Post-Christian narratives for liturgical formation: formation, worship, and mission at Alger Park Church

Abstract

<p>After some unexpected shifts in my own faith journey, and in the faith journeys of some people I deeply love, I found myself wondering how I, and my friends and neighbors who have left or never known the church, might meet God together at the same time, and in the same place. I wondered about how Alger Park Church might become an outpost of mission in our neighborhood. I wondered if there were new ways to communicate God’s goodness to people who aren’t yet familiar.</p> <p>The result of my wondering is this project, which is comprised of a literature review and a Narrative Inquiry qualitative study of ten post-Christian people in order to explore the ways their narratives can inform the way worship leaders design and host worship events.</p> <p>The thesis of my project is that listening to the narratives of post-Christian people can inform the way pastors and worship leaders craft and lead worship in order to create an atmosphere where Christians and post-Christian people can be formed side-by-side in worship together. Listening to the stories of post-Christian people gives voice to a growing population of people who find themselves unaffected by the voice of the church and find little or no connection to the Christian message. Pastors and worship leaders listening to the stories of these people can better draw out themes in the liturgy that will communicate not just to Christian, but post-Christian people as well.</p> <p>The purpose of my project is to help worship leaders and designers consider how they can speak to and be heard by both Christian and post-Christian people in worship. The findings of my project will illustrate the ways post-Christian people might best engage in the liturgy and offer insights to worship leaders and designers on how to enable this engagement.</p>