Lectionary fade?

By Anthony B. Robinson

Is devotion to the Common Lectionary fading? In the ‘70s and ‘80s many mainline Protestant preachers embraced the Common Ecumenical Lectionary for a variety of reasons: to combat biblical illiteracy in congregations, to make sure sermons were biblical, to witness to the unity of the church, to ensure a wider variety of scripture on the congregation's menu, and to enhance coordination with music and education programs.

But my own unscientific soundings suggest that Common Lectionary usage is not as common as it once was.

Perhaps preachers, having marched through the cycle several times, need fresh material. Perhaps the format, which tends to emphasize the canonical Gospels, overlooks other things. Perhaps the Common Lectionary, despite its various benefits, has a significant downside that is becoming more of an issue in a post-Christendom, postmodern culture.

The Common Lectionary pre-supposes a fairly high level of liturgical and biblical literacy and comfort in the congregation. It assumes one can listen to the three or four lessons and provide the canonical context, knowing, for example, how 1 Samuel or Exodus or Colossians fits in to the whole story. Listeners know that this is the year of Luke, but John gets inserted in every year, so they have a sense of Luke and of John and their differences. Beyond this, listeners understand the liturgical year. They “get" Advent, Pentecost, Trinity, etc.

But do congregations have all of this? Sometimes pastors are dealing with graduate-school Christians, but others among us are at elementary or middle-school level. What is the appropriate biblical and sermonic meal (feast), the one that will prove palatable, digestible and nutritional to those at the table? Is the lectionary the equivalent of a quite elaborate and refined menu, when what people need is meat and potatoes (but not fast food)?

A great DMin. project would be to develop one or more "Lectionaries for the Un or Less Churched," or "Lectionaries for Those Who Have No Clue Where to Find Ephesians or Elijah." Some, like Rick Warren, get around this by planning life-situation sermon series. Others work through a book of the Bible. How about a lectionary (one- or three-year) that helps people "get" the Bible or scriptures of the church without assuming they that already do? Such a lectionary would have, not three or four readings for a service, but only one or two. It would include certain blocks of scripture that people need to have as part of their formation in the faith. It would recognize that however good a congregation’s teaching ministry or adult education program, worship is still the prime time for addressing a congregation.

A friend in the Pacific Northwest took the idea of the Mountaineers and developed "The Ten Essentials." Just as there are Ten Essentials needed in the wilderness (water, compass, map, etc.), there are Ten Essential Biblical Stories that you have to have before you go into the world. "It's too dangerous out there if you don't have these." She based a year of sermons on the Ten Essentials, which she enlarged to 14.

Some readers may be thinking, "Well, that's not the lectionary." No, it's not The Common Ecumenical Lectionary (revised or otherwise), but it is a lectionary, since a lectionary is nothing more than an appointed set of scriptural readings for worship and preaching. Has Lectionary use declined? If so, is this because the Common Lectionary asks too much of congregations (and maybe preachers)? What other kinds of lectionaries might help people to get the scriptures, perhaps for the first time?

Anthony B. Robinson is a speaker and consultant. He is author, most recently, of Common Grace: How to Be a Person and Other Spiritual Matters (Sasquatch).

Comments

[John C. Bonser]

You provide quite a bit of food for thought. Hopefully most of us will not dig in and defend our positions without giving thought to some alternatives.

Use of the Common Lectionary imposes a dicipline on preachers who need to study the lessons, attempt to understand how they are related, and see how they address today's life situations.

Years ago as a young pastor I attended a pastor's meeting the Monday after Selma. I still cringe when I remember the clergyman who laughed and said "I didn't see a reference to Selma in the pericope." He represents those who would use the lectionary as a protective wall that hides the gospel and makes our proclamation irrelevant.

[Jim]

Interesting. I graduated from seminary two years ago where the lectionary was the perferred form for preaching, and I swore that would be my mode of preaching.

But when I got out into the pastorate I found I got tons more energy out of doing sermon series.

I still try to follow the church calendar and in some seasons I stick with the lectionary, but I still find the sermon series a more effective way to engage people in the pews as well as myself.

[Jason Byassee]

James Howell first pointed out to me that enormously important stories are left out of the lectionary: Samson appears not at all, for example. Richard Hays showed me that passages pertaining to judgement are notoriously absent, often awkwardly excised (eg. 12:1, 2-5, 8-10). If you look at the OT passages assigned for later in the summer, it's tiny bits from the major prophets, usually just their call stories, again with anything weird or judgemental removed. That is, we get prophets without prophecy...

