D. Worship Norms

There is a growing sensitivity within the Episcopal Church to the needs of visitors and newcomers in relation to their participation in the liturgy-especially toward those who are not familiar with the Episcopal Church. It takes some care, however, to address these needs in ways which do not undermine the basic character of liturgical worship.

Liturgy is dramatic action. In a mature community of faith, people have been prepared to enter into that action as full adult participants, without a steady stream of spoken "stage directions" ("We will now stand," or, "Please turn to page. ..") However well- meaning, clergy in the habit of giving such directions prevent the laity from taking their full and active place in the liturgy by "managing" every movement and response of the people.

The best support to a newcomer is a community of faith which knows what it is doing. Two things are required to make this possible. One is a stable liturgical life, in which the Sunday liturgy and the rhythm of the Church year are highly predictable, though rich and varied. The other is a pattern of teaching in which practical knowledge of the liturgy is shared with the whole community.

The newcomer can be assisted in ways which do not reduce the laity to passive followers of spoken directions. If the parish prints a Sunday bulletin, it should give as much information as necessary, including indications of when the congregation will stand, sit and kneel. Such bulletins may be reviewed from time to time with the aid of a few newer members, so that the parish can tell whether the communication is clear to someone who doesn't already know what we do. If a parish does not have the resources for a weekly bulletin, a printed card can be used to provide page numbers and other information. This may be changed with the Church Year to reflect seasonal changes in the liturgy. Such a card should also include such information as who may receive Communion and an invitation to coffee hour. For most newcomers, such printed material still needs to be supplemented by the kind of personal hospitality described earlier- the readiness of each member to take the initiative in assisting a new person in front of him or beside him. ……………………

…..Alban Institute's research with two very different Episcopal parishes revealed many people from non-liturgical religious back- grounds who were deeply attracted to liturgical worship even though it was new, confusing, and sometimes uncomfortable for them at first.

They expressed an eagerness for information, interpretation, and some direction. While they were grateful that no one forced them to follow every movement and gesture, they also felt very frustrated when they could not find straightforward answers to questions like, "I see some people genuflecting; when do you do that?" They wanted to understand the custom and its proper use, and felt they could decide for themselves whether they wished to follow it. "Do whatever you feel comfortable doing," was not a hospitable or helpful response. In a communion held together more by custom than by rules about such things, newcomers need access to the customs, and the logic and history behind them, as well as the information that many of them are not "required." One person summed up the two-fold approach that is needed: "The formal ritual is beautiful. ..I wanted to know when to genuflect, kneel. ..my friend took me with her to the rail, told me to follow her in the service. Confirmation (should have helped me with) the practical things."

The goal is to set a climate which is welcoming and enabling. Active teaching at appropriate moments (outside the flow of the liturgical action) sets a tone of open sharing of the community's life and tradition, reduces the anxiety of newcomers that they 'are the only ones who don't know the meaning of things, and fosters curiosity. This is a far more desirable result than a congregation full of people who must wait for the next instruction from the priest before they can stand or sit. The latter congregation is never "at home" in the liturgy , and newcomers to it will never be "at home" either .