{"id":36350,"date":"2017-04-21T21:28:42","date_gmt":"2017-04-22T02:28:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/?p=36350"},"modified":"2017-04-21T21:29:53","modified_gmt":"2017-04-22T02:29:53","slug":"liturgy-rebuilt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/21\/liturgy-rebuilt\/","title":{"rendered":"Liturgy as Evangelization"},"content":{"rendered":"

The following is an interview by <\/em>Pray Tell Blog with Fr. Michael White, author of the <\/em>Rebuilt<\/a>\u00a0series of books and Evan Ponton, both of the Church of the Nativity<\/a> in Timonium, Md. <\/em><\/p>\n

How does the Liturgy evangelize? Is the Liturgy for those who are already active in their faith lives or is it for the unchurched?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Evangelization means making disciples- it describes what the Church is and what the Church does. Of course, liturgy is an essential element of who we are and what we do as Catholics. So yes, liturgy plays a major role both in evangelization and discipleship. At Nativity, we call this \u201cgrowing deeper and wider\u201d- we grow wider as a church through evangelization and deeper through discipleship.<\/p>\n

Certain parts of the liturgy have a greater impact than others for the unchurched. For example, many of the unchurched (and many Catholics) don\u2019t yet have a deep grasp or appreciation for the Eucharist. We request non-Catholics abstain from receiving and participating in that way directly, but they can nevertheless have their spirits fed through great music and a great message. If liturgy isn\u2019t for the unchurched at some level, then whom are we evangelizing?<\/p>\n

How does the weekend experience as a whole relate to liturgy and how does the weekend experience evangelize?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The weekend experience is what we call the sum total of a visitor or member\u2019s time on our campus, from the parking lot, to the front door, to the music and the message and everything in between. It might not all matter to [someone], but for some people it makes a world of difference. By creating \u201clayers of hospitality,\u201d our hope is that by the time they reach their seat, they are at ease and hopefully even smiling.<\/p>\n

Every person approaches church with a background made up of different experiences and prejudices about church. While we can\u2019t change how they come to church, we hope to change how they leave, even in a small way. For someone who is new or not solid in their faith, the experience in the parking lot before or after church, for example, impacts their experience in the liturgy itself.<\/p>\n

Throughout your books, the key audience that Rebuilt is trying to reach is the unchurched. Can you define for our readers who this group is and how is the liturgical life of your parish tailored to them?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Some people talk about the \u201cNones,\u201d the terms are probably related. How you define the unchurched depends on your community. They are not strangers- they are our friends, family, neighbors, co-workers. They are usually good people who do not go to church or see the need, for whatever reason. At Nativity we gave him a name, \u201cTimonium Tim.\u201d We try to define who he is, his felt needs, what he believes about church (usually what he thinks he remembers from Confirmation class mixed with Da Vinci Code) and then we evaluate our approach to ministry, music and the message with Tim and his family in mind. Over time we witness the growth of families as they progress along the discipleship path, including participation in the liturgy itself.<\/p>\n

Nativity is building a new campus<\/a>. Can you talk about how the liturgy played a role in its design\u00a0and how will liturgy change because of this new campus?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Absolutely. We hope to finish our building project<\/a> in the fall of 2017. I would highlight two concepts that played a major role in both the design and hopefully, function of our new campus. The first is \u201cdynamic orthodoxy.\u201d We\u2019re not out to change the content and traditions of our faith but update the way it is expressed and shared so that it connects with our local community in our time and place.<\/p>\n

Second, we want to embody the liturgical principle of \u201cprogressive solemnity.\u201d We talk about that when it comes to the Mass itself, but we apply it to the experience communicated by our church design as a whole. It is contemporary, but we tried to avoid anything abstract or esoteric on the one hand, or the trite and clich\u00e9 on the other. Thanks to our great building team and liturgy and design consultants, I think we\u2019ve done that very well. People are greeted by a very modern building that maybe doesn\u2019t look very churchy, but as you progress from the lobby into the nave and sanctuary, your perception shifts. You will find truly stunning traditional hand-carved altarpieces and liturgical furnishings. One of my favorite features is a Mary and Joseph statue on either side of the tabernacle- an image of the Nativity, and we are his Church.<\/p>\n

As far as changes, it\u2019s just about continuing to create an irresistible environment and excellent Sunday experience in a new and bigger space, which requires more volunteer ministers and rethinking some logistics. But for us, that\u2019s just part of continuing to live out our church\u2019s vision that brought us here. We\u2019re not building a bigger clubhouse for the convinced, but a place that is relevant and welcoming to the unchurched. It\u2019s about vision.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If liturgy isn\u2019t for the unchurched at some level, then whom are we evangelizing?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[3118,1081,285,2480],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ars-celebrandi-new-ws","category-church-reform","category-pastoral-theology","category-secularism"],"yoast_head":"\nLiturgy as Evangelization - Home<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2017\/04\/21\/liturgy-rebuilt\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Liturgy as Evangelization - 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