Church’s worship tone dictates celebration

The Rev. Darlene Strickland, pastor, Unity Church of Lawrence, 900 Madeline Lane:

The issue of applause in church is directly related to the worship attitude and practices of the individual church; each will have a unique tone and expression of sacredness and worship. The question requires us to consider what is sacred and how do we honor, commune with and celebrate that which is sacred?

I grew up in a church where exuberant praise and worship was the mainstay and yet applause was deemed inappropriate and “worldly.” The rationale was, “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord” – but do not draw attention to or celebrate the individual. The idea of worship was to glorify and honor God, not the performer or the performance.

Today, my views are different. I understand God in and as God’s creation. Maybe Jesus said it best, “I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:40).

Do we not honor God by honoring, or dishonoring, God’s creation? What’s more, what is the difference in applauding for a song in the Sunday worship service than applauding for a song at a community event? Is God more present in one place? Is God disturbed if we applaud in church?

For me, it is not a matter of misdirected or secular praise; it is simply a matter of the experiential tone we choose to create.

At times, silence or stillness may be what is most responsive and fitting. The worship experience is just that – an experience. Individually and collectively, we can enjoy times of silence, reflection, connection and celebration. I believe there is room and holy reason for all of these.

– Send e-mail to Darlene Strickland at revdarlene@sunflower.com.

Showing God honor should not be somber

The Rev. Paul Gray, lead pastor, Heartland Community Church, 619 Vt.:

Most churches call their Sunday time together a “worship” service. The question then, is who is the object of our “worship?” If we truly come to church to worship the living God (rather than have an attitude of “feed me, serve me”), then of course we’ll want to clap – and sing loudly – and be expressive in our praise and worship of the Lord.

There are many examples in the bible of joyful, boisterous, exciting times of corporate worship. Psalm 47:1 says, “Come, everyone and clap your hands for joy! Shout to God with joyful praise!” In Nehemiah 12, God’s people played and sang music loudly, “and the joy of the people could be heard far away.”

If we truly understand how good God is, how much he loves us, how much he wants to have a personal relationship with us, the price he paid for us to be right with him, how much he wants to bless us, and how much he longs for us to have his joy – the natural response for us would be to clap – and even shout and raise our hands and demonstrate our thankfulness – to him!

When we go to a church service, then our attitude can be: “How can I express my gratitude and appreciation and praise for the God of the universe who loves me so much?” Then as the music is offered as a gift to God, our applause is appropriately for God. Our great God is exciting and anything but somber and unexpressive – and we’re created in his image!

– Send e-mail to Paul Gray at paul@hcclawrence.com.