1. Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
   Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.
   Holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
   God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!
2. Holy, holy, holy! all the saints adore thee,
   Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea.
   Cherubim and seraphim, falling down before thee,
   Who was and is and evermore shall be.
3. Holy, Holy, Holy! though the darkness hide thee,
   Though the eye of sinful man thy glory may not see,
   Only thou art holy; there is none beside thee,
   Perfect in pow’r, in love, and purity.
4. Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
   All thy works shall praise thy name, in earth, and sky, and sea;
   Holy, holy, holy! merciful and mighty!
   God in three Persons, blessed Trinity.

This stirring early 19^th century English hymn is sung in churches the world over, often as the entrance song on Trinity Sunday. It is a favorite hymn of many Christians. In my first congregation, however, there was a young man who told me that if he never sang it again, it would be just fine with him. Apparently, he grew up in a Trinity Lutheran Church in the upper Midwest where it was sung as the opening hymn every Sunday. He had had more than enough holy, holy, holying.

Among the many cultural casualties of the end of the mythic God which I wrote about last time, are countless artifacts of traditional Christianity. I know a fair number of people who have left the church for various reasons, often after decades of participation. They don’t regret their decision but many do miss various aspects of church life, especially worship. They are still moved by well-done liturgy or by favorite songs, texts, and rituals.

A hymn like the one above likely stirs warm feelings for many such people, yet its text is hopelessly antique and, frankly, meaningless today. What does any of it mean? Interestingly, it isn’t all that Christian, either. While it presents as a paean to the Trinity, it never mentions the Trinity’s 2^nd and 3^rd persons, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Christianity’s greatest asset as a religion has always been that Jesus kept God grounded, literally. But here God has flown off into the stratosphere, hidden and remote as can be.

For generations, “going to church” has meant attending worship. But the word “worship” is problematic in itself, implying our behavior is directed toward some personal being out there. And for what purpose? Like the hymn above, much of the typical worship service is occupied with pouring praise upon this deity as was done with monarchs of the past and rulers of the present. It’s not a good look, either for the attention-seeking deity or for those pouring out the over-the-top accolades.

Nonetheless, gathering with people for song, dance, and inspiration has been and remains a powerful and popular activity. Numerous archeological sites indicate such events date back thousands of years. Today, the waning of worship has been balanced by rise of various mass events centered on popular music. Megachurch worship often tries to imitate such secular events.

While I was at an outdoor alternative rock concert a few years ago, I was struck by how many people in the crowd were swaying with raised hands as often happens at megachurch worship services. Take out the evangelical Jesus content and you basically have the same event, except for some of the substances being enjoyed at the concert. But the use of mood- and mind-altering chemicals also has a long history as part of religious activities!

It would seem, then, that there could be a new future for worship, if we put our minds to it. First off, we need to come up with a new word for it, or at least recognize that the meaning of the word has morphed into something very different than what traditional religion meant by it (and words do change their meanings quite often).

Second, as I indicated above, there needs to be an exploration of the history and purpose of religious and spiritual gatherings to better understand what needs they have served and how that could continue to do so today. At first glance, it might seem that the megachurches are trying this but their language and theology retain much of the worst of the past’s fearsome God-out-there mumbo jumbo. Their so-called contemporary worship is anything but, simply dressing up an outdated God in a modern looking package (accompanied by mediocre pop music).

At the end of my last blog post, I wrote:

If religion is to regain its value this is what it must be about: not pointing us out of this world to some imagined heavenly dimension but rather deeper and more profoundly into this world. For we need a new (but actually ancient) recognition of the sacredness of Being itself, permeating all reality, the entire universe, and each one of us.

This is the direction renewed worship would need to go. Rather than praising and pleading with God-out-there, it would open worshipers to the divine dimension of existence itself. More cerebral activities like readings and preaching would raise awareness of the delusions of ego and dualistic thinking. Music, dance, poetry, architecture, and the arts generally would connect people with the Spirit within them and within the natural world. So would a new appreciation of silence.

Worship of the past certainly had some success in facilitating experiences of oneness and spiritual transcendence. For that reason, renewed worship would not have to cut itself off entirely from the past. Many traditions, rituals, and other worship practices could be adapted for this new emphasis and purpose.

Medieval cathedrals and the choruses of Bach and Handel still move people regardless of religious affiliation. And the same is true of many of the stories of the Bible and the saints. In renewed worship, many could be retained but none of them would be seen as supporting some grand doctrinal scheme of salvation. Rather, they would speak of our awakening to the healing and renewing spirit present all around and within us.

Attuning ourselves to the sacred presence in ourselves and creation is not a simple task. A weekly gathering with such a purpose would go a long way to orienting us to that truth, not just in our minds but in our day-to-day living, our relationships with those around us, and in knowing a grounding inner peace. And in an area where religion has surprising fallen flat, it would lead us to a new relationship with the much abused natural world around us, especially in knowing our essential oneness with it. In short, “going to church” would mean being even more present here and now.

As I’ve said, there is much from the ancient traditions of Christianity and other religions which is in harmony with a renewed worship practice. As an example, I close with the words of another traditional hymn, written in the early 20^th century, The Hymn of Joy by Henry van Dyke. It’s based on an 18^th century poem by Friedrich Schiller which was adapted by Beethoven for the last movement of his 9^th Symphony. While as in the hymn above the mythic God is still present, the text directs our attention to the creation’s holiness and the joy that comes with our union with it.

1 Joyful, joyful we adore thee,
God of glory, Lord of love!
Hearts unfold like flow’rs before thee,
praising thee, their sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness,
drive the gloom of doubt away.
Giver of immortal gladness,
fill us with the light of day.

2 All thy works with joy surround thee,
earth and heav’n reflect thy rays,
stars and angels sing around thee,
center of unbroken praise.
Field and forest, vale and mountain,
flow’ry meadow, flashing sea,
chanting bird, and flowing fountain
call us to rejoice in thee.

3 Thou art giving and forgiving,
ever blessing, ever blest,
well-spring of the joy of living,
ocean-depth of happy rest!
Thou our Father, Christ our brother,
all who live in love are thine;
teach us how to love each other,
lift us to the joy divine!

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