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CHAPTER 6
The
Gathering of the Community
The
people and presiding priest gather in the Lord's
name
The objective of the Gathering of the Community, as this
title suggests, is to gather those assembled into a
community. This prepares them to hear what the Spirit is
saying in the Proclamation, and to celebrate the Eucharist.
The Gathering in A New Zealand Prayer
Book has a
variety of components from which careful choice needs to be
made for it not to feel like a "cluttered vestibule," and
for it to fulfill its purpose.
The Gathering establishes the mood of the service. Through
discriminating choice from the components it can enhance
the sense of celebration and community (rather than
introspective individualism). It is worth reflecting how
hymns, announcements, the "Collect for Purity," and
penitential elements, if used, can achieve this.
In the early church, the greeting established the
community. By the fifth century in the West the Collect
helped to collect the eucharistic community. There is a
growing revival of the tradition that the Collect of the
Day is the opening prayer of the Eucharist. The optional
"Collect for Purity" may be used for personal preparation
prior to the service. It may also suitably introduce
sprinkling with water. Such sprinkling could be
particularly appropriate in the Easter Season, which is
recovering its association with baptism.
The greeting and Collect form the primary elements of the
Gathering. Singing together can also powerfully bind people
and it is worth noting where hymns or other songs are
placed in our Prayer Book. The shape of the Gathering is
given as: greeting, song of praise, prayer. Having variety
which reflects the liturgical season or particular day
assists the Gathering in fulfilling its purpose.
In the course of history devotional material increased and
distorted the proportions of this "entrance rite" so that
the readings were shortened as the beginning of the service
grew longer. With the Gathering of the Community in
A New Zealand
Prayer Book it is possible to restore the
shape of the liturgy, and renew our sense of the community
gathering to hear and respond to what the Spirit is saying
to the Church.
The
entrance
The entrance of the priest and any other ministers is
preferably through the congregation rather than merely an
entry from right or left in front of the people. It is
worth reflecting how much easier it is to gather a
community after having moved through it. Furthermore, the
ministers, clergy and laity alike, are then seen to come
from the congregation, just as those who later read,
distribute communion and so on, will do. In planning the
entrance, the feeling of the ministers going to a "holy"
place and leaving everyone else behind needs to be avoided.
If a cross is part of the procession, the emphasis is not
on the ministers being led in by the cross, rather it needs
to be on the cross being brought in by the ministers. This
means it needs to be placed in prominence for the
celebration. If this cross disappears from view after the
procession the wrong point is being made. Similarly the
symbolism is devalued by having several crosses visible.
The Bible or Gospel Book may also be brought in procession.
Traditionally the deacon who would read the Gospel carried
it in, holding it high, and placed it on the lectern, or on
the altar if it was only to be used for the Gospel reading
with a Gospel procession. Such a bringing in of the
scriptures parallels the bringing forward of the bread and
wine at the Preparation of the Gifts.
Candles, if carried in the procession, need to be seen to
honour the cross or scriptures, rather than merely
enhancing the entrance of the ministers.
If incense is used during the entrance, it is carried at
the front of the entrance procession. The presider may
cense the holy table during the opening song of praise. As
the holy table is usually censed during the Preparation of
the Gifts, this initial censing may appropriately be
omitted.
The
greeting
The presider opens wide the arms in welcome and greets the
assembly. A single greeting is all that is required. When
using Thanksgiving of the People of
God (page
404) the presider chooses just one of the greetings. From
Easter Day up to and including the Day of Pentecost the
following appropriately precedes (or replaces) the greeting
at every Eucharist:
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
He
is risen indeed. Alleluia!
The greeting establishes the relationship between the
presider and the individuals present and hence is part of
gathering these individuals into a community. Hence it is
the presider who gives the greeting rather than delegating
this to another. Furthermore, the greeting comes as early
as possible. We do not greet someone half way through a
conversation. To be greeted by "Good morning" and then have
a hymn, theme, scripture verse, announcement of Prayer Book
page numbers and only then to hear "Grace and peace to you
from God" deprives this greeting of its purpose, and gives
the impression that we are only saying this "because it is
in the book."
"Grace and peace to you from
God."
The
Sentence of the Day
Reading the Sentence is optional. Its inclusion can all too
easily increase the sense that the Gathering is cluttered
and lacks shape and direction. It might normally be
omitted.
If it is decided to read a sentence of scripture at the
beginning of the service it should call to worship and set
the mood (when there is music, this is usually done by the
opening hymn). The sentences provided in
A New Zealand
Prayer Book are in several forms. Some
proclaim a theme (in which case they need to be set in
context by a brief introduction). Others are a brief
prayer. This can become confused with the Collect
(particularly if the Sentence is read in the alternative
position immediately before the Collect). An alternative
use for the Sentence is as part of an "Alleluia verse"
immediately before the reading of the Gospel.
