The Decalogue in Worship

The communion service John Wesley sent to Methodists in America in 1784 began with the Lord's prayer and a collect, followed by a liturgical recitation of the Ten Commandments. Wesley adapted the Methodist service from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. The Ten Commandments had a prominent place in Anglican worship almost from the beginning. The Decalogue first appeared in the liturgy for communion in the 1552 Book of Common Prayer.

You can still see the commandments posted in old Episcopal churches that have kept their antique architecture. The 1979 Book of Common Prayer retains the liturgical Decalogue in the section on the Eucharist, and a version can also be found in the United Methodist Book of Worship. Needless to say, this, like much of our rich liturgical tradition, has fallen out of use in United Methodist churches. I commend the commandments for liturgical use, especially in Lent.

Popular posts from this blog

The Beatitudes and Wesleyan Piety

Of the 44 sermons John Wesley wrote to be doctrinal standards for the Methodists in England, 13 were expositions of the Sermon on the Mount, which Wesley believed prescribed the practice of true religion. Three sermons were on the Beatitudes. Wesley interpreted the Beatitudes within the framework of 18th century evangelical piety, specifically the Wesleyan understanding of full salvation. To be fair, Wesley’s approach to the Beatitudes had a long history. The Church has commonly interpreted them in terms of personal piety and individual salvation.  Wesley did recognize some of the eschatological aspects of the Beatitudes. Those who find comfort in clinging fully to the promises of God will still mourn “the sins and miseries of mankind. They ‘weep with them that weep.’” The meek will not only inherit life oriented around God in heaven, they will also inherit the promise of Revelation, “the new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” God will acknowledge the peacemakers to be ...
Read more

On the Installation of a Pastor

2 Timothy 4:1-5 Timothy was not a pastor of a local congregation, but rather Paul’s apostolic legate. He was Paul’s representative in the oversight of the churches that Paul founded. Still, much of what Paul has to say is applicable to the pastor we are installing today.  For the Pastor So, to the new pastor, the apostle says this. Preach the word. Teach the faith. Evangelize the world. Do the work of ministry, a word whose basic meaning in Greek is service.  Preach. Teach. Evangelize. Serve. These might be called global tasks of ministry. They would be included in any list of pastoral responsibilities, and I have no doubt that your new pastor excels in them But Paul reminds Timothy that preaching, teaching, evangelizing, and serving are not abstract tasks that one can do by oneself. One does not preach to the wind or teach an empty classroom. There are people on the other end of our preaching, teaching, evangelizing and serving. In the words of Jesus. The whol...
Read more

Agree to Disagree

Image
What would it look like for Christians to agree to disagree in a manner consistent with what John Wesley called " The Catholic Spirit "? Let me begin with a small experience with the Catholic Church. The Corpus Christi Procession My wife and I stopped downtown for lunch after chapel on Sunday. On the way out of the city after lunch we had to stop the car to allow the passing of a Catholic parade in honor of Christ's transubstantial presence in the Holy Eucharist. The procession celebrated the Catholic feast of Corpus Christi , or the Solemnity of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ . As the procession passed by us, I hopped out of the car and grabbed these photos with my cell phone. A cross-bearer leads the procession. Beneath the canopy, a monstrance contains the consecrated host, the "substance" of which Catholics believe has become the body of Christ. The bearer of the monstrance is wearing a humeral veil so that he doesn't have to touch the ...
Read more