Alternative Practice Of The Christian Year In Pentecostal/Charismatic Churches

Many Pentecostal assemblies have begun to discover in recent years that the stability, organization, and connection with historic Christian roots that comes with following the lectionary and church year supports rather than conflicts with spontaneity and enthusiasm in worship.

Pentecostals have not traditionally kept the church year. They have been more likely to observe secular holidays, such as New Year's Day, Fourth of July, and Mother's Day. It is not that Pentecostals have been hostile to the observance of Christian holidays—most assemblies have special programs of some kind for Christmas and Easter, for example. Rather, the idea of organizing church life around the Christian year has simply been alien to them. Quiet Adoption of the Lectionary Many Pentecostals, though, are beginning to adopt the church year. One influential assembly, Christ Church in Nashville, Tennessee, quietly made the change eight years ago. They began by using the lectionary for sermon preparation. The senior and associate pastors, who rotate their preaching schedules, decided to take several days each fall to plan their sermons for the following year. By using the lectionary, they felt that they would not fall as easily in the rut of preaching on their own favorite subjects, or what might be some trend at the time, but would be stretched to deal with passages they might not otherwise use. Most of the congregation is not aware that the pastors are using the lectionary, because they have been careful to maintain the Pentecostal style of preaching. Even so, several members of the church are involved in gathering relevant material for the message, which is placed in large envelopes and given to the ministers several weeks in advance. The pastors then read the material and develop an interesting and relevant message from it. Two passages are publicly read in the Sunday morning service. One becomes a responsive reading printed on the back of the church bulletin to be read by the entire congregation, the other read by a selected reader. As the preaching became seasonal in nature, the music and decoration of the church began to follow suit. The minister of music was given a copy of the preaching schedule, and he used this to plan what material to introduce at what times to the choir. Little by little the use of the lectionary has become the centerpiece around which the worship schedule of the church is planned. Christ Church leans very heavily on the lectionary from Advent to Pentecost, but uses the time between Pentecost and Advent to develop instructional series. For example, the church has a very active Bethel program, an intensive two-year study of the scripture developed by Lutherans. So one year the preaching between Pentecost and Advent dealt with the highlights of the Bethel series. (Many of the larger Pentecostal churches use the Bethel series, available through Adult Christian Education, P.O. Box 8398, Madison, WI 53708.) The next year the church dealt with the major doctrines contained in the Apostles' Creed. The sermons are always developed to be interesting, even entertaining, and applicable to life. The rest of the service points to the theme. An Irresistible Mix There are many advantages for a church that follows the church year. It tends to consecrate time to the rhythm of faith rather than to the transitory values of secular society. It serves the practical purpose of allowing a large church to organize and plan around central themes. It gives a sense of continuity with the ages and with other communities of Christians. It adds an element of stability to an otherwise very mobile and aggressive church environment. Christ Church is filled with entertainers, and it can put on a very impressive show. The church year and the lectionary connects the excitement to Christian roots. Many people find the mix irresistible. The recovery of the church year is going on throughout numerous Pentecostal assemblies. In most it becomes the invisible support for the more visible and active spontaneity for which Pentecostals are known. Many have found that far from being incompatible, the rhythm of the church year and lectionary provides a platform on which spontaneous praise and testimony can find meaning and effectiveness in the lives of worshipers.