Prospect Park United Methodist Church
Worship & Music

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Worship Playshop

PPUMC Musicians!

The Worship Playshop at the end of May (actually moved to the evening of Sunday, June 1 to miss the Memorial Day weekend) will be a jam session!

What does this mean? Here is the concept:

1) There are a number of different musical groups associated with the church (for example the guitar group, the brass ensemble, Tremony, the Dixie Land jazz band, Mike and Karen) as well as various individuals who
play.

2) Making music together is a fun experience and celebrates the gifts of God.

3) Bring all of these people together to make music together has the potential to be an unforgettable experience.

4) This is Worship Playshop so it is a worship experience but it is also a setting where we aren't afraid to say:'that was ok, but let's try it again with this variation and see which way works better'. It is *NOT* a setting where a polished performance is expected. It *IS* a place where we are open to the spirit of God.

Here is the plan:

1) The different musical groups are encouraged to come up with one or two pieces that others can join in on. (for example, the Dixie Land jazz band might come up with 'when the Saints go marching in' in the key of C) - Try to think of something that lends itself to the variety of instruments that are likely to be present.

2) If possible, we will pass around some of the suggestions in advance, via email, so people can think about music, transposition issues, etc.

3) On the evening of Sunday, June 1, we will gather in the sanctuary. The Worship Playshop will start at 6:30 but people are encouraged to come early to set up (perhaps 6:00?), tune up, and warm up so we are
ready to go.

4) The format for Worship Playshop is:

a) open with a prayer
b) discuss the agenda - what people have brought to share - in this case the music suggestions.
c) a loose 'order of worship' is decided on
d) we go to it
e) we end with some sort of prayer/benediction/closing blessing

So put it on your calendar; talk it over in the different groups; brainstorm music ideas that might work with such a diverse collection; think about musical individuals in the church who might have been overlooked and invite them! Vocal musicians are welcome too. There is always the Bobby McFarrin approach!

A New Model for Worship Planning

This year at PPUMC, we're trying out a new model for worship planning. You've probably caught wind of the Worship Playshop, where members of the congregation gather once a month to invent, hone, practice, improvise, and experience new forms of worship. Our hope is that the Playshop will feed Sunday morning services with fresh liturgical elements, like Steve Ozanne's sung prayer response to Joys and Concerns, or the lively Holy Ground hymn Cathy Eberhart introduced to us last Easter, or the environmental hymn written by Mary Parish.

Worship Playshop will meet from 6:00-7:30 on the last Sunday of each month, unless indicated otherwise on the Calendar.

The Worship & Music Team will be facilitating Sunday morning worship and we hope the whole congregation will share in the tasks coordinated by the Worship & Music Team; for instance by contributing to the Lenten Devotional, volunteering to serve on prayer or communion teams, or sharing ideas for decorating the altar. Members of the Worship & Music Team are not sole proprietors over their area of expertise; they are coordinators who welcome others participation.

Finally, we've formed the Worship Core Group, comprised of the pastor, the chair of Worship & Music, and a Playshop facilitator. This team will develop a vision for upcoming liturgical seasons and special Sundays, implement ideas that have arisen in Worship Playshop, invite members of the congregation to participate in worship leadership, facilitate communication between the Playshop and W&M Committee, and support the pastor's worship planning. The word liturgy means "work of the people". Our hope with this new configuration is to involve a greater number of people in worship planning and leadership, that we might better serve our community and our God.

An Announcement About Announcements 

The Worship Core Group is trying some changes to keep Sunday morning worship an hour long.  Sunday school teachers need time to socialize and prepare, and a reasonably-timed service is more welcoming of newcomers.  During the month of February, we will experiment with a new way to make announcements.  First, we'll move the time for introducing visitors from the beginning of worship to the beginning of announcements.  Second, one person will be the announcement reader.  There will be a labeled basket on the back table; please place your written announcements in the basket before worship.  Our hope is that this will reduce traffic time, announcements that repeat what is printed in the bulletin, and lengthy announcements.  At the end of the month, we'll solicit your feedback and decide how best to proceed.  Thank you.

Reflections on “liturgy” from Worship Core Group

We came across the following words from Laurence Hull Stookey, in an article “Worship and the Arts”, The Clergy Journal (Nov.-Dec, 2007).  Dr. Stookey is Professor of Preaching and Worship at Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington, D.C and the pastor of Asbury UMC in Allen, Maryland.  He writes:

“First:  All who participate in the liturgy (‘the work of the people’) need a compelling Christian self-identity. Particularly with respect to music and drama, we all are too well-schooled in thinking of ourselves as audiences in relation to professionals on the stage. In church this results in passivity rather than in work actually done by most of the people of God, and it may cause ‘performers’ to be set apart and viewed as professional artists to be applauded or criticized by ‘theater-goers’. This violates the New Testament understanding of the church as the body of Christ with differing members doing various kinds of necessary work.

A soloist or group does not present music in order to entertain the congregation, but to offer up on behalf of the entire assembly (including those musicians themselves) a sacrifice which the people in the pews may be incapable of due to lack of talent, training, or time for rehearsal. For example: The choir does not sing to the people, but to God on behalf of the people. In drama, each believer is to seek to find himself or herself within the dramatic action, and then to respond to God accordingly. It would be admirable if our congregations could return to the practice of singing or saying an enthusiastic ‘amen’ after a musical or dramatic action given on behalf of all.”

Elizabeth Jarrett Andrew
Marilee Johnson
Pastor Nancy Victorin-Vangerud

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