Let all the people say 'amen.': A multigenerational understanding of rite, hymnody, and preaching.

摘要

The communal act of worship, with its liturgical rites, its hymnody, and its preaching, engages people of various ages in a single, common event. Yet each generation of hearers---children, young adults, midlife adults, and elders---is distinct. As individuals, the members of each generation have different levels of personal development from the other generations. As a group, each generation is shaped by a different set of historical events and life experiences. Despite these personal and corporate generational differences, the ecclesial claim of the churches of the liturgical tradition (Roman Catholic, Episcopal, and Lutheran) is that it is not as a result of one's age or cognitive abilities that one becomes a member of the church, but through baptism. In such a multigenerational context, therefore, effective preaching and worship leadership requires understandings and tools that will bridge the generational differences---both developmental and historical.; At present, however, few scholars of Christian worship take into consideration the presence of multiple generations in worship to any significant degree. The general (and erroneous) assumption is that everyone in worship is a literate adult, and that all adults think more or less alike, regardless of when they were born.; This dissertation will bridge the gap between the theological claim and the scholarly discussion by developing a multigenerational understanding of rite, hymnody, and preaching and identifying approaches that cross both the developmental and historical generational divides. It will focus on liturgical worship in the Lutheran, Anglican, and Roman Catholic churches, and will be centered in the disciplines of liturgical studies, hymnody, and homiletics.; To fill in the scholarly gaps with regard to individual growth, I will turn to educators and scholars of development, like Helen Bee, Denise Boyd, and Anne Haas Dyson. William Strauss and Neil Howe provide the background on historical generational theory. Together, these will serve as two lenses by which to understand how people of different generations participate in the multigenerational worship tasks of participating in the church's ritual, sharing in congregational song, and proclaiming and receiving the good news of the Gospel in the sermon.