Book Review: Worship for the Whole People of God: Vital Worship for the 21st Century

Abstract

Worship for the Whole People of God: Vital Worship for the 21st Century. By Ruth C. Duck. Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press, 2013. xxii + 358 pp. $35.00 (paper).There are certain attributes we have come to expect from a work authored by Ruth Duck: insightful scholarship, clarity, linguistic artistry, faithfulness to the traditions of the church, a passion for justice and inclusion. Worship for the Whole People of God: Vital Worship for the 21st Century does not disappoint. Reading Duck's work has the feel of sitting in the classroom with her, learning from her vast decades-long experience in the church, her insights as a liturgist and an artist, and her profound sense of how important it is to teach Christian worship leaders of the twenty-first century how to live simultaneously within the Christian tradition and to stretch that tradition in ways that allow us to meet the needs of twenty-first-century worshippers.Because this book is written as a potential text for academic study, readers may find it useful to see the specific content provided. The first three chapters explore a theology of worship, the importance of the participation of the whole people of God, and the diversity of Christian tradition. The following three chapters discuss the tasks of planning and leading worship, the arts of worship, and the writing of words for worship. Chapters 7 and 8 look at particular forms of prayer in worship and the relationship between scripture, the liturgical year, and preaching. The next five chapters focus on the two dominical sacraments of the church, baptism and eucharist, followed by marriage, burial, healing, and reconciliation. The final chapter examines the new horizons of media and worship, emergent worship, and seeking core values for vital worship.In a work that is seasoned generously with historical insights that help frame the nature of Christian worship for our own day, Duck invites us to explore what it means to engage in both design and leadership of communal prayer life. With extensive citations from liturgical and homiletics leaders of the Christian church, she acquaints her readers with expansive resources for further liturgical study.As a primer for leading and understanding Christian worship, this text is outstanding. Duck's ability to articulate the rich and diverse strains of the Christian tradition in a manner that both celebrates the diversity present within denominations and invites us to see a whole cloth of Christian faith and practice is masterful. …