The
Song of Praise
Each Eucharistic Liturgy provides for a hymn after the
greeting and presents an option in the text ("Glory to God
in the highest," page 405; the Benedicite Aotearoa, page
457; and two options, pages 477 and 478). This first hymn
functions as a "gathering song" and also sets the mood for
the service (rather than needing to be strictly thematic).
It is appropriate that the Glory to God be used for this
during the Christmas season and from Easter Day through the
Day of Pentecost. It is not used during the seasons of
Advent and Lent. If necessary, various metrical versions of
the Glory to God are available (which can be sung to well
known tunes). Furthermore, during the Easter season it may
be more appropriate to sing a joyful hymn which captures
resurrection delight more immediately than the Glory to
God.
Penitential elements in the Gathering
The sacrament of baptism cleanses from sin and initiates a
lifelong process of repentance and forgiveness. The
Eucharist is a dimension of this process, renewing the
baptismal covenant, and mediating Christ's sacrifice "for
the forgiveness of sins." This rich understanding of the
Eucharist meant that for most of the church's history there
was no verbal confession and absolution within the
eucharistic liturgy. The whole eucharistic action was seen
to be reconciling. Penitential practices from private
medieval piety, however, were embodied into the first
Anglican Prayer Book in 1549 and have shaped Anglican piety
to this day.
Modern liturgical renewal is rediscovering the earlier
insight that "as we take part, as we break bread and share
the cup, our forgiveness is renewed and we are cleansed"
(page 403). A Form for Ordering the
Eucharist (pages 511 ff.) makes clear that
verbal confession and absolution is not an essential
element of the eucharistic liturgy. Anglican eucharistic
revisions in the United States of America, Canada, and
elsewhere, have highlighted this rediscovery by making
confession and absolution optional within their revised
rites.
This in no way diminishes sin, its gravity, or the
necessity of repentance. What is being taken more seriously
is that penitential elements may be included in the Prayers
of the People, and be sincerely expressed in the Peace and
the Lord's Prayer. Reconciliation is also celebrated in the
breaking of the bread, receiving communion, and so on.
Verbal confession and absolution is only one way in which,
on particular occasions, reconciliation may be expressed.
Even where the confession as printed in the Prayer Book is
used regularly, there can be a variety of approaches, and
care needs to be taken that there are not awkward shifts of
tone at the beginning of the Eucharist. Furthermore, pages
405407, for example, present mostly optional penitential
material from which a careful choice needs to be made for
each occasion.
Although kneeling has been traditional for the confession,
it may be worth experimenting with standing. The liturgical
season and the position of penitential material in the
service may influence the posture chosen for it. Although
the Prayer Book provides suggestions, "it is left open to
each congregation to decide whether to sit, stand or kneel
at the various parts of the service" (page xv).
The Glory to God or another hymn may be sung after the
Absolution (page 408). If there is no hymn until this
point, this also will provide a different atmosphere for
the Gathering than when a service begins with a hymn. This
format could be tried for Lent, for example.
As mentioned above, A Form for Ordering the
Eucharist (pages 511514) authorises
Eucharists which do not use the confession printed in the
Prayer Book, or which use it in a different position. Here,
then, are some suggested alternatives.
1. The confession and absolution and its associated
material could be omitted. This may require some education.
It is important not to overburden the eucharistic action
with words. This becomes a greater risk when another rite
is celebrated in the context of the Eucharist (e.g. a
baptism, confirmation, funeral, wedding, lighting of Advent
candles, Palm Sunday procession, etc.). It is especially
appropriate to omit the confession when this happens. It
might also be omitted in the Easter Season.
2. The model on pages 459460 could be followed. The
invocations can be addressed to each of the persons of the
Trinity, or all three invocations can be addressed to
Christ.
This form can easily replace the confession, for example,
in Thanksgiving of the People of
God, once
the community regularly uses the following pattern for the
Kyries:
Lord, have mercy.
Lord,
have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ,
have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord,
have mercy.
When first introducing this form, if not printed, the
leader could say, "please repeat Lord have mercy
and
Christ have
mercy after me." Some communities use a
chant of the Kyries. In that case this format can be
naturally introduced by chanting the invocations.
A theme or the readings that follow may be alluded to in
the invocations. Our failings may be confessed (as in both
examples on page 459) or God's goodness may be affirmed.
Both elements may be included, beginning, for example, with
our failure and concluding with God's grace. The two
examples which follow are only given in the hope that
leaders will be encouraged to prepare their own sentences.
