Worship
As I see it, the purpose of worship is an invitation to open ourselves up to connection. This can mean connecting with others who are sharing the worship space. It can mean connecting inwardly with oneself, accessing one’s own inner wisdom and authenticity. It can mean connecting with something greater than oneself; some might call this Goddess, God, the divine, Spirit of Life, Source of Love, or Eternal Energy of the Universe. But whatever one calls it, and whatever one considers it to be, we are invited to connect to that which is greater than our individual selves, and in which we find meaning. All of these types of connection require vulnerability, a lowering of our walls so that we can let others (and ourselves) in. We cannot make authentic connections with barriers in the way. Worship should encourage and support this vulnerability and openness.
The Sunday worship service is, in most UU congregations, the most attended church offering, and it happens every week. My job as a minister is to collaboratively plan and lead compelling worship services that make members, friends, and visitors want to attend, and to keep coming back and again and again so we can do the work of building the beloved community. Good worship should feed our minds, open our hearts, nourish our souls, and inspire us toward ethical and loving action in our communities and the wider world. Good, consistent preaching is certainly a part of this, but I believe the arc of worship is more important than any of the individual parts that make up the worship service. My goal (every week) is to create that arc that invites people in, and then to go deeper into connection with self and others before emerging feeling ready to engage the world with more awareness and authentic presence.
