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NewSpirit - Transforming Tradition: a glimpse from a seat in the choir

Transforming Tradition: a glimpse from a seat in the choir submitted by Brenda Shodin “Traditionally” the offertory was collected front to back. “Traditionally”, music was played while collection was underway. “Traditionally” collectors waited at the back for the music to finish and wait for the “presentation” piece to begin, during which they moved forward, and stood in place at the front of the chancel. “Traditionally”, the worship presider came out to receive the plates, place them on the communion table after which the congregation would resume their seats and the collectors return to their own. It was a traditional dance that had played out for a century in their congregation… It was a ‘typical’ Sunday worship service… but not totally a ‘typical’ Sunday… this was one of the first Sunday’s that the congregation was hosting worship under their ‘new structure’… new faces were ushering, greeting, navigating their way around the kitchen to prepare coffee – many for the first time… and the offering was about to be collected. A couple of people who were new to the task stood and started to collect from the back of the aisle instead of the ‘traditional’ front to back model. Very quickly an experienced senior sitting near the back sprang up, panicked, to correct the obvious mistake, much to the embarrassment of the new volunteer … Fast forward to the same sanctuary… something around four or five years later… It was an average Sunday worship service… a young teen, let’s call him “Greg” was collecting offering on one side of the sanctuary from back to front and a retired gentleman, let’s call him “Ron” on the other side from front to back. After co-coordinating the plates from the gallery in preparation to bring them forward, the pianist played reflective music and had the offertory presentation piece cued up next for when her prepared piece was finished. The teen on the one side, taking no particular account of the moment, began during the piano piece to boldly head on down the aisle with the completed collection plate. On the other side, the senior collector, seeing this, quickly picked up step to match the teen heading down the aisle. Stopping for a heartbeat only at the front, hardly glancing to the worship presider who had not had a chance to even start out to the steps to receive it yet, the teen, headed straight for the communion table, tucked the plates on it, turned heal and headed back down the aisle… The senior collector’s instinct was instantaneous… quietly, smoothly, barely a split second behind the teen, he mirrored his every move, turning and leaving with a look on his face that said “this is what we do here every week”…. As though this was a well planned and rehearsed dance… This is an account of a tiny moment in congregational life; moments typical of what I see from my choir seat every week in worship in this place. To some, they are moments that are hardly worth mentioning, but to me “glimpses” week after week of church health and strengthening relationships. They speak to me of a place slowly, inch by inch shedding the semantics of ‘how’ we are together and quietly, inch by inch moving toward ‘why’ we are together. After celebrating Transfiguration Sunday one week early and just partaken of Ash Wednesday worship on Shrove Tuesday, I would just like to say… it is ‘good’ to be here… Amen. Brenda Shodin is the music director at Kenora-Knox United Church.

This article is part of NewSpirit - a collection of stories, opinions, information, and tales of congregational events and mission from around our conference. We welcome stories and pictures that reflect the life of your congregation or ministry. Contact the conference office if you would like to contribute to NewSpirit Online.