A Historical Theology of Worship

Why does the church worship as it does? Worship is central to the life and vocation of the church. Yet the church's understanding of worship is more often connected to practicalities and a congregation's likes or dislikes. This book seeks to take the reader beyond the practical; to explore where God is in worship and the impact worship should have on the life of the church. Through a historical narrative of the evolution of worship in a British Free Church (the United Reformed Church and its antecedents, the Congregational Church in England and Wales and the Presbyterian Church of England), freedom, order, and participation are identified as the key elements of worship. Investigation into their interrelationship develops a theology of worship that is applicable not only to churches of the Free Church tradition in Britain, but potentially to the universal church.