Learning the Liturgy: The Procession

Introduction:

One of the most practical questions every gathering of people must answer is “How will we begin?” “How will we welcome people?"  and “How do we tell everyone why we are gathering?” The Procession serves a simple but important role of answer these questions.  The Procession is a visual, bodily, and verbal instruction on why we are gathering. 

A processional cross holds a central role in the procession and within the liturgical practices of the Christian faith. It is often a beautifully crafted cross that is carried at the forefront of a religious procession. The processional cross symbolizes Christ's victory over death and serves as a reminder of His sacrificial love. As it is carried forward, leading the clergy and congregation, the processional cross represents the presence of Christ leading His people, inspiring and devotion in the hearts of believers. The processional cross exemplifies unity and serves as a visual representation of the faith's central message, guiding the faithful towards the altar where they can partake in the Sacrament of the Holy Communion and worship the Lord.

The Basics: What is a Processional Cross?

• The Processional Cross can be a bare cross or a crucifix (a cross with the body of Christ) and is processed in from the back to the front at the beginning and back out at the end of the Divine Service.

• The individual who carries the Processional Cross is known as a “Crucifer.” The crucifer always processes in first, with the pastors and other assistants following.

• The cross is placed some place at the front of the sanctuary on a stand or attached to the wall for all to see.

Why does the Divine Service begin with a Processional Cross?

• Similar to a national flag representing a nations history and values, so the processional cross represents God’s redeeming work in the world. Beginning the Divine Service with the processional cross is a powerful reminder that Christ is the focal point of the service. The Christian gathering is not focused on human maximization tips, motivational speeches, or simply emotional appeals, but rather is initiated by and focused on the person and work of the God-Man Jesus Christ who carried out and is bringing to completion our redemption by His birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, and future return.

• For Christians, in a very real sense, the processional cross it is a banner of our victory over sin, death, and the devil. As we gaze upon the cross, it should fill the faithful with gratitude, joy, and thanksgiving of Christ’s work on their behalf.

• The processional cross also serves as a visual representation of Christ’s presence in our midst. Christ has not abandoned his children but it with them in the valleys of darkness (Psalm 23).

Why do we standing and face the Processional Cross?

• In almost all cultures around the world, standing is how someone expresses honor, reverence, and respect. We stand when meeting someone at the dinner table, we stand when meeting the President of the United States, the court room stands when the judge enters, and the people stand when the bride enters. We stand and face the Processional Cross for the same reason. We are acknowledging that this gathering is focused on God, and that as holy and righteous, demands our absolute allegiance and respect. We not only stand, but in many historic traditions they also face the cross and turn with it as it enters. It is also common to see those present to make a slight bow towards the cross as it passes in reverence.

• At Trinity San Antonio Church, we reverently and joyfully stand for the processional cross as it symbolizes the journey of faith that we embark upon as a community. By standing in reverence for the processional cross, we honor God's presence among us and align ourselves with His grace and love. It serves as a unifying symbol of our shared faith, bringing us together as we follow the cross, entrusting our lives to the One who goes before us.

What is the Significance of the Processional Hymn?

• The Processional Hymn is focused on declaring the kingship, holiness, and power of God.

• Psalm 100:4 says, “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” Praise of God is an appropriate way to enter His presence.

• This hymn is often selected in light of the season of the Church Year or Feast Day. For example, on Palm Sunday the Processional is traditionally “All Glory, Laud, and Honor” as we remember Christ’s Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.

• For comparison, while many contemporary churches stack all the songs into one “praise and worship” session at the beginning of the service, liturgical churches intersperse their songs throughout the service.

Sanctity of Human Life

- Sanctity of Human Life -

On January 22, 1984, President Ronald Reagan issued a presidential proclamation designating January 22nd as National Sanctity of Human Life Day. On this weekend, churches and life organizations across the United States seek to bring awareness and support to the most vulnerable humans - the unborn. As Christians we believe every human being is created in the image of God and worthy of respect, dignity, and the freedom to life. Next Sunday (23rd) we will take time to observe this day. 

