[1] What are we trying to do when we
preach? Are we teaching? imparting information? challenging? exhorting?
encouraging? comforting? all these things and more?
[2] What expectations do members of the
congregation have from any given sermon? It seems to me that a person is less
likely to hear God’s Word preached if s/he hears exhortation or comfort when,
in fact, s/he expects to be challenged or wants a deeper analysis of a Bible
passage.
[3] What responsibilities do members of
the congregation have when listening to a sermon? What and where is the balance
between spoon-feeding members (possible) answers to their questions and
expecting members to engage with the biblical text themselves on the basis of
what’s preached?
[4] Do we know what questions members
of the congregation are asking? And how far is it possible for our sermons to
take into account everyone’s questions, given that the questions are likely to
be extremely varied on account of the diversity of people asking them?
[5] When designing a sermon series or
similar, how, when, in what ways, and to what extent should the planned
preachers communicate with one another to ensure coherence and consistency of
the series aims and content?
Hello Terry, I suspect (with my actor's, producer's and musical director's hats on) that delivery of a sermon is much like any other performance: a skilled practitioner will tailor their delivery and content to suit the audience they are expecting. A particularly good one will have a natural feel for their audience and be able to adapt, change or amplify as they go along - thus any of your point [1] suggestions, and more besides, could apply.
ReplyDeleteThe responsibility question is interesting. For myself, I think it is the responsibility of the preacher to stimulate me, to keep me engaged, to challenge - and it's my responsibility to listen, to agree, to disagree, to weigh the value of the argument against my own principles and prejudices. I think that even attempting (point [4]) to answer what a congregation might be thinking, would, for me at any rate, fairly quickly lead to banality.
However, I'm well aware that what I find banal others will find of great comfort; what I find challenging, others will find unnecessarily provocative - as any performer will tell you, no two audiences are ever the same - I wish preachers and performers both the very best of luck as they go about their orations and auditions!
Best wishes, Lucas
That's helpful, Lucas. Preaching, I suppose, is a performing art, in many respects. I know that on the occasions when I preach, I try to let my prose and voice do the acting; but others can be much more animated!
DeleteOne of the significant differences between acting in a play and preaching, I suppose, lies in the make-up of the audience. In a play, I'd assume that the audience is mostly made up of people who want to see the play and the story and/or message that's being performed. So, regardless of the day each member of the audience has had, good or bad, s/he will attend (say) Waiting for Godot expecting to see Waiting for Godot, and perhaps to see a fresh interpretation of it.
Something similar surely applies to preaching. In theory, anyway, the congregation expects to hear God speaking through the sermon (whatever that might mean in practice, of course!), and the preacher is charged with delivering a fresh interpretation of familiar texts. But I'm assuming that whereas the actor in a play can rely on the source material, knowing that that is what the audience is expecting to hear, and tailor her or his performance to suit, the preacher is perhaps expected to tailor the sermon to people who are attending the service for a variety of reasons, from duty to desire. I'd imagine that very few people attend a church service simply to hear a sermon in the same way that people attend a play in order to see a play.
Returning to a (very!) old thread, this has turned up in today's Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/10/vicars-urged-to-rein-in-the-jokes-and-rambling-anecdotes-in-serm/ Best, Lucas
DeleteInteresting stuff. I definitely think there's a place for humour in preaching, but sometimes all too often a joke is just dropped in as an illustration and it falls flat (in my opinion). Of course, I have a strange sense of humour, so I guess things that make many people laugh will just pass over me.
DeleteTerry, as Anointed Preacher of The Word of The LAARD, your job is to Hammer Home the Eternal Message of Salvation and the Unchanging Truth of Gaard unto the Wicked Sinners among your Brethren until they Repent On Their Ungodlified Knees and Cry Out Unto the Laaard for Forgiveness, A-MEN Hallelujah unto the Mighty Gaaaard!!! You Must MAKE them SEE that the Ending-Times are Upon Them and they are a-Going to Perishify with the Unrighteous Brothers in Fire and Melted Cheese unless they Tithe their Hamsters Unto the Laaaaaaaaard and renouncify their Evil love of Depravedness and stop Watching Wicked Cinematic Films by Charles Chaplin and listening to Heathen jungle rhythms of Elvis Presley and Fats Wallah!!!! PREACH TO THEM BROTHER TERRY!!!
