Worship Together

Creating All-Age Services That Work

Sandra Millar

• Publisher: SPCK Publishing
• Year: 2012
• Print ISBN: 9780281066292
• eBook ISBN: 9780281066308
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Rituals & Practice

This book explores the way in which liturgy can be used effectively in all-age communication. It will explore what we mean by worship and what we mean by 'all-age', particularly looking at the all-age experience in the secular world and the skills that make good multi-generational communication happen (e.g. how do Disney Pixar do it). It then goes on to unpack the liturgical framework which is the bedrock of many traditional churches, showing this may well be used imaginatively to create worship for whoever is present. It will also contain twelve full worship outlines, one for each month of the year.

Part 1

Creating all-age worship: the key components

1

Skeletons and shapes

When my niece was about 4 years old I took her with me to a mid-week Book of Common Prayer Eucharist in the market-town Anglican church near where she lived. She was at the age when doing anything with a visiting auntie seems exciting. She was accustomed to churchgoing of a different kind in a nonconformist chapel, but I thought it would round out her spiritual formation to include her Church of England heritage. She sat modestly through the service paying attention, until we came to the Lord’s Prayer when she suddenly clutched at my sleeve and whispered in a dramatic undertone: ‘They’re saying our prayer!’ Suddenly she could join in and belong.

It’s important for all of us to be able to join in. Shared rituals make us feel included – think about the importance of chants at football matches or the gathering at the beginning of a Brownie meeting. Almost everyone knows how the TV programme Strictly Come Dancing begins – with an invitation and response. ‘Nice to see you,’ says Brucie and we all chorus: ‘To see you, nice’ and we know where we are. The programme then follows a very set pattern until the closing exhortation to ‘keep dancing’. This structure and the repeated phrases are accessible to all ages, from toddlers to great-grannies. People don’t need books or instruction: we can relax into the safety net of the structure, and then when the unexpected happens we all share in the sense of uncertainty or enjoyment.

Ask almost any adult of a certain age if they can remember the shapes of the windows of the children’s programme Playschool and a chorus of ‘round, square, arched’ will come back without a pause for breath. The windows never changed, except for one brief period of experimentation with new shapes – but viewers found this so unsettling that the old shapes were quickly brought back. You could be sure that there wouldn’t be the sudden appearance of a dodecahedron or a rhomboid or even a simple triangle. The structure was in place – going through the windows then opened up all sorts of experiences and possibilities.

Structure is the foundation of all our worship, whether designed for all ages or for a specific purpose. In many churches we are so used to structure we forget that it’s there – it’s a bit like the skeleton of our human bodies. Without a skeleton we wouldn’t be able to move, run, dance, write, speak. But until it goes wrong few of us give it a second thought during an average day or year.

Structure is the foundation of all our worship, whether designed for all ages or for a specific purpose

‘Family worship’ often makes us aware of the skeleton, the structure, in ways that make us uncomfortable or insecure. Some kinds of worship seem to dispense with the structure altogether – the skeleton is taken away and instead we have a free-form flow of action songs, drama, games, most of which is aimed at entertaining 6-year-olds and ends up with a whole lot of overexcited toddlers and some stunned adults. I know this is overstating the case but it really happens.

The structure of all-age worship

The basic structure of all worship gatherings is the same. It consists of four stages, with two subsets. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a music-led informal ‘worship’ service or a formal wedding, this basic shape creates flow, builds cohesion and helps worshippers of all ages to find their way into the space where they can encounter God. This basic shape is:

• We gather
• We listen
• We respond
• We go out.

The two subsets are saying sorry and celebration (in bread and wine). This remains the shape, even when the central two phases are more flexible. For example, it is sometimes appropriate to split the listen and response parts into two or more sections: gather, listen, respond, listen, respond, listen, respond, go out. The music, prayers, readings, movements and activities become the contents within each of these phases – the revelation through the window, as it were. Each section has its own distinctive purpose in the overall structure.