[Chris Duckworth]

Despite its shortcomings, I think that we should hesitate before jettisoning the lectionary. It provides an overall discipline to the preacher and worship leaders, a stumbling block to crafting sermons and worship services that address a narrow set of pet topics. Furthermore, the lectionary offers the congregation a broad swath of the Scripture over three years.

Jason wrote: The Common Lectionary pre-supposes a fairly high level of liturgical and biblical literacy and comfort in the congregation. I do not agree. For better or worse, I don't think that most worshippers think about what passages are read from week to week (particularly because most worshippers don't come every week!) - so long as the preacher and worship leaders make use of the texts in meaningful ways through the sermon, hymns, prayers or other music. Whether the texts are chosen by Rick Warren or a committee of moderate-liberal academics makes little difference. The difference is how the local preacher and worship leaders make use of those texts.

However, let's not make more of the lectionary than it is due. Worship is not the only part of the church's life. Christian education and Bible Study, for example, can and should fill in the gaps in the lectionary for the folks in the pews. Education is NOT the primary purpose of worship - prayer, praise, an encounter with the divine, and, well worship, is the point of worship. Let folks read about Samson and Noah (which only shows up in the Easter Vigil) and many other rich Biblical texts in times of fellowship and study.

[Lyndon]

I dare say that most preachers have a "canon within a canon" already. When i read sermon's by John Donne or Karl Barth, contained within their choice of scripture and the context of their sermon lay some common threads that repeat from sermon to sermon. The Lectionary simply provides both discipline to engage texts not of our own choosing, and liturgical sense and formation to living within the church's calendar. If we wish to cover all the texts then i think the Daily Office provides the best approach - all the bible in two years.

As i type this i realize that a "canon within a canon" can lead to all sorts of concerns. To preach Christ without the cross or prophets without judgment, or grace without law is to miss the boat - that i would agree. However the entire liturgy - word, song and sacrament - is how we participate in divine worship. On any given Sunday, consumption of the Word made Flesh may communicate Christ better than the Gospel proclaimed.

[Clay Knick]

Why not do both? I use the
lectionary very often, but
at times depart from it. If I'm preaching from the Gospel or Epistle lesson and the OT lesson does not
"fit" I'll find another one. And the same is true if I'm using the OT. I
think the lectionary is very useful, but can't agree enough with Jason's
comments above. It is a
good servant, but not a
tyrannt. I preached on
marriage last month and
used my own lectionary.

[Peter Dwyer]

There are many ways to understand the value of a lectionary, particularly a lectionary held in common. Most important, perhaps, is the unity of the Church, which though imperfect at present, is made real through the shared experience of common readings in the liturgy.

Another consideration is the way we learn. Repetition of the lectionary cycle is crucial to retention, while simultaneously allowing us to hear the Word anew in the changing circumstances of our lives.

[Wm. Thomas Martin]

The Lectionary is a rich resource that ought not be abandoned too quickly. It has been the source of my inspiration and my preaching for over thirty years.

It seems to me that the round of Scripture appointed over a three year period draws preacher and people into a profound spiritual place where the readings continue to challenge the patterns of modern life and thought.

Also, it continues to seem to me that we are in the midst of a quiet, and not very recognized, reformation, as many different denominations are hearing the same passages of Scripture every Sunday.

Perhaps what is missing is the opportunity of the hearers to share what they have heard across denomination lines, at each other's dinner table or party.

It is time the Word was broken open and shared, not simply by the "professional" but by those who are hungry for the Good News.

[Richard Brand]

I have used a lectionary now for almost 40 years. I know the feeling of seeing a text for the seventh time.
I think that there are many ways to approach preaching and have used series and preached from whole books from time to time.

What I find troubling in this article is the whole concept of dumbing down. Of expecting less from the congregation, of belittling their intelligence and working on less. I guess Paul had that problem when he said they should be on meat and still are taking the bottle.

Tom Long says that the church needs to constantly be educating those who come to the party late, but it does not have to stop the party. Maybe we need to take a few seconds to give context, history before the scripture readings. To explain somethings before we launch our sermon. Fred Craddock was supposed to have come out before the call to worship and had little teaching moments about the text and the context.

I don't necessarily believe that the Lectionary is holy, but for heaven sake let's replace it with something just as strong.

Rick Brand

[Michelle Slater]

I am heading into my ninth year of preaching; not a long time compared to some!

I have noticed the same conditions as Anthony Robinson has: that most of our congregation really has no idea what stories are connected to others, or at what time in the history of God's people the story is from.

Two years ago, I decided to begin each fall preaching from Genesis, until the first Sunday of Advent. In the last two autumns, I have made it to Genesis 21! And will continue this fall.

