Church Of The Nazarene

The spontaneity permitted in Nazarene worship, along with the warm evangelistic thrust of the corporate gathering, has helped to create an openness to the integration of worship with other facets of congregational life such as pastoral care and women's ministries.

On a recent Sunday in a Nazarene church in a midwestern city, a young man home from college sang a solo. Just as he finished and the pastor approached the pulpit to preach, a woman in the choir asked, "?Could he sing it again??" So, after the soundtrack was rewound, the song was repeated. About two dozen gathered at the altar for prayer. This was followed by forty-five minutes of testimonies. Dismissal was a half hour later than usual. Spontaneity has long been accepted in the Nazarene worship format. While an incident like the one described is not routine, neither is it unusual. The essence and spirit of Nazarene worship stems from revivalism and the life of the camp meetings that flourished during the nineteenth century. Worship, Evangelism, and Mission. One of the most significant features of worship in the Church of the Nazarene is that worship is inseparable from evangelism. That is, the generally evangelistic fervency found in both preaching and singing contributes to spontaneity in the worship style, especially in the use of the altar rail as a place of confession and reconciliation. Churches may also schedule a time of general or specific testimony, during which worshipers may give voice to the operation of God in their lives. Such practices tip the "?playing field?" of worship in favor of human responses to impressions felt to be from the Lord. That is why pastors, regardless of their personal intuition in a given service, are inclined to remain sensitive to the feelings of parishioners who make suggestions—such as to sing a solo a second time. Evangelism is practiced during the entire worship service, and especially at the usual invitation to pray after the sermon. The connection between worship and evangelism—personal soul-winning outside the walls of the church—is also visible in the reception of new members by profession of faith during a worship service. Another feature of Nazarene worship is its historic identification with support for missions as a form of practicing "?social concern?" both at home and abroad. Every Nazarene church is expected to pay its annual missions budget, which is based on a percentage of the church's annual income. Thus, Nazarenes are familiar with a wide variety of special offerings for world and home missions. The local church is usually directly involved in other mission projects which require offerings above those designated by the denomination. For example, as needed, a church may receive "?crisis?" offerings for families in emergency situations and "?benevolence?" offerings for people in need. A Nazarene church board may have a Spiritual Development Committee with general oversight of worship. Such a committee is a sounding board for worship expectation, assessment, and practice. Ministries related to music, prayer, preaching, and other components of worship are the concern of this committee. Women and Children in Worship. Since its inception, the Church of the Nazarene has recognized the ministry of women in the official capacity of deaconess and has ordained women since its early days. Women have served as ordained pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and educators. While men have held the preponderance of leadership roles in worship, women have not been excluded from such involvement. They may take part in Scripture reading, praying, and a variety of music activities. They may even address the congregation. Worship leaders of the local church may also remind the congregation of the church's often extensive agenda of women's programs and ministries. Involvement of children in worship may take the form of children's sermons and children's participation in choirs or smaller groups. Education and Pastoral Care. With respect to the integration of education and worship, some congregations have successfully formed into a number of small groups to study the Sunday morning sermon and its scriptural context in midweek home gatherings. In a few churches, select Sunday school classes are studying the context of the pastor's sermon as a biblical curriculum prior to worship. Pastoral care concerns are brought into the worship setting through the pastoral prayer and through the attention given to the prayer needs of members of the church family, such as those hospitalized, those confined to their home, and those recently bereaved. Some churches involve lay people in the ministry of pastoral care and may hold a periodic commissioning service for those who have been trained in the listening and counseling skills needed in this work.