ReplyDelete(PS to anyone else reading this - I'm joking.)
Turn or BURRRRRRN! Turn or BURRRRRRN!
DeleteThank you for your perceptive comment, Harvey. I shall do as you advise. . . though I'm not sure I will preach about lard.
On second thoughts, instead of preaching just hand out Chick tracts to the congregation. That's all they need to know.
DeleteBy the way, if I do have any serious thoughts I'll let you know... I would say 'all of these and (maybe) more' to question 1. Goes without saying that it depends on your church and model of preaching... I'm not generally massively excited by straight exposition of a Bible passage, but then maybe I haven't heard it well done for a long time.
I'm also not too keen on the after-dinner speech variety of sermon where it's all (not very) amusing anecdotes and not a lot of substance. But I can't imagine that's quite where you're coming from...
And as I'd personally rather have my legs sawn off and replaced with My Little Ponies than deliver a sermon in public, I can only look on with respect and trembling at those who are called to perform such a feat.
Interesting that you should mention My Little Ponies, given this page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Little_Pony:_Friendship_Is_Magic_fandom
DeleteYes, I agree with your logic in terms of seeing a play at a theatre - the polished, finished result isn't the best analogy I could have chosen! I was thinking more of auditions and rehearsals, which these days tend to involve a measure of improv, a dash of re-interpretation - in other words they're about discovering a person's flexibility with a text and the ability to change as a situation demands.
ReplyDeleteStand-up comedians and other improv performers take this one stage further, thriving on the adrenaline that comes with putting that ability in front of an audience rather than confining it to a rehearsal room. I'm certainly not saying that preachers should be more like stand-up comics! But I do think that elements of the base skill set share some significant common ground.
(I'm assuming this is Lucas again.)
DeleteA preacher needs to be able to improvise, but, in my experience at least, very few preachers are required to improvise in response to the congregation. Generally, congregation members seem to assume they're passive and expect a lecture-style talk. Deviation from this norm usually concludes with mixed results! So any regular improvisation is usually, as you say, with the text.
Funnily enough, last year, there was a news story about vicars going on stand-up comic training days because of the demands ministers/preachers and comics share. Here's a link: http://m.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-28867524
Um... when I have had the opportunity to preach, I have spoken about what I knew God had been teaching me. Tbh it didn't occur to me that a speaker would do anything other than that. I know I have been given the capacity to learn things that perhaps others don't, and that preaching is a means of serving people by sharing God with them in a way that is neither over people's heads nor patronising in its simplicity. What else? A preacher should never EVER speak from arrogance, but should always speak with honesty and humility.
ReplyDeleteWhen I listen to a sermon I do try to pay attention to the message and its underlying themes and factual basis, but if the speaker is boring my mind will drift. Also, if someone says something I think is wrong, I will probably spend the rest of the sermon pondering on why I think they're wrong, whether they could be right, what the implications are in my thinking that they're wrong, whether they're so wrong that I couldn't stand to listen to them again or whether it's a matter of a difference of opinion. There was only once that I wanted to slap the speaker. Oh, and once when I wanted to tell the 'fans' of the visiting speaker, who were only there because he was there, that they were acting as if he was their pimp. I so surprised myself in this reaction that I didn't say anything... but my word that guy was *creepy*.
Also, and I say this because some people would like to say my gender prohibits me from teaching: if God calls you to preach, then preach. If He doesn't, then don't. Because if God gives a woman a gift and man says 'no'... well, that's plain stupid. Why would God give a spiritual gift that is unusable?
Thanks, Sandy. I find your 'drifting mind' comment especially interesting. I think we've all found our minds drifting during a sermon, though for various reasons. I recall reading something in a journal once saying that we shouldn't worry when our mind wanders during a sermon because (unless we're thinking about dinner or football or something, I suppose) the Spirit could well be taking us to a place we need to be through what has been said in the sermon. This seems right to me as a listener - God's Spirit is free to do what God's Spirit wants! - but as a preacher, it would leave me feeling quite low to think that all my hard work in preparation and writing isn't going to have any effect whatsoever. I suppose if a preacher is communicating God's Word, s/he has to be prepared that God's Word isn't tied down to my words.
DeleteSteve Holmes has posted some interesting thoughts about preaching here: http://steverholmes.org.uk/blog/?p=7462
ReplyDelete