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Book Review
A More Profound Alleluia
A Theology and Worship in Harmony
Leanne Van Dyk
Editor, Eerdmans, 2005. 155p
Review by Ray Hoekzema
This particular volume in the Liturgical Studies Series from the Calvin
Institute of Christian Worship highlights the fact that connections need
to be made between our liturgical action and our understanding of God
for worship to be well grounded. The Editor of the Series, John Witvliet,
says it aims for “a more profound alleluia,” a vision that is at once
biblical, compelling, and spiritually nourishing. Apart from an
introduction, the issue of worship is covered in six chapters, each one
pairing an element of the worship service with related Christian
teachings, and illustrated with anecdotes from congregational life,
resources drawn from church history, and themes from novels and films.
William Dyrness, dealing with confession and assurance - sin and grace, says that true worship does not come naturally to us. Fundamentally - because we are sinners. But there are many things that keep us from worship – either from coming to church at all, or, having been persuaded to come, from actually engaging in genuine worship. In some congregations, the confession of sin and the assurance of pardon have dropped out of worship liturgies because they have been judged to be “depressing.” This is a sad misunderstanding of their true function in worship. Will Campbell is quoted as saying: “We’re no damn good, but God loves us anyway.” Confession is necessary, quite simply, because we are sinners. This is the ground and starting point of any true understanding of worship.
In discussing proclamation – revelation and Christology, Leanne Van Dyk asserts that Jesus Christ is present in our worship because Jesus is the leader of our worship. It is he who, sympathizing with our weaknesses ushers us to the throne of grace through the power of the Holy Spirit. It is foolish for us to imagine that we can casually stroll into the presence of God. We don’t deserve to worship God. But God graciously invites us to worship and then provides us with the means to receive communion with and revelation from God – the very presence of Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit. When Scripture is read in gathered worship, Christ is presented to the community of believers. This surely implies that the reading of Scripture ought to be done with preparation and care.
David Stubbs in dealing with the ending of worship - paired with ethics, asserts that in the liturgy, in our worship, we are not simply being presented with information, much less simply being entertained; rather, we are being made into Christians. The ending of the services sum up God’s work in the liturgy and point to the way that God’s transforming work in us is to be lived out in the rest of our lives to the glory of our triune God.
During the last decade or so, scores of books
have been written on worship, which has grown so diverse. A More
Profound Alleluia adds a new dimension to an already wide spectrum of
views. It is thoroughly grounded in the Scriptures and comes with a
clear Reformed perspective.
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