Thinking and writing about Postmodernity and worship

Okay, I think I hate the word postmodern, but I am writing a paper for my Dmin program, and thought I would share a bit of it with you. I'd love to hear comments, or questions, even push-backs are welcome (done in a a graceful fashion! I'm a bit sensitive. . .)

I know this does not treat the whole idea of worship in a postmodern setting with enough time or care, however, it is a start.

Please note, I did not include the footnotes; so if you have a question about a quote please ask and I can get it for you. The first is from Tozer. . .

“I long to see the imagination released from its prison and given its proper place among the sons of the new creation.  What I am trying to describe here is the sacred gift of seeing, the ability to peer beyond the veil and gaze with astonished wonder upon the beauties and mysteries of things holy and eternal.”
    Worship begins with the ability to recognize the gift given from God and formulate a response of gratitude for it. That response takes many different shapes and forms. According to Romans 12:1 , our whole lives are the act of worship God’s gift to us warrants. And thus begins the relationship between how we view the gift of God and how we respond to it.
    The differences found between the modern and postmodern expression of worship     is not simply a matter of style. Often, this is the understanding, even for the postmodern organizer of worship. However, worship as life (ala Romans 12:1) assumes that worship is not a place and time, but a continual conversation with God. Postmodern worship gatherings are as vast and varied as there are churches, to be sure. And not all contemporary or progressive worship services have a postmodern ethos.
    So what is the postmodern ethos of worship? In a nutshell, if it is possible to do that, this author would look to a few different words: Authenticity, Beauty, Creativity and Context. 

Authenticity
    Authenticity is a word that has been used to be point of becoming fearfully close to no longer retaining it’s meaning. However, within the context of worship it remains a watchword for the postmodern worldview. In keeping with the postmodern value of self-awareness, they approach God in humility and reality. This, at times, smacks of the casual, as opposed to the more formal approach taken by and large by the modern worship experience.  

Beauty
    If authenticity is the watchword of postmodern worship, then beauty is it’s brass ring. This is something that is sought not only in music, but also in environment (as seen from casual, couch and candlelight expressions) to larger more technologically advanced expressions of worship. Graphic design has begun to play a larger and larger role the life of the church’s worship expression. (although some might see this as a marketing tool, it is an extension of authentic expression and the search for beauty)
    Len Sweet has made the case for an EPIC  experience that catches the elemental value system of the postmodern search for God. Beauty in worship connects with particularly the Image-Driven mode of experience. But there is more, there is an understanding that the aesthetics of the worship environment matter. In 2005 it was stated, “Churches are looking more like office buildings and malls are looking more like churches, complete with vaulted ceilings, icons (paintings) on their walls and towers, and many with carillon bells.”  This is, perhaps, a hold over from a modern ethic of reason over experience.  The postmodern is rediscovering the use of image (icons, if you will) within the worship service. The power of image is not lost on those who have grown up with an abundance of images to reflect on in the secular world, but with a vast desert of authentic expression of beauty within the their spiritual context.  

Creativity
    Use of creativity is not something that has been completely lost in our churches, but for the postmodern, the use of creativity is not limited to approved norms that might have been acceptable within the modern context (Hymnody, Special Music, Corporate Readings, and sometimes, just sometimes, Drama). For the postmodern, the sky is the limit, as they say. From video mash-ups, to new takes and arrangements of traditional hymns, to original dramatic presentations, to original music; the postmodern worship expression is bursting at the seams with creative expression and experimentation.
    This is uncomfortable within the more modern context in that it is hard to control. “Art always fights the status quo.”  And within a church setting, this is seen all too often as unacceptable. The postmodern expression of worship seems to always be less liturgy based (unless a particular community wishes for that expression), and more creatively associated. This means that the postmodern expression of worship changes from here to there, and from month to month in some places. There is very little that cannot be changed, and congregations demand that same-said change.  While this is often seen as intimidating, it should be viewed as an opportunity for dynamism within the community’s relationship with God. However, this means we cannot “doctrinalize” every aspect of the worship service. We must hold loosely to that which is sacred, at least in the bovine quality of its sacredness. 

Contextualization
    Worship needs to make sense to those in the pews or couches, or chairs. If it does not, then you will lose the imagination of those seeking to worship together in any given situation. This is why a contextualization of the worship experience becomes important. To know your audience, their values, their elemental expectations from a worship experience, and even the place corporate worship has in the community is important to maintain a voice with those who choose your particular place of worship.
    This is also the culmination of the first three sub-categories.  For instance; why do we all sing, for the most part, the same songs? Walk into any progressive worship experience and by and large you will be singing songs written by just a few very popular worship artists. However, would it make more sense to create the music within the community if you had those who were gifted in such things? Or perhaps there is a greater connection to the art on the screens or on the walls if it was cultivated from those who have chosen this particular community to call home. Even video illustrations and dramatic readings can be made from a local context. This also plays into the postmodern value on the local as opposed to the global experience. While this plays out in their lives by a rediscovering of local markets, growers, musicians and artists, the same should be said within their worship experience.
    This often brings a fear of the loss of excellence within the worship service. But this is often seen from the pastor, who may well be stuck within a modern construct of church. What is authentic is excellent, because it is a true expression of gratitude and love. 

Comments

[Jake Love]

Yah worship is definitely not a single act we do or perform while at church, but is like you pointed out from Romans 12, our very lives. If we have Jesus in our hearts, our lives will be worship, will be love, will be more and more like His as we learn and grow and become more like Him.