Resources for the Acts of Entrance
By using the following resources, a congregation may fulfill the very purpose of the Entrance: coming into the presence of God and preparing themselves to hear the Word of the Lord. Nevertheless, it must be remembered that such resources alone do not fulfill the purposes of the Entrance. They are the forms through which the Spirit becomes present. Consequently they are to be offered in the same way a prayer is offered-in a spirit full of joy and enthusiasm at being in the presence of God. The resources of this section are primarily for churches that follow a traditional pattern of worship. Contemporary worship generally fulfills the Acts of Entrance with songs and choruses that often are displayed with overhead or slide projectors. Contemporary worship leaders, however, may wish to study traditional acts of worship as a guide to selecting songs that bring worshipers into God's presence.…
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Chapters & Articles in Resources for the Acts of Entrance (13)
The acts of worship in the Entrance assemble the people and prepare them to hear the Word of God. In the Entrance…
The word prelude derives from the Latin praelludium and means "to play beforehand. " It is a key musical piece in t…
The gathering allows the people to take their seats and ready themselves for worship. Gathering is used to signal t…
Gathering songs are songs which are sung as people take their places in the worship space. In a contemporary worshi…
The Entrance song or hymn often signals the beginning of the formal acts of worship, particularly the procession an…
A procession is an act of movement in worship by a group of people for the sake of all. In the Entrance, the proces…
The greeting in worship is a Christian exchange between the worship leader and the people. After the Entrance song …
A call to worship is directed to the people by God through the worship leader. It is an act that brings the worship…
The invocation calls upon God to be present to the worshiping community. The word invocation is derived from the La…
The act of praise recognizes God's transcendence and character. After the confession of sin and words of forgivenes…
A confession of sin is an act of repentance, motivated by faith and characterized by the expectation of forgiveness…
In God's place, the minister or worship leader speaks words of forgiveness and healing to those who repent in true …
A collect is a prayer that "collects" the prayers of the people in summary fashion, places them in a context approp…