I have had resounding appreciative feedback from the congregation during these sermon series. Many members had not heard the creation stories, the tower of Babel, the flood, etc. since their childhood, and were appreciative for the opportunity to grow that 'Sunday School" faith into something richer, more mature, and more ambiguous.

We have also considered going off lectionary in Lent, so as to be on the same track as our "Godly Play" Sunday school classes.

Michelle Slater

[Bob Cornwall]

I will add that in general I follow the lectionary and find it a useful way of thinking through a pattern to preaching. But at the same time I'm not a slave to it. The lectionary is historically recent to the Disciples tradition, so its use is by choice not by decree.

What I find is that the lectionary forces me to start with Scripture and then reflect on application, rather than come up with a topic and then go looking for something to buttress my ideas!

[Jean Cowdery Kloss]

My preaching professor always recommended preaching on the text from the set of four you didn't want to preach on. In 20 years, there's always been at least one for me. As an interim pastor each cycle's listeners are different, so the sermons are too.

[Jim Peck]

I'm planning a sermon series this fall that examines the theology of some of my congregation's favorite hymns. Many of them have direct connections to Biblical passages. In my mind and practice, a lectionary is a plan for preaching that holds me accountable for struggling with scripture. The plan I have is a lectionary. I venture that almost no one in my congregation knows what an Ebenezer is, beyond a Dickens character.

[Mike P]

Rick Brand says: "What I find troubling in this article is the whole concept of dumbing down. Of expecting less from the congregation, of belittling their intelligence and working on less."

I did not read the article as saying that at all. Rather it calls for a different (not dumber -- not "Fast Food") lectionary that teaches the basic narrative of the Bible in a straightforward way to those who may not have heard it before (or for those who need to hear it again, to lift a phrase from Craddock). By the way, the folks at Easum-Bandy have put together just such an "uncommon lectionary." While I have not yet used it myself, I think it is a very promising tool:

http://www.amazon.com/Introducing-Uncommon-Lectionary-Opening-Disciples/dp/0687496276/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-3623183-4462444?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182456094&sr=8-1

[Bosco Peters]

The joy of the Revised Common Lectionary is that, with slight variations, a majority of Christians use these readings around the world, across denominations, in every language, Sunday by Sunday all around the world. Clergy in local ecumenical groups meet to reflect together prior to Sunday. Contemplatives use them for lectio. Websites provide ideas, music suggestions, resources. Year by year we grow deeper into these readings - not just individually, but together. And not just community by community - but more of the whole of Christ's church as a whole.

Bosco Peters
www.liturgy.co.nz

[Roger Bourland]

It always struck me as a waste of time to spend several minutes of preaching time explaining how the lectionary texts related to one another. Something like doing a crossword puzzle in public. I tried to understand the relationships myself, then chose one, usually, but not always the Gospel, and launched forth, often using the other texts as supportive illustrations.

Worked for me!

Do you miss Arizona, Tony?

Roger

[Newton Cowan]

Great Question!
Several follow up points

1. The use of the Lectionary for small group Bible studies has been over looked. In a small group you can connect the dots with Scriptural Themes. Accomplishing this in Worship is tricky.

2. I am a Christian Educator and a 1st year MDiv student and believe that the Lectionary is a guide for Worship but is not the be all end all way to create a sermon and Worship service. I get very nervous about moving totally to "Life Story" sermon series. The Bible should be our primary guide, but more and more people are saying I want to know more about the bible and how does this apply to me today.

3. The Top Ten things you need is a very creative way to draw people into a conversation about applying scripture to life. The real challenge is for Worship leaders to figure out how to take the Lectionary as a primary guide and help the Scripture come alive.

4. There is good news to share and we have to move from text to real life today. Creating that bridge takes work, but the results are worth it.

I believe one of the greatest challenges facing Ministers today is finding the time to read, reflect and respond.

[Peter Luckey]

Having been a lectionary preacher for the past 25 years (now in the same pulpit for the last 11)I realized I needed a change.
Preaching a sermon series 1)gives me a focus over several weeks and 2)creates interest and engagement from my congregation. Last winter I delivered several sermons on Islam. Many would come up to me in the middle of the week asking, "So what aspect of Islam are you speaking about this Sunday?"

In Tony's article, I was quite impressed with the woman who has been preaching on the ten essential Biblical stories you need before you go out into the world.

I would love to know what, in her view, those ten stories are? Would Tony mind passing on how one might get in touch with the author of that sermon series?

Thank you for the thoughtful article.