The first focuses on affirmation, the second on confession
and affirmation.
a) So that through this Eucharist we may come to share in
God's eternal banquet, in silence before God we confess our
sins.
Silence
Jesus, you came to call us to repentance.
Lord, have mercy. (or
Kyrie eleison sung)
Lord,
have mercy.
You come in word and sacrament
to share your life abundant.
Christ, have mercy. (or
Christe eleison sung)
Christ,
have mercy.
You will come again in glory
to renew the whole creation.
Lord, have mercy. (or
Kyrie eleison sung)
Lord,
have mercy.
God the Creator brings you new life,
forgives and redeems you.
Take hold of this forgiveness
and live your life
in the Spirit of Jesus.
Amen.
b) In silence we recall God's love
and confess our failure to respond.
Silence
We have traveled to a distant country
and squandered our gifts and resources.
Lord, have mercy. (or
Kyrie eleison sung)
Lord,
have mercy.
We have turned our back on love
and sought our own selfish pleasures.
Christ, have mercy. (or
Christe eleison sung)
Christ,
have mercy.
But you wait
and with compassion you run to meet us
and embrace us when we turn to you.
Lord, have mercy. (or
Kyrie eleison sung)
Lord,
have mercy.
Patient God,
may this banquet truly be to us
the sign of your prodigal love
by which we are forgiven and restored
through Jesus Christ.
Amen.
3. The penitential material could be included in the
Prayers of the People (pages 411418). This is the pattern
in The
Book of Common Prayer, and an option in
A New Zealand
Prayer Book (page 730). It allows reflection
on sinfulness to be in response to the readings, leads
naturally into the Peace, and simplifies the Gathering of
the Community (in which the assembly remains standing
throughout).
Including penitence in the Prayers of the People
necessitates coordination between the presider and the one
leading the Prayers, so that the penitential material does
not occur at two points.
If the Prayers of the People are in the form of a litany,
an example of penitence could be, "We pray to you also for
the forgiveness of our sins, and the grace of the Holy
Spirit to amend our lives (...pause...) God of love
grant our prayer."
If biddings introduce parts of the Prayers of the People
("we pray for the church... we pray for the world..."), an
example of penitence could be, "We pray for the forgiveness
of our sins." This may be followed by silence and the
confession (page 407, if it is known by heart), concluded
by the presiding priest with an absolution or a suitable
collect. Or the bidding may be followed by an appropriate
prayer.
For example: God, the source of all unity,
your risen Christ gave peace to the disciples,
look not on our sins but on the faith of your church
and grant us the peace and unity of your kingdom
now and for ever.
Amen.
Such a prayer leads naturally into the Peace.
4. A rite of sprinkling with water may be used in the
Gathering of the Community. This might be especially
appropriate in the Easter Season.
The
font filled with water may provide the focus, or a vessel
containing water may be placed before the presider who
addresses the assembly in these or similar
words:
Dear friends, in baptism we have been buried
and raised to new life with Christ,
may God keep us faithful to the Spirit given to us.
Let us give thanks to God.
It
is right to offer thanks and praise.
We thank you, God, for your love in all creation,
especially for your gift of water
to sustain, refresh and cleanse all life.
May this water remind us of our baptism
in which we were born anew
and made members of your forgiven people.
May Christ keep us faithful to our calling,
now and for ever.
Amen.
(There may be a silent moment
of confession.) The assembly is sprinkled. An appropriate
song may be sung. Either the Collect of the Day, a Song of
Praise, or an absolution or prayer for forgiveness follows.
For example:
Loving God,
through this Eucharist we celebrate
cleanse us of our sins
so that we may come to share your eternal banquet;
in Jesus' name we pray.
Amen.
The
Collect of the Day
Along with the greeting, the Collect of the Day lies at the
heart of the Gathering of the Community. Originally the
readings at the Eucharist were preceded by nothing more
than a greeting. In various traditions at different times
there have been forms of "variable prayers" at this point.
It appears that during the fifth century an evolution
occurred in the West which resulted in the collect as we
now have it. It was used to gather (or "collect") the
various members in preparation for corporate worship, and
it did this by "collecting" the silent prayers of the
community. With the renewal of the corporate understanding
of Christian worship, particularly in the Eucharist, the
Collect may yield surprising fruit.
The presider invites everyone to pray. All then pray in
silence. When they have prayed sufficiently the presider
draws the praying together in the Collect. This concludes
the Gathering of the Community. An undercurrent of
prayerfulness has been established, and all have been drawn
deeper into their relationship with God and with each
other.
