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Challenge your RE skills in this interesting quiz.
Christianity - Worship: Where and How
Christian worship happens in many places and styles. Learn how Christians worship in church and at home, and why services, prayer, and sacraments matter.
1 .
When Jesus was once asked about how best to pray, the gist of His response was:
Do it in public, at least as loud as the others
It only works properly if you're in a recognised religious building
Go somewhere quiet and private and talk to your Heavenly Father
God won't listen unless you use the right words
For private devotions (the core of faith), simple sincerity is the key. Answer 1 refers to a deliberately 'bad example' adjacent in His teaching; Answer 2 may seem unhelpful but is certainly not an essential requirement; Answer 4 would rule out spontaneous 'arrow prayers' ~ which would be very sad and unhelpful to the believer in one of life's momentary tight-spots.
2 .
It might be easy enough to imagine that first great Christian convert and missionary, St Paul, arriving in a new port somewhere around the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, greeting a Christian contact (if any) and then asking 'Take me and show me the Church'. Why would that NOT have been likely, or even possible?
The early Church typically consisted of groups of believers who had to meet in secret, and such a faith-community was the Church; but they would not have dared (or afforded) to build a place of worship that others might identify and attack
At that early stage there was no precedent or style for church-building, so any such structure would have been unremarkable and blended-in with its surroundings
The believers did not feel they should be sinking large amounts of money into physical facilities, rather than welfare and 'good-works' programmes ~ hence an absence of purpose-built 'churches'
There was so much suspicion about early Christians (e.g. distorted 'urban myths' about their communion meetings ~ supposedly involving cannibalism), that nobody would dare use the word 'church' in a public place where they might be overheard and come under suspicion
'Church' ('ekklesia') was originally a community of people, rather than a physical landmark identified as its headquarters. There may be plausible elements in each of the false answers ... but only answer 1 is essentially true.
3 .
Which of the following broadly paraphrased statements has NEVER, at any time, been held-to by a recognisable portion of the worldwide Church as a whole?
'Music is the work of the Devil and should, as such, have no place in Christian worship'
'Music lifts the soul and brings us nearer to God; we cannot possibly worship without music'
'Serve the Lord with gladness, and come before His presence with a song'
(Each of the above represents an official position in one or another time and context)
Answer 1 has a strong whiff of the Puritanical about it (you could look that up; but remember that prior to the Restoration, English people were liable to punishment for trying to celebrate Christmas!); Answer 2 is more (dare we say) 'in tune' with the lower-church and nonconformist ethos, such as of the Methodists (traditionally staunch singers) and Pentecostalists (somewhat as in Gospel Choirs), though there is of course also a rich legacy of sublime and elaborate church music in the Catholic, Anglican and other denominations. Answer 3 harks back to Psalm 100 in the Old Testament (and hence, sung worship as Jesus Himself would have known it).
4 .
Again there will probably be exceptions ~ but for churches that follow a Liturgy (i.e. they use a set 'Prayer Book' with organised services, rather than seeing themselves as spontaneous and 'Spirit-led'), most such services will include certain standard spoken elements. Which of the following would most likely happen FIRST within such a service?
At least one reading from Scripture (or probably two: one from the Old, one from the New Testament)
A sermon (otherwise known as an Address, Talk or Homily) in which the minister (or equivalent) will 'unpack' the Bible reading and explore how it is relevant to congregants' daily lives
A time of prayer, usually led by one individual and probably concluding with the Lord's Prayer said together
Times when the congregation collectively confesses and apologises for past sins, and reaffirms its faith by reciting a Creed together
Confession would need to come first, since without 'wiping the slate clean of sin' (our phrase rather than the Church's), we would not be worthy to approach God's presence. The remaining 3 elements would then probably follow from the top of our order here: Scripture reading, exposition by a spiritual leader, then prayers in the light of that. There would be plenty of other items (set prayers for given days of the church year; in more traditional circles, a 'hymn sandwich' in which the congregation gets to express its collective faith through song as well as speech, at various stages of the service) ...
5 .
The second word of the Lord's Prayer, in most (if not all) mainstream English versions, is 'Father'; what is the second word of most forms of the Creed?
... praise ...
... pray ...
... believe ...
... want ...
'Creed' comes from the Latin verb 'credo' ('I believe'), from which we also derive the adjectives 'credible/incredible' (= that which can, or can't, be believed). Depending on the context and tradition, individual worshippers would start this part of the service by declaring 'I' or 'we believe' (hence our focus on the 2nd word, rather than the 1st!). Answers 1 and 2 might be plausible at other times within worship, but it would be unusual for those in church to approach God in so baldly selfish a manner as to tell Him 'I/we WANT ... ! (Even if asking Him for some blessing on behalf of other people!)
Please note that we offer a separate quiz elsewhere which begins unpacking Christian beliefs through the Creeds.
Please note that we offer a separate quiz elsewhere which begins unpacking Christian beliefs through the Creeds.
6 .
Where does Christianity, in general, stand on the matter of whether its buildings &/or worshippers ought to be facing in a particular direction? Choose ONE of the following which is the probably most generally true.
