Posted on 07/06/2011 7:07:50 AM PDT by Bed_Zeppelin
This is the sermon that EVERY Preacher, Rabbi and Priest shoud preach this weekend: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinners_in_the_Hands_of_an_Angry_God
I would probably go if I were shorter.
I would go to church if there were no Obama voters there.
Very true about the self-discipline though. Thats why my parents made me do it—to BUILD attention span, to BUILD self-discipline.
Sometimes I wonder whether it is really the public that has the short attention span, or if it’s all the fault of the drive by media that swarms on one thing for a day a week a month and then swoooosh, off to the next tragedy.
Thanks for the ping, Sir! Hi!
In answer to the question, since the purpose of worship is to honor God and for His benefit, length shouldn’t be a consideration.
That said,we, at the place where I worship, sing hymns, sing all the verses and the preacher’s sermons average about 40 minutes twice on Sunday, so I guess we take as long as needed to do honor to our Lord and not any more or less. :)
Yes; the infamous “7-11” choruses. LOL!
An overhead with the lyrics and music of the older hymns would be OK, but how can a person “sing” a song he doesn’t know if only the lyrics are provided? Without the printed notes, a person has no choice but to flail along, on the off chance he’ll hit the correct note once in a while. Most people can’t read music any more; it’s a lost skill and consistent with the general dumbing-down of our society.
In the age of rap where melodies, harmonies, etc., are non-existent, I guess we can’t expect better.
>>>Most people can’t read music any more; it’s a lost skill and consistent with the general dumbing-down of our society.<<<
You are correct, but doesn’t this make the notes in the hymnbooks of little help? If most of the congregation can’t get the tune by reading the notes, the main advantage (other than portability) of the hymnbook over the screen is lost.
Don’t get me wrong, I love hymnbooks and own several. However, they hold a limited number of songs, and none of them contain anything close to all the great hymns of the church. I like singing out of them in church, but I’d love to see some great hymns that are not in them go up on the screen.
I think most people learn the tunes of hymns (or any song for that matter) by listening to them being sung or by the musical accompaniment. I usually learn new hymn tunes by listening to them over and over on Cyberhymnal.
In my experience, the tunes to hymns are generally easier to pick up after hearing them a couple of times than those of modern songs. I also find the melodies of many modern songs more difficult to sing, especially for men.
I go to the early morning mass. No sermon. No choir.
Church for me is contemplative not congregative.
>>>Any sermon over 30 minutes is a vanity.<<<
Tell that to the Apostle Paul. :-)
“7 Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. 8 There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together. 9 And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Paul continued speaking, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. 10 But Paul went down, fell on him, and embracing him said, “Do not trouble yourselves, for his life is in him.” 11 Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long while, even till daybreak, he departed. 12 And they brought the young man in alive, and they were not a little comforted. - Acts 20: 7- 12
This is a great sermon too:
http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/0060.htm
“Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else.”—Isaiah 45:22.
**Would You Go to Church if Services Were Shorter?**
No, because I would miss part of the Mass, and it is all important!
The Mass has its own pace. A solemn mass shouldn’t take more than half an hour. Easter Vigil might take three hours.
What is problematic is when egos bring the Mass to a screeching halt. When the priest stops the Mass at the beginning to explain what the readings will be and to give a mini homily. When the band gallumps on and on inflicting verse after insipid verse while the priest just stands there waiting for the caterwauling to end so that the Mass can continue. When the Kiss of Peace turns into a cluster hug.
If the Mass SEEMS long, then someone is doing something wrong.
I, too, collect hymnals. My favorites are “Great Hymns Of Tbe Faith” and “Inspiring Hymns”.
Our SBC church got new hymnals last month, and most of the great old hymns have totally disappeared and been replaced with the trite little ditties. (Actually, most of the TRULY great hymns disappeared 20-30 years ago.)
I guess I “don’t get” listening to something recorded to learn a tune but I understand that people do that.
Cyberhymnal is cool if you want to find and print an old hymn that’s in public domain. Also, the Noteworthy application connected with it is fun to play with.
I supppose one could always find a place of worship that tweeted its services.
I think 3 hours is a bit long and honestly am curious just what a 3 hour service consists of?
What are some of your favorite hymns?
The service starts at 11:30 am. Everybody fellowships for awhile, the pastor has some introductory comments, announcements are made, communion once a month. Then around noon the praise and worship begins and usually lasts half an hour. The next two hours is spent on the sermon and individual prayer and prophecy.(which sometimes lasts longer than the sermon).
I've been at services that lasted 6 to 8 hours and didn't mind because the Spirit of God was moving. Other times it's been grueling to sit through 2 or 3 hours. As some others have mentioned, it's about self-discipline.
Btw my pastor is black as is about half the congregation. It makes for an interesting mix of worship, sermon, and fellowship. I'm truly blessed.
I could sit and listen to my Pastor for hours. The Associate Pastor looses me after 15 minutes when he starts repeating himself. The first 15 minutes were sufficient in getting his message across - the next 15 minutes are just filler.
It is quality we should be after and not quantity.
loses me not looses me.....sheesh!
I’ve been to services that lasted 50 mins and felt like two hours but been to two hour services that felt like 20 mins. If the Spirit is moving time is irrelevant. Sometimes I have to forcibly stop our prayer group after three hours otherwise we will get kicked out. Praise G-d!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.