc.).  Connecting these two halves, both logically and liturgically, is the Passing of the Peace wherein we recognize that our reconciliation to God reconciles us to our brethren.  

Here's the key.  These various practices are absolutely permeated with prayer and song.  The service begins with the Procession.  As the Crucifer bears the Cross through the congregation to the chancel, the people recognize that through Christ we are entering, not only symbolically, but mystically, into the very presence of God and the heavenly hosts.  This spirit of worship, humbling ourselves and extoling the Triune God, pervades every act of which this complex liturgy is comprised. 

There is no perfect service.  It is impossible to design a perfect liturgy that will guarantee genuine worship because we are sinful creatures whose worship will always be imperfect.  However, this liturgy of Word and Sacrament helps to keep our minds and bodies focused on God--His praiseworthy nature and what He has done/is doing for us.  This service is not a self-help seminar or a stimulating academic lecture.  It is not a rock concert or even an evangelistic meeting.  It is patently not seeker-friendly.  It is a continual act of worship wherein God is glorified and we, secondarily, are edified.

So why do you go to church on Sunday?  I invite you to reflect honestly on that question.  If the list of reasons begins with yourself, you may have a problem.

If you aren't currently attending faithfully, perhaps viewing it this way will motivate you to do so.  I was blessed with parents who prioritized weekly church attendance, so it has been habitual for me my entire life, but I have been incredibly blessed by the perspective on worship that I have experienced over the last four years (has it really been that long?!).  May God purify my heart and soul to engage with this liturgy to his glory and my edification.
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