A Gathered People chapter 4
Hello everyone! Sorry it's been such a long time since I've blogged. No excuses.
I have decided to write about A Gathered People today and blog about Blue Like Jazz tomorrow. It's been longer since I've blogged about it. So, to keep this blog entry from being incredibly long I'll write about A Gathered People here today. With out further adieu, here we go.
Chapter 4 in A Gathered People is Assembly in Christian History: Word and Table. In this chapter the authors look at the assembly in the second and third centuries. They look indepth at Justin Martyr and Tertullian two of the outstanding church leaders in those days. It is very important to note that there are no formal orders of worship in the New Testament nor in the second and third centuries either. Justin Martyr and Tertullian write about worship, but their reasons for writing is to tell non-Christians about Christian worship and life. It wasn't to strengthen and encourage brethern like what the apostle Paul did in his letters back in New Testament days.
Then they talk about Assemblies in the Imperial Era. Here they talk about the Western Order and the Eastern Order in light of the Basic Liturgical Order. The basic liturgical order has four things. 1. Assembly-Greeting-Entrance; 2.Liturgy of the Word; 3.Liturgy of the Table; and 4. Dismissal-Benediction. This is basically about reading passages in Psalms, or Acts, or the Gospels. Pretty much a good mixture of all three of those interspersed with prayers and singing.
The Western and Eastern Orders represent the two religous bodies at the time: the Greek Byzantine Church (Eastern Order) and the Latin Roman Catholic Church (Western Order).
The authors list the order of worship most previlant for the two religous churches (including the entrance and biblical readings from Psalms, Acts, and the Gospels, weaved into and out of prayers and singing).
Then they talk about The Assembly in the Reformed Tradition. These talk about other religous groups that come on to the scence: Lutherns, Anabaptists, and Anglicans. First we read about The Reformed Regulative Principle. This talks about John Calvin and Huldrich Zwingli and how they used this principle. First, the Reformed Regulative Principle says that the Bible and the Bible alone says how we are to worship God. There are no other methods allowed other than what is written. Next is the Liturgical Reformed Tradition and how Calvin used it. Then we read about the Puritan Reformed Tradition and how Zwingli used this tradition. And lastly we read about the Eighteenth Century Dissenters. These were John Glas, Robert Sandeman, and Archibald McLean. These three ministered in Scotland and other parts of the United Kingdom and apparently stirred up trouble in a religous since.
In a few days we'll look at chapter 5 and see Assembly Among Churches of Christ: Our Formative History. This book is extremely enlightening! I highly endorse this fine book!
Tomorrow we'll talk about three chapters in Blue Like Jazz.
Before I close, please be in prayer for the nation of Kenya. I know there has been a lot of political turmoil in there the past few weeks, including people being killed and church buildings being burned down. There is some really intense stuff going on there. Let's all be praying for our brothers and sisters there and the nation as a whole.
And lastly please be praying for the AIM students on their mission fields all around the world and those in Lubbock preparing to leave the country. More about that tomorrow. Until then, God's richest blessings on each of you!
I have decided to write about A Gathered People today and blog about Blue Like Jazz tomorrow. It's been longer since I've blogged about it. So, to keep this blog entry from being incredibly long I'll write about A Gathered People here today. With out further adieu, here we go.
Chapter 4 in A Gathered People is Assembly in Christian History: Word and Table. In this chapter the authors look at the assembly in the second and third centuries. They look indepth at Justin Martyr and Tertullian two of the outstanding church leaders in those days. It is very important to note that there are no formal orders of worship in the New Testament nor in the second and third centuries either. Justin Martyr and Tertullian write about worship, but their reasons for writing is to tell non-Christians about Christian worship and life. It wasn't to strengthen and encourage brethern like what the apostle Paul did in his letters back in New Testament days.
Then they talk about Assemblies in the Imperial Era. Here they talk about the Western Order and the Eastern Order in light of the Basic Liturgical Order. The basic liturgical order has four things. 1. Assembly-Greeting-Entrance; 2.Liturgy of the Word; 3.Liturgy of the Table; and 4. Dismissal-Benediction. This is basically about reading passages in Psalms, or Acts, or the Gospels. Pretty much a good mixture of all three of those interspersed with prayers and singing.
The Western and Eastern Orders represent the two religous bodies at the time: the Greek Byzantine Church (Eastern Order) and the Latin Roman Catholic Church (Western Order).
The authors list the order of worship most previlant for the two religous churches (including the entrance and biblical readings from Psalms, Acts, and the Gospels, weaved into and out of prayers and singing).
Then they talk about The Assembly in the Reformed Tradition. These talk about other religous groups that come on to the scence: Lutherns, Anabaptists, and Anglicans. First we read about The Reformed Regulative Principle. This talks about John Calvin and Huldrich Zwingli and how they used this principle. First, the Reformed Regulative Principle says that the Bible and the Bible alone says how we are to worship God. There are no other methods allowed other than what is written. Next is the Liturgical Reformed Tradition and how Calvin used it. Then we read about the Puritan Reformed Tradition and how Zwingli used this tradition. And lastly we read about the Eighteenth Century Dissenters. These were John Glas, Robert Sandeman, and Archibald McLean. These three ministered in Scotland and other parts of the United Kingdom and apparently stirred up trouble in a religous since.
In a few days we'll look at chapter 5 and see Assembly Among Churches of Christ: Our Formative History. This book is extremely enlightening! I highly endorse this fine book!
Tomorrow we'll talk about three chapters in Blue Like Jazz.
Before I close, please be in prayer for the nation of Kenya. I know there has been a lot of political turmoil in there the past few weeks, including people being killed and church buildings being burned down. There is some really intense stuff going on there. Let's all be praying for our brothers and sisters there and the nation as a whole.
And lastly please be praying for the AIM students on their mission fields all around the world and those in Lubbock preparing to leave the country. More about that tomorrow. Until then, God's richest blessings on each of you!
posted by Zack | 5:14 PM
2 Comments:
Zack,
Thank you for stopping by my blog. I pray that God will bless you in your studies at SIBI and your desire to plant churches after that.
As for Churches of Christ and planting churches in New York is concerned... Cortland is a city in central NY of about 40,000 and home to Cortland State University. There is no Church of Christ or Restoration Movement group there. We have several families that drive from Cortland to worship with us. Also, Buffalo New York is a mid-sized city of 1 million people, which could always use another church and never discount New York City. Also, even Ithaca where I serve would welcome church planting.
Let me caution you with one thing... New York is a post-Christian culture. Most people our age, even if their family technically belonged to a church, have RARELY ever been to any church. I actually met someone earlier this year who never heard of the Bible. So there is a need for the gospel to be taught. However many of the things that most Churches of Christ think are important are things that would make no sense at all to the NY culture. So be open to new ways of doing church because the traditional church will struggle in this culture.
Here in Ithaca we have a place downtown called "The Commons." The Commons is a four block gathering place for people of all backgrounds, which has various retail stores, coffee shops, and restauruants. A good church plant in Ithaca might open a small non-for-profit cafe that also is willing to serve the many bohemians (sp?) on the Commons and uses the connections made there to begin "Christian Conversations" with non-Christians. There is actually a cultish church called the "Twelve Tribes" (mixes OT and NT elements) that has had some sucess doing that approach.
God bless!
Rex
Ithaca Church of Christ
Ithaca, NY
www.kingdomseeking.wordpress.com
Zack,
Very good summary of ch 4. Thanks for sharing and encouraging. Keep up the good work.
Seeking Shalom,
Bobby Valentine
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