Tag: Introit

Everybody

There are two “everybody” statements that I firmly believe in, but it has been my experience most people reject.  They might even get mad when I say them.  First, everybody worships.  Second, everybody has a liturgy of worship. 

The first one: everybody worships is easier to prove.  Luther’s explanation of the first commandment is that “we should fear, love and trust in God above all things.” He expands on that in the large catechism explaining that whatever we fear, love or trust in above anything else is our God. The number of idols is almost endless, but Luther in his jokey way, I think correctly recognizes that most people have their own stomach as their God. Whatever the gut wants is where they are lead to worship.  Although there are several other common gods: money, power, fame are the usually the negatives, but you could also add family, land or tradition as normal positive things that can become idols.  And if you don’t believe me on those, listen to Jesus in Matthew 10:37 or Matthew 15:3.  Most of his arguments with the Pharisees were over idolatry of good things. The righteousness of the Pharisees wasn’t slight, see Matthew 5:20. It was just nowhere close to the perfection required for salvation.   The purpose of “everybody worships” is a reminder to be conscious of who or what you worship.  Most people slip through life not knowing.  Hence Luther’s being led around by their belly. But The One God has revealed himself in Jesus Christ. You can worship him.

The second “everybody” is something of the answer to: Well, how do I worship?  And even more than people not realizing who their God is, the vast majority do not understand how they worship. And in not understanding they don’t realize the power of everyday liturgies. What is a liturgy? A liturgy is formalized order of worship that incarnates belief. Now that worship and belief doesn’t have to be of ultimate importance. There is a liturgy of going to a football game. You enter through the tailgate. Everyone rises and lines up.  The colors are presented. Sometimes a prayer is said – like at my son’s Valley Lutheran Games, but always the National Anthem is sung.  On High Holy Days, like a championship game, you will have an airplane flyover.  On the highest of holy days you get a Stealth Bomber. The Kick-off lines up.  Everyone chants “seven nation army” or whatever the kickoff song is.  And then the liturgy is over when the ball flies.  What does that liturgy worship?  Basically everything America and American.  And when you break liturgies, like by kneeling for the anthem, people get upset. There are liturgies big and small that fill our days. The purpose of “everybody has a liturgy of worship” is knowing what yours are.  Because those liturgies tell you what you actually believe; what you believe deep enough to make real in time and space.

I want to occasionally highlight elements of our liturgy. Today I want to take a minute to look at the Introit.  What the heck is an Introit?  It is simply the Latin word for entry.  Now we usually staple on in front of it a hymn and corporate confession.  We’ll leave that for another day. But the original start of the worship of Father, Son and Spirit was the invocation of the God being worshipped.  Christianity is clear.  The idols usually try and hide that part. But you started with the invocation and some entry words about what we are going to be making real in time and space. Those words change week to week as the meditation of the church upon Christ focuses on different things He has done for us.  Those words are typically taken from the psalms, the prayer book of the bible. So what we have in the Introit, which we at Mt. Zion recite responsively, is the theme of our worship for the day in the words that God has given us.

Today, the words of the Introit give us the theme of God providence (Psalm 147:7-11, Psalm 145:16).  “He makes the grass grow on the hills.” But that material providence that falls on the just and the unjust alike points at God’s greater providence. “You open your hand, you satisfy the desire of every living thing.” And what is that desire?  To rest secure in the love of your creator. “The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love.” You who join in this liturgy, in making real in time and space our beliefs, shall see that steadfast love of God for you.  That love of God that forgives sins, provides us our daily bread, and most importantly promises us that we shall dwell securely in his land (Jeremiah 23:5-6).

Quasimodogeniti

Did anybody read the Hunchback of Notre Dame? See the cartoon?  Does anybody remember what his name was?  Hint: It wasn’t “Hey, hunchback.”  Insert Jeopardy theme….

Ok, we are back.  What was your answer? The right answer is Quasimodo. Which is a strange name.  Anybody care to hazard a guess where that came from?

Every Sunday of the church year has what are called propers.  They include the introit which is the entrance hymn/chant, the prayer of the day, the appointed readings and a few other things.  If you were doing a choir led mass, the propers are all the parts that the choir and minister would probably chant.  The congregation itself would probably be relatively non-participatory, the high church version of the worship band.  The Lutheran Reformation gave to the congregation the role of the choir. With angels, and archangels and all the host of heaven, we laud and magnify the name. But the important proper of the day for this pastor’s corner is the introit.

The same way that people used to sign letters “On the Feast Day of St. X” or something like that to date correspondence, the weeks were actually known by their introits.  Specifically the first word of the introit, in Latin because that is what the church used and many propers even after the reformation would remain in Latin for a long time.  If you have an old copy of The Lutheran Hymnal (TLH) published in 1941 lying around, you can see that those old names are still on the church calendar for many weeks – the weeks after Transfiguration, the weeks of Lent, the weeks of Easter.  Easter 2 was known as Quasimodogeniti. Quasimodo the hunchback was born on this Sunday and given the name from the Introit.

When the propers went to a three year cycle many of those old names were broken.  They had already been strained when everything went into the vernacular as long time ago.  But the Introits are meant to carry a theme for the service and the week, which they do very well in the Sundays after Easter. Quasimodogeniti is Latin for “as newborn infants.”  As newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow into salvation, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

 Easter 2 in the church year is a day of infancy on the faith. Thomas hasn’t seen, so he won’t believe, until he places his fingers in the holes in the hands.  We start reading from the Epistle of First Peter which tells us that we have come into our inheritance in the resurrection.  “He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”  And as such infants, “long for the pure spiritual milk.”

What is that pure Spiritual Milk?  The Introit’s answers are: “Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make know his deeds among the peoples, sing praises to him.”  Thanksgiving, prayer, proclamation and adoration. What are the things that allow us to grow up into that full inheritance of the resurrection?  Hearing the word proclaimed and believing it. Returning in proper thanks for all the Christ has done for us. Trusting in the Lord in prayer. “Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his presence continually.” Never forgetting the proper adoration due to God Almighty.   “Glory in His Holy Name!” These are the things of pure spiritual milk that you might grow up to salvation.

And unlike our physical selves who outgrow milk, the Kingdom of God is a land flowing with milk and honey. Every Sunday one can return to that pure spiritual milk: the word, thanksgiving, prayer, and adoration. If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Link to the Propers for Easter 2