Welcoming Children in Worship

I'm preparing to lead a workshop on "Welcoming Children in Worship" — that is, providing for "children’s full participation with the whole congregation in worship, in Word and Sacrament, on the Lord’s Day," as the Presbyterian Directory for Worship instructs (W-3.1004). I realize that many congregations struggle with this principle. It's not uncommon to dismiss young children to "children's church," or to send kids to Sunday school while their parents are in worship.

But I'm convinced that — at least from kindergarten on — children need to be in public worship. I'm convinced that this is not only best for the Christian formation of children as life long worshipers and believers, but that it truly enhances the spiritual well being and vitality of the whole people of God.

That is not to say that this is an easy transition for most congregations to make. Making worship a place where children are really welcome will likely involve some significant challenges, choices, and changes. Among them: being open to a different kind of energy, and more accepting of a little noise and motion (as one would expect at a festival, rather than a lecture); building in more dependability, structure, and repetition, using consistent words and actions that children can learn and pray by heart; considering different arrangements of liturgical space, and new possibilities for music and art in worship; incorporating more liturgical catechesis into Christian education; encouraging preachers to communicate in ways that bridge generations; training parents, elders, and deacons to be mentors and guides for children in the service of worship (and beyond); and promoting practices in the home that reinforce and deepen children's faith and participation in worship.

Below is a preview of the introduction to the workshop. I would welcome comments, and would be particularly grateful for suggestions of resources to share.

Children have deep and rich spiritual lives. They have real and profound relationships with God, in Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit. Children have significant and vital gifts to bring to the worship of the whole people of God. These gifts include (but are not limited to):

• the offering of authentic prayer and exhuberant praise;
• a sense of wonder and gratitude;
• lively engagement through music, movement, and visual arts;
• the reading and interpretation of Scripture;
• enthusiasm and joy, but also questions and fears;
• genuine concern for neighbors, and willingness to help; and
• a vivid awareness of the presence and action of God in worship and in the world.

Ultimately it comes down to the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism that I learned as a child. What is the chief purpose of human life? To glorify and enjoy God forever. Who better than children to lead and teach us all in glorifying and enjoying God?

Comments

[Theresa Cho]

Thanks for posting this David. I look forward to working with you at Big Tent as youth coordinator. I wrote similarly on this subject as well. http://theresaecho.wordpress.com/2010/08/22/let-the-children-come-intergenerational-worship/

[David Gambrell]

Thanks, Theresa. I was glad to hear that you're coordinating youth at Big Tent! Great post on children and intergenerational worship. I hope other readers of this blog will check it out.

I also like the community covenant you all have developed at St. John's: http://stjohnscommunity.wordpress.com/2011/01/04/community-covenant/

[Janet L. Bohren]

I like this idea. Where and when will the workshop be that you are preparing to lead? Will there be an online component?

[David Gambrell]

Thanks, Janet. The workshop will be at the Association of Presbyterian Christian Educators (APCE) event in Albuquerque later this week. There's not an online component, but I would be happy to post notes from the workshop and the bibliography (resources collected by my co-leader Betsy Ensign-George) on our website. When it's live (probably sometime next week) I'll post an update on the blog.

[Emrys]

I find that although they rarely ask for it, adults in worship really appreciate it when I ask the whole congregation (children 5 to 95) to do things that are usually reserved for "children's time." This includes clapping, answering questions, call-response, dancing, etc. Maybe the problem is not in expecting children to be too much like adults; maybe it's in not expecting adults to be enough like children.

[Jeremiah]

I am glad to see this idea taking root. In seminary a professor made this comment, "I don't know why we expect young adults to come to worship when we have been kicking them out for the first 18 years of their lives." That comment has stuck with me and in our small church children are loud, funny, active, and honest throughout worship. The congregation welcomes them in the pews and families sense this is a safe place. As a pastor and father with my own kids, I want them to feel like the sanctuary is a place for them as much as it is for adults. We have to be comfortable with our congregants' most spiritual moments each week happening outside the walls of the church and not limiting them to the sermon.

[Al]

I jumped on the 'Children in Worship' bandwagon back in my college days (long past now). I've been the driving force in two congregations to change the worship schedule to eliminate concurrent worship and Church School and move to an educational hour for all ages and keep kids in worship. I bought into the theory 100%.

After 30 years of moving in this direction, I've come to one conclusion: It's a failure. It doesn’t work.

My experience has been that college aged kids and young adults are no more likely to regularly attend Sunday worship after high school graduation if they've been in a worship service through elementary school.

If someone can show me a church that has increased their 18-25 year old worship attendance after making this change, I'd love to see it.

The only factor I have seen that keeps kids in church on Sunday mornings is a strong college/young adults program and a vibrant CONTEMPORARY worship service.

[David Gambrell]

Emrys, I think you're right. One of the wonderful "side effects" of welcoming children in worship (a worthy goal in itself) is the liberating impact it has on adults—making worship a safe place for everyone to enjoy the gifts of energetic praise and childlike wonder. As Jesus said, "whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it" (Luke 18:17).

Jeremiah, glad to hear about what's happening in your congregation too. And I think there's a vital relationship between what happens in worship and what happens beyond the sanctuary in daily and family life. We have to attend to all of these things to nurture the spiritual lives of children and youth (and grown-ups too).

Al, I appreciate you bringing your experience and perspective to this conversation. Sounds like we need some research on how children's early worship experience contributes to (or doesn't) involvement in the church in the young adult years. (It's probably out there, but I can't cite any statistics. Maybe other readers can.)

In any case, I think the issue of whether young people attend worship during the college years, as important as that is, is only part of the picture. It seems to me that having children in worship is the right thing to do regardless — for the kids and for the whole community of faith. And even when college is a dry spell in worship attendance, I would hope that the seeds planted in those early years will eventually bear fruit.

Having said all that, I want to affirm your point about strong programming for young adults and vibrant contemporary worship. The church needs to devote more attention and resources to those matters.