Over the past year or so we have been gradually moving toward a more blended service. If you have been accustomed to traditional worship, this can seem like quite a change and you may wonder why it's necessary. On the surface, it might feel like an attempt to please everyone, but it goes much deeper than that. There are compelling biblical and theological reasons for it.

The church is rapidly changing. No doubt, in fifty years it will have evolved into something that few of us would recognize. We're in a time of transition and many churches are struggling with how worship will look as we move into the future. The tension between carrying traditions that make the church the church into the future, while being relevant to the world in a different time and place, is difficult for church leaders to resolve. Some have just trashed the traditional church and tried to create something altogether new. Others have buried their heads in the sand and refused to acknowledge the fact that the world is passing them by. Neither of these extreme responses is helpful.

The theologian Leonard Sweet has written: "The greatest challenges, as well as the greatest returns, will come to those churches that manage to bring both tendencies together (traditional and contemporary worship) in creative ways, that incarnate an ancient future faith." That's the best definition of blended worship that I know of. Worship that incarnates "an ancient future faith."

Another theologian and worship-renewal enthusiast, Robert Webber, describes blended worship as a convergence of historical and contemporary worship. He outlines three concerns for blended worship: first, to be rooted in the biblical and early church tradition; second, to draw from the resources of the entire church; and third, a radical commitment to contemporary relevance. That's what we're striving for at Holy Trinity.

In working toward blended worship, we're also worshiping in a way that more accurately reflects who we are as the people of God. At Holy Trinity, our central mission is one of radical inclusion. (A very biblical mission!) To be consistent, our worship needs to reflect radical inclusion as well. When we gather together on Sunday mornings, we represent quite an assortment of people with one thing in common, a desire to worship God. A blended worship reflects the true unity of the Body, which includes a diversity of people. You will notice that blended worship is not just a matter of throwing traditional and contemporary music together into one service. It's a weaving together of worship forms and language, as well as music. And it draws upon a variety of sources, including diverse time periods, faith traditions, nations and cultures. This is the way Christian worship should be. It is blended because the Body of Christ is blended.

May our worship incarnate an ancient future faith that reflects the unity within diversity which is the beauty of Christ's body!

-- Pastor Nancy