Author: David Ellis

Don: In our discussion so far, we have defined personal worship as not just worshiping alone but worshiping with the desired end-product of some individual benefit; and we have defined corporate worship as not just organized worship in church but worship which is in service to others—it is both plural and participatory. In other words,…

Don: The road from Egypt to Canaan—the road from bondage to the Promised Land—is a metaphor for the road back to God. In the Garden of Eden, humankind fell into slavery to evil. The reconciliation with God began in the Garden of Gethsemane. The story of the exodus from Egypt is rich in worship symbols…

Don: In the Garden of Gethsemane, on the Mount of Olives, we saw the humanity of Jesus as he faced the most difficult, immediate, intimate, and personal crisis of his entire life. He wanted his closest disciples to watch for him as he prayed there, but they failed him. Who had anything to gain by…

Don: Ritual worship is more about belonging than believing. It defines us, constrains us, informs and educates us, and above all it binds us to our faith community. Prayer is part of worship, and comes in many forms. The disciples asked Jesus how to pray: It happened that while Jesus was praying in a certain…

Don: Prayer is one of the most obvious forms of ritual in any faith community. We are flush with ritual prayer: Individual and group prayer, intercessory prayer, fasting in prayer, opening and closing prayer, and children’s prayer;  prayer for the offering, for a baptism, for a baby dedication, for an ordination service, and so on….

Don: All communities (including, of course, religious ones) have rituals rooted in formalism, tradition, invariance, rule-governance, sacredness, and repetitive performance. To the outsider, a ritual may appear to be illogical, unnecessary, odd, or downright bizarre. But to the believer, the ritual is necessary, meaningful, and evidence of belonging to the community that practices it. For…

Don: Our worship symbols and rituals are bound by time, place, culture, and tradition. The Sabbath is an example. Turning off the TV, unplugging the phone, not starting the car, and buying a Sabbath stove are bound only to our time and circumstances, not to those of the past nor necessarily to those of future….

Don: Symbols, which we discussed last week, are objects that point to something of deeper meaning. Rituals—today’s topic—are actions that have metaphorical significance. Objects and actions, symbols and rituals, all have great significance not only in worship but also in life in general. Our lives and activities are full of ritual and symbol, especially at…

Don: We’ve discussed the difference between the “fact-based” worship favored by our religions, and the “spirit-based” worship demanded by Jesus. Unfortunately, disagreement over the “facts” leads to religious and sectarian conflict and violence. The “facts” often relate to worldly physical objects, which risk falling prey to the human tendency to adopt them not just as…