Congregational Churches

Congregational Church worship, while based on sixteenth-century traditions and influenced by a late nineteenth-century pattern, remains at the discretion of each congregation. The twentieth century has introduced new elements of worship. Nevertheless, there is a broad similarity of worship patterns from church to church. Basic Forms. Freedom from imposed forms of worship and "man-made ceremonies" was the goal of sixteenth-century Congregational leaders like John Greenwood, Henry Barrow, and John Penry. But this freedom did not mean chaos. William Ames spoke for all when he wrote in his Marrow of Theology (1620): "Public worship, which is to be celebrated most solemnly, necessarily requires Scripture reading, meditation, prayer, holy discourse, and contemplation of the works of God wherein worship may become truly effective in us. " Ames's book was required reading for ministerial students in North America for more than a century. The worship he described first appeared in print in Jo…