Many churches nowadays, where structurally practicable, are adapting their interiors to focus on a 'nave altar' (i.e. towards the 'old front' of their main assembly area, rather than 'right up at the sharp end where hardly anyone could see'). This may involve taking out some old pews (which may not greatly matter, if the congregation is now fewer in number than these were originally put in to seat) ~ while the sightlines, audibility and sense of closer involvement are generally seen as a welcome overall improvement in terms of the texture of worship. But in such a 'church-in-the-round', a congregant could be facing the altar from almost any corner of the compass except, probably, the east
All Christians believe that worship should be led 'from the front' by a priest, or equivalent
Church buildings, wherever architecturally practical, have their focus at the East end, facing the rising sun (and thus tapping into the symbolism of resurrection, light and hope)
It is accepted that during the Creed, everyone stands and faces the church's high altar ~ which should be at the official east end
Answer 1 may well be increasingly true (your author could name several such churches, including St Helen's in Abingdon ~
St Helen's) but still wouldn't be by any means 'general' across the Christian spectrum; meanwhile, several types of Christians would regard answer 2 as somewhat old-fashioned, and not every place of Christian worship uses set Creeds as such nor has a High Altar, nor any tradition of having to turn towards it.
This leaves us with answer 3, which is broadly and traditionally true ... and nobody's likely to start turning-round the entire outer shells of substantial existing church buildings, in the name of liturgical precision!
This leaves us with answer 3, which is broadly and traditionally true ... and nobody's likely to start turning-round the entire outer shells of substantial existing church buildings, in the name of liturgical precision!
7 .
In which of the following situations might a gathering acceptably remain completely silent throughout?
Quakers (the Religious Society of Friends) at a meeting
A community of monks or nuns at worship
An Amish funeral
Choral Evensong at an Anglican Cathedral
A silent meeting (full of prayer and contemplation, but when nobody felt spiritually moved to take a lead and contribute anything aloud) can happen in the best of faith from time to time. Monastic communities (answer 2) would almost certainly join in chanting Psalms, prayers and various responses; the Amish (answer 3) would be as likely as anyone to have spoken prayers; and a choral evensong (answer 4) with a silent choir would be a frustratingly futile worship experience! (It perhaps bears saying, though, that when a trained choir takes the lead, in live performance of a high quality, the congregation may not feel it gets much chance to open its mouth ~ except for the occasional spoken 'Amen' and perhaps a token hymn or two at either end of the service!)
8 .
Which of the following represents the LEAST likely, widespread or regular use for candles in connection with Christian worship?
As a sanctuary lamp, to quietly signal that the reserved sacrament is kept available from the most recent communion service
As a symbolic gift to the newly-baptised (or their parents / guardians)
To represent progress through the penitential season of Advent &/or, possibly, Lent, with the prospect of the Light of God drawing closer
In symmetrical pairs on the main altar, representing the Epistle and Gospel sides (alias Cantoris and Decani) during worship
Any of these is entirely reasonable depending on your church tradition; but if only by definition, baptisms are presumably more 'occasional' than any of these other uses.
9 .
Some of the more major and traditional branches of the Christian church change the colour scheme of their liturgical linen (altar frontals, priestly garments and suchlike) according to the time of the church's year, so that the colour helps to signal an occasion and evoke a mood.
All through the summer (after Trinity and well into the autumn) the default colour is usually green; there are also white, red and blue, and rather occasionally other possibilities. Blue/violet is for penitential and preparatory seasons (Advent before Christmas; Lent before Easter); white represents innocence (the birth at Christmas; festivals involving the Spirit, such as non-martyred saints and the conversion of Paul); which of the following is NOT a liturgical significance of red?
All through the summer (after Trinity and well into the autumn) the default colour is usually green; there are also white, red and blue, and rather occasionally other possibilities. Blue/violet is for penitential and preparatory seasons (Advent before Christmas; Lent before Easter); white represents innocence (the birth at Christmas; festivals involving the Spirit, such as non-martyred saints and the conversion of Paul); which of the following is NOT a liturgical significance of red?
Special days marking the Passion of Christ (i.e. as representing His blood shed, e.g. on 'Good Friday')
The feast day of All Saints
Feast days of matryred saints
Festivals referencing the power of the Holy Spirit, principally Pentecost ~ plus (by extension) for Confirmation services
All Saints are honoured collectively in white (presumably since not all of them were bloodily martyred, and all are now 'clean' in the hereafter anyhow); the remaining symbolisms ought largely to explain themselves. Answer 4 refers to the coming of 'tongues of fire' (see early in the Acts of the Apostles).
10 .
'Surely any church worthy of that name ought to contain an organ?'
... Well, if you were hoping to 'sing along', there could be plenty of good reasons why you may not find one. Which of these would you consider the saddest, or weakest?
... Well, if you were hoping to 'sing along', there could be plenty of good reasons why you may not find one. Which of these would you consider the saddest, or weakest?
'Our denomination doesn't hold with congregational singing; never has, never will; and would begrudge the space and expense of anything so complex and indulgent as an organ'
'The days of the mechanical organ have been and gone, and we felt we needed to free up precious space for other activities. An electronic keyboard meanwhile takes up a barest fraction of the room'
'We couldn't find anyone that knew how to play it'
'We have a Worship Band now, which is far more lively and brings in a younger congregation'
Yes, answer 3 is probably the saddest ~ if there is still a real instrument in playable condition. An active organist (such as your author) might take any of the others as a cue for lively debate, but one can at least appreciate the supposed speakers' reasons.
This present space is probably not the appropriate forum to do any more than raise the observation that any church, as a living entity, is bound to move on in the way it articulates its traditions (it would otherwise be unhealthy!); hence it does need to ask itself occasional quite painful questions about its purpose, its style and its infrastructure ... which more or less brings us back to the overall point of the present quiz!
This present space is probably not the appropriate forum to do any more than raise the observation that any church, as a living entity, is bound to move on in the way it articulates its traditions (it would otherwise be unhealthy!); hence it does need to ask itself occasional quite painful questions about its purpose, its style and its infrastructure ... which more or less brings us back to the overall point of the present quiz!
You can find more about this topic by visiting BBC Bitesize - The Christian Church: Worship and buildings
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