We have now had two services since November. The first service is what we've always had, know and are used to having. The second is an experiment that forces multiculturalism from being an idea into a lived reality.
Here's a bit about our Living In Faith Everyday service. We regularly have nearly all cultural groups in our town represented. The service places more emphasis on seeking to increase contact and interaction between those attending than a traditional one does. We do not have the traditional front end of a "contemporary" service. There is no praise band, no flashy video presentations or specific lighting. We do have power point projected onto a wall for worship song lyrics and Scripture. At the same time we do not have the rigidity of structure that a traditional service does. I will not call this rigidity a "liturgy" in the high church sense of understanding, because as Baptist we claim not to have a liturgical worship tradition. We do not have a big sound system. We don't even have big numbers!
I'm very glad the church has decided to engage in this experiment to bring an idea that many churches simply consider into a lived reality that exists and informs the lives of those who attend. Multiculturalism only comes to be when it is experienced personally. We can create awareness within ourselves but cannot truly understand it unless we live it.
