High Church

When I was in Oxford a few weeks ago I decided to go to an evening prayer service at the University Church of St Mary the Virgin, the church where C. S. Lewis gave his famous sermon, "The Weight of Glory". I enjoyed the service a lot and it made me think about how differently church is conceived depending on where you are. I entered the church and took a seat along the bench on the far right of the room pictured left. The church was totally silent besides a priest across from me thumbing through a few pages in a book. There was a nice wooden stool on hinges I could pull down in front of me to kneel on if I wanted. A few minutes passed and a few more people started to come in. All entered quietly, and acknowledged the painting of Christ that hung at the end of the room. About 6 o'clock a man came around cheerfully handing out all the materials for the service: an order of worship, a Book of Common Prayer, a hymnal, and a Bible. The service consisted of corporate scripture reading, silent meditation, corporate read prayers, hymn singing (without instruments), and a short (10 minute) sermon. I was struck by how simple and uncluttered the service was. I felt as though there were no layers that I had to peel back before I arrived at the purpose of gathering together at church. It was easy to see. There were no apologies for the smallish crowd of 30 or so. They didn't dress up the service with anything other than what was necessary for the purpose of the service: prayer. I enjoyed the read prayers. They were a refreshing break from the spontaneous prayers rarely thought out beforehand that I am used to at home. After the service everyone left quietly, replacing their books, and possibly offering a handshake or two. I left the service feeling like I had really been at church and met with God. It was the first time in a while. I didn't have to worry about lights, videos, knowing words to songs, overheads, the sermon joke, chair placement, greeting people, bulletin announcements, or anything else that often fills a typical to do list on Sunday mornings at home. It made me wonder how much we do in church just keeps the perpetual cycle of church stuff in motion instead of really accomplishing the purpose for which church exists. The crowd was small at the church, but maybe that's okay. Maybe when church is what it is supposed to be the average person doesn't like it.