WE GATHER

Whatever the occasion there has to be some sense of having created a special or significant space. It might be as informal as the moment a guitar chord is struck or as formal as the words which begin a marriage service: ‘Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today’, but it is always about creating the sense that we are together as a group, gathered for a purpose.

The purpose of the gathering is twofold. First it encloses the time and space, setting it aside for a purpose. This is exactly what happens at the beginning of other gatherings – as in the Brownie meeting as the children gather around the toadstool or at the beginning of a Women’s Institute meeting when the president calls order. Second it draws all those present into a shared sense of purpose, often explicitly stating that purpose. All-age worship needs this same process of gathering to help include everyone within the space, and, where appropriate, to reflect the specifics of the day, whether that is a church celebration, theological idea or something that has happened in the community or the wider world.

One of the most basic forms of introduction is: ‘The Lord be with you.’

Response And also with you.

This is a fantastic opening for all ages. Both invitation and response are simple: the response is only four words and can quickly be learned by even the youngest child. If it stays the same every time, children will soon realize that it signals the time for beginning and the time for worship. There are lots of other effective ways of doing this – lighting candles, greeting each other, etc. But probably the most important thing is consistency so that there is a clear signpost and sense of belonging.

The basic greeting can then be followed by informal and friendly words of welcome, with allusions to the day, the place, the time, topical events, etc. (The chapter on leading includes tips on how to do this well, and the importance of smiling!) Although Common Worship suggests this as one of the times when notices are appropriate, they may well be more relevant later in the service, so that the opening focus stays with worship. Commonly a hymn or song follows – there is a wealth of books and resources on children and all-age songs but lots of them depend on two key factors:

• lots of children and
• accomplished musicians.

You may have neither, but bear in mind that this is not about creating for children alone, but for whoever is present.

It is a good idea to use well-known hymns and tunes, especially for the opening song. This enables people to feel confident about joining in and creates a sense of belonging – remember the singing before the rugby match! Providing instruments can also be helpful – encourage all ages to try them out rather than just giving them to the children. This will avoid creating a sense of ‘childishness’ and also might help to keep the accompaniment tuneful.

If you are creating a eucharistic service you may want to include some kind of opening activity or response that would replace the ‘Prayer of preparation’ in Common Worship and help to set the theme. If you look at the March liturgy, for example, you will see an invitation and response which helps people to think about journeying (see p. 55).

It is important that invitations and responses are inclusive.

Ask the question: ‘If someone can’t read, how can they join in?’ Putting words on screens does not always increase inclusivity, although it might well help some and it does help to increase the sound level as heads are lifted up and words spoken to the ceiling rather than the floor!

However, many of our churches cannot access technology, either because of the costs or the style of the building or simply because it is not appropriate. Using the method developed over centuries of a ‘cantor’ or lead voice with response is often very successful with all ages.

Praying together is also vital, and the gathering part of the service ends with a ‘collect’ or prayer for the day, which is usually led by a minister. This is an opportunity for everyone to become still for a moment and listen to the words of the prayer, making them their own as they join in with the ‘Amen’.

We say sorry

This subset of the basic shape is very flexible – it often appears early in the service as part of the gathering, but alternatively can become part of a response to the word. But it is so flexible that it’s often missed out altogether in family-style worship when Communion is not being celebrated, which is a great shame. The space for penitence allows for reflection and gives space to acknowledge the hurts that people of all ages bring with them to a gathering. Children are very familiar with failure and disappointment. Hardly a day goes by for most 7- to 10-year-olds without something, somewhere, going wrong. They may fall out with friends, disappoint teachers, disobey parents. Saying sorry and making repa...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Praise for this book
• Also available
• Title page
• Imprint
• Dedication
• Table of contents
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• Part 1: Creating all-age worship: the key components
• Part 2: The service outlines
• Recommended reading