When we talk about “liturgy” in the church, we are talking about the form of public worship, including the words that are spoken, sung, and chanted as well as the actions, rites and rituals that are observed. The Greeks first used the word leitourgia for the public worship services and rituals performed for their gods, and the word has since been adopted by Jews, Christians, and even Muslims and Buddhists to describe their worship.
While some churches distinguish their worship as “liturgical” or “nonliturgical” in regard to whether or not their services are scripted and formal or more improvised and informal, nearly all churches have a standardized form of worship which is, essentially, a liturgy. The liturgy we use in Lutheran worship, primarily the settings we find in the Lutheran Service Book, is based on God’s Word, derived from the Scriptures and having proven profitable to our faith over the course of many centuries by Christians throughout the world. When we share a common structure to our worship with other Christians and repeat the words of Scripture as they are used by many other fellow believers, we also promote unity with Christians throughout the world and throughout time. Repetition of the liturgy also helps us to memorize God’s Word and write it on our hearts so we can remember it and use it in our daily lives.
In Lutheranism, the eucharistic liturgy (communion service) is often referred to as the “Divine Service,” a translation of the German word “Hauptgottesdienst.” By referring to our Sunday services as Divine Services, we have a way to express that our worship is about both God’s service to us and our service to God as a response. This is much more than a “worship service,” which implies that what is happening is primarily about what we are doing for God. Talking about the Divine Service brings our focus back to Christ and His work.
Our forefathers in Lutheranism also warned against becoming too rigid with our worship. While there is value in unity and uniformity in worship (just as there is value in being able to go to any Starbucks and using their language to order a drink just how we like it), our human nature can lead us to become legalistic and judgmental when something is different. Consider the following quotes from the Book of Concord, which we as Lutherans consider to be a true exposition of Holy Scripture and a correct exhibition of the doctrine of the Lutheran church:
“We believe, teach, and confess that no church should condemn another because it has fewer or more external ceremonies not commanded by God, as long as there is mutual agreement in doctrine and in all its articles as well as in the right use of the holy sacraments, according to the familiar axiom, ‘Disagreement in fasting does not destroy agreement in faith.’”
Formula of Concord, Epitome X, 7
“We believe, teach, and confess that the community of God in every time and place has the right, power, and authority to change, reduce, or expand such practices according to circumstances in an orderly and appropriate manner, without frivolity or offense, as seems most useful, beneficial, and best for good order, Christian discipline, evangelical decorum, and the building up of the church.”
Formula of Concord, The Solid Declaration X, 9
Every church is unique because the people in them are unique. We should not let minor things such as the instruments that are used in worship or the specific elements in the liturgy distract us from our focus on the gifts God provides for us when we partake in Word and Sacrament. Agreement in doctrine and the right use of the sacraments is essential, but the different practices and ceremonies used in worship should never lead us to judge or condemn our brothers and sisters in Christ. Instead, we can rejoice in both the unity of faith and the diversity of faithful practices we have with millions of other Lutherans with whom we share fellowship around the world.