Time-Honored Traditions from a Lutheran Perspective
Lori Rosenkvist, Editorial Team Leader and Associate Publisher, Logos Productions, Inc. Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, Maplewood, Minnesota

I have spent every conscious moment of my life on earth as a Lutheran layperson. Born into a Lutheran family, I did not make a choice about my denomination. I was baptized at six weeks and given a share of this particular family of God. I grew up in one congregation, in one community, with one set of parents. I went to church weekly because it was what we did. And I loved it.

And because of my beginnings in the church, it is hard to identify its distinctiveness. In reflection, though, I would say the two church traditions that have most shaped my faith over the years is valuing the importance of words and the discipline of worship.

As a child, I spent nearly as much time in Sunday school as in church - an hour each week. But in my recollection, I learned most about what it is to be Lutheran by participating in worship. From a very young age, I loved words. My earliest memory of church is standing in a pew at about age 3, singing loudly my favorite song, "On Our Way to Aunt Joyce's" (better-known by most as "On Our Way Rejoicing"). To me, that's a sign of how comfortable church was for me. I did not think it strange that my church had a hymn about my favorite aunt, Joyce. I thought it was great that apparently everyone at church loved her as much as I did!

For me, words and memorization were an integral part of Lutheran worship. The liturgical form of worship is largely repeated, from week to week. The rhythms of the seasons of the church year were marked by changing colors of altar paraments and clergy vestments. They were reinforced by the lectionary scripture texts and hymn selections. At an early age, I decided to stop using the hymnbook for the order of service, believing secretly in the virtue of having all the words memorized. As a youth, I had several solitary jobs where I would sing to myself to pass the time, and the hymnal became a ready source of texts to learn.

In junior high, Lutheran youth spend several years as part of the confirmation program. In addition to the usual participation in Sunday school and church, a Wednesday night class became a part of the schedule. In my congregation, the first year of weekly classes explored the Old Testament, the second year explored the New Testament, and the third year explored Lutheran doctrine. In my mind, the value of words was rising - the right words in the right order made for the right faith for my adolescent mind. Because I felt at home in this congregation, I wanted to know everything. I wanted the facts! I wanted to own it.

To an outsider, this may all sound somewhat disturbing, and it is challenging for me to explain it all in the right tone. I think that while the climate of faith nurture that I have described here is fairly universal for Lutherans, even today, I would also emphasize that this experience may be very individual to me, my family, and the time in which I grew up. No one ever said to me, "It is important to know the right words," or even, "these are the right words." But through repetition and availability, I gave them value so that today, it is not difficult for me, once prompted, to recite much of the Small Catechism. The words on the pages have found a home in me. They had helped to provide a sense of stability as I searched for faith and meaning in my life. The head knowledge has become heart knowledge.

This Lutheran experience of faith formation seems to have these characteristics:

high value on uniform and "right" doctrine
asks the individual to do theological work
high concern for the integration of worship and education
an assumption that the person will participate in the faith community over a long period of years, not just occasionally

Now that I am an adult and am raising a daughter in this same denomination, I still see these same characteristics at work. However, the patterns have changed significantly for us. Our family attends church regularly, but we attend nowhere near the 99.9% of services I attended as a child. I wonder what happens to a denomination or congregation when the assumption is made that people will attend faithfully, week after week, when in reality many children spend time shuttling between sets of parents in different communities, or when other things take precedence over "church time" as they sometimes do in my home.

My daughter does not believe Sunday school is worth her time. She likes worship and is annoyed when it changes much from week to week. Although she is a child of contemporary culture, she would rather use familiar liturgy than be surprised by new translations and unfamiliar prayers. I am surprised by it all!

Now, as an editor in an ecumenical arena, I have learned even more about the weight and value of words. Because I know and love my own story, I can listen to and appreciate the stories of others instead of feeling threatened by them. I think there is hope for the ecumenical spirit when someone as "Lutheran" as I am can be excited about this big, shared world!

The value of words and the discipline of worship continue to be at the heart of my faith. I'm thankful to my Lutheran heritage for the gifts it has provided me as I continue to learn and grow.

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