Like a
sonnet or haiku, the traditional collect has a particular
structure. A collect may have five parts which may be
summarised as follows (illustrated by the "Collect for
Purity"):
You
(Address) "Almighty
God,"
Who
(Attribution) "to whom
all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no
secrets are hidden;"
Do
(Petition) "cleanse
the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy
Spirit,"
To
(Consequence) "so that
we may truly love you and worthily praise your holy name;"
Through
(Mediation) "through
our Saviour, Jesus Christ."
The simplest collects have an
address (You), petition (Do), and mediation (Through).
Those people using the Three Year Series can use the Prayer
Book's crossreference to the Two Year Series for a suitable
collect or find this in The New Zealand
Lectionary. They may also use an appropriate
collect from any source (page 691), or they may prefer to
produce their own.
In order to write a collect it is best to begin
constructing the petition (Do) first. The address (You) and
attribution (Who) can then be written in tune with the
petition. In contemporary English the attribution (the
"Who" section) is now more generally in a "you..." form
rather than a "who..." form. For example, "Everloving God,
you anointed Jesus..." is preferable to "Everloving God,
who anointed Jesus..."
At the Eucharist we gather as Christ's body, and pray in
Christ's name, hence the Collect at the Eucharist is
traditionally addressed to God or to the first person of
the Trinity. In this regard it is worth noting that prayer
to Jesus is not a scriptural phenomenon (for an exception
see the acclamation in Acts 7:59). Prayer to Jesus grew in
reaction to Arianism. Growth of such prayer blurred the
understanding of Christ's mediatorial role and contributed
to saints acting as mediators in popular piety. Collects in
the Prayer Book addressed to Jesus or the Spirit might be
used in other services or form the basis of original
compositions.
Collects need to have a clear and consistent mediation (the
final section) so that the congregation can respond with
their "Amen." When collects end abruptly without a clear
mediation, the leader's "Amen" often becomes the cue for
the congregation's "Amen." This not only gives a disheveled
effect, but usurps the congregation's proper role in the
prayer.
A useful guide for this conclusion of the Collect is: "this
we ask through Jesus (Christ) your Word/ our Redeemer/ our
peacemaker ... who lives (and reigns)/ who is alive with
you ... and the Holy Spirit, one God now and for ever."
When the Collect is used to gather the community (pages
408, 460, 479) a bidding, indicating the petition, can be
helpful before the brief silence. If a theme is being
followed this bidding may also indirectly point towards it.
Using a synonym of the petition saves a stilted repetition.
The bidding is preferably not too narrow, however. What is
sought is a broad and deep silent prayer at the beginning
of the service.
On the First Sunday in Advent, for example, one could have:
Let us pray (in a moment of silence) that we may be ready
for Christ's coming.
Silence.
Almighty God,
give us grace to cast off the works of darkness
and put on the armour of light,
now in the time of this mortal life,
in which your Son Jesus Christ came to us in great
humility;
so that when he shall come again in his glorious majesty
we may rise to the life immortal;
through him who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit,
one God now and for ever.
Amen.
(page 550)
When the silence before the Collect is first introduced it
may help to use words such as "Let us pray in silence
that..." Some misinterpret "Let us pray" to mean "Please
kneel." As at this point a change of posture is
inappropriate, the presider for a while might need to say:
"As we remain standing, let us pray..."
During the Gathering of the Community the presider will
need hands free for gestures. It is helpful if an assistant
or a small, unobtrusive lectern holds the Prayer Book.
Announcing, for example, "The (Sentence and) Collect (for
the First Sunday in Advent)" unnecessarily interrupts the
flow of the service. When using the Three Year Series,
announcing the origin of the Collect is completely
incongruous. For example, on The Second Sunday in Advent
announcing "The Collect for the Ninth Sunday after
Pentecost" would be totally absurd!
After the brief silence, the presider, standing, stretches
the hands out in the orans
position, the classic
Christian gesture for prayer. This gesture is customarily
used in contemporary worship for all prayers said by the
presider on behalf of the congregation. The presider says
or sings the Collect in the name of the community. The
presider, by the gesture of drawing the hands together at
the end of the collect, encourages the congregation to
respond with a strong "Amen."
The Prayer Book requires only a single collect. Having more
than one collect makes no sense in the understanding of the
collect's function presented here. Where
A New Zealand
Prayer Book gives more than one collect for a
day, these are alternatives. If one day has more than one
commemoration this does not lead to more than one collect.
The alternative commemoration may be included in the
Prayers of the People. Furthermore, where several
alternative collects are given for a day, one might be used
or adapted to conclude the Prayers of the People (see page
412).
Some Questions
The author proposes certain liturgical forms to gather the
community and "establishing the mood of the service." As
you think about your experience of liturgy can you list
alternative suggestions, or ideas that can be added to the
suggestions here while taking account of the background
information offered?
