The Power of Worship

adapted from Fr. John Ealy

    We are called to live our Orthodox Faith in the world. It is a faith vision based on love. To live that faith in the world we must be persons who experiences God’s power present in the liturgical gathering. Without this the worship of the church becomes a meaningless ceremony without any real incentive for the members to be present.

      When we assemble in the Church with the priest the most important aspect of this gathering is that God is present to us. We must be open to that presence so that we can “lay aside all earthly cares and receive the King of All....” When we can “lay aside all earthly cares..” whether it be at the Divine Liturgy or any other worship service, we can turn our attention to our calling as Orthodox Christians who are in this world but not of it. This change can only happen when we are open to the prescience of God who pours out his life upon us so abundantly when we gather.

      The transforming power of worship must be lived in the world. It is the power of the love of God. to now God is to love because God is love. St. John tells us in his first epistle that God is love and that to know God is to love. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God, and he who loves is born of God and knows God...God is love, and he who abides in love, and God abides in him.” This is the God who comes to us. He meets us in the assembly. He is present to us when we hear is Word in the epistle and gospel reading and when we partake of the bread and wine which becomes the broken body and spilled blood of His Son Jesus Christ. After every Divine Liturgy we proclaim that “Christ is in our midst.” The risen Lord is present to us because He loves us and desires that we share in His resurrection and have eternal life.

      The gift of life, that is eternal, is His gift of love to all men that was intended from the beginning of creation. After man failed to love God, God continued in His love by sending His Son to lead us back into His life and His love. It is this power that we encounter when He assembles us. It is this vision and this power of the Liturgy that we take into the world. It is Christ Himself, as love and life-giving, that we must live and share with the whole creation.