So what is the current situation of abortions in the Unites States?  We give praise for the passage of the recent Heart Beat Law in Texas (here is an article I wrote reflecting on its significance) and that the rates across the United States are at historic lows! Praise God! And yet sadly there were still over 600,000 abortion in the United States this last year. Our response to this high death toll among the most vulnerable should be one of  1) prayer, 2) advocacy and education, 3) supporting the young mothers and fathers by any means possible, 4) serving in the foster care system, 5) adopting and supporting families who adopt, and 6) sharing the good news of God's grace and forgiveness over all sins. 

One of the major ways we can be people of life is by supporting local pregnancy advocacy organizations who daily reach women and families with messages of hope, life, and healing. Here is a list of such organization here in San Antonio:

Pregnancy Advocacy Organizations in San Antonio

• Any Women Can - https://www.anywomancansa.com/

• San Antonio Family Association - https://sanantoniofamilyassociation.com/

• San Antonio Coalition for Life - https://sacfl.org/

• Pregnancy Care Center - https://www.sapregnancy.org/

• A Women's Haven Pregnancy Center - https://www.awomanshaven.com/

• The Source - https://www.thesource.org/

• Life Choices Care - https://www.lifechoicescare.com/

• The Share Center (Bulverede/Spring Branch) - https://www.bulverdepregnancy.com/

• Allied Women's Center - https://www.alliedwomenscenter.com/

You may not be called to volunteer in these organizations on a regularly basis but still desire to help be part of the movement, January and February are wonderful months to do just that. Below are 8 ways you can get involved this month in the cause of supporting mothers, fathers, and the unborn.

Ways to Get Involved:

1. Join the march for life in downtown San Antonio or in Austin on January 21st at 1pm - https://www.texasrallyforlife.org/

2. Sign-up to pray in front of Planned Parenthood during the 40 Days of Life (March 2 - April 10) - https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/sanantonio

3. Assemble Bags that are handed out to women considering abortions with information to help them make an informed decision (Every-other Monday at 12:15pm and every-other Thursday at 1pm) - https://sacfl.org/about-us/volunteers-action

4. Become a Sidewalk Advocate - https://sacfl.org/sidewalk-intern-program

5. Volunteer at one of the above clinics

6. Volunteer and support the Foster Care system (see below)

7. Support adoption with your time and resources either by prayerfully considering adopting, supporting families that adopt, or directly supporting adoption organizations.

8. Volunteer at Boysville - https://boysvilletexas.org/volunteer/

Foster Care and Adoption
Throughout history Christians have sought to follow Christ's command to care for the least by being on the front lines of caring for the sick by opening hospitals, caring for the elderly by opening care homes, and caring for the orphaned by opening orphanages and adopting. It is an uncontested fact of history that each of these three have been spearheaded and run by Christians from the first century onward. Even in our own time, consider that while there are 11 Planned Parenthood clinics that provide abortions in the State of Texas, there are almost 200 life advocacy organizations which seek to support mothers and fathers by providing support and encouragement as they bring their child into the world. Praise God! If the parents are unable or unwilling to care for their child, all of these will help with connecting them to organization and families that are waiting to adopt.

Adoption and foster care are two other significant means by which Christians can support the most vulnerable. We believe it is a beautiful calling to participate as a foster family and/or adopt a child who would otherwise be left in the foster system. Let me ask you, have you ever prayerfully considered serving as a foster family or adopting? If not, I encourage you to take some time to consider if God may be calling you to become a family for a child currently without one.

Currently in the US there are over 400,000 children in the foster care system and roughly 1/4th of those are awaiting a family to adopt them.

Here are some wonderful local organizations engaged in this work:

Local Foster Care & Adoption Organizations:

• CASA - https://www.casa-satx.org/who-we-are

• South Texas Alliance for Orphans - https://www.alliance4orphans.org/

• 1 Hope for Kids - https://1hopeforkids.org/

• A World for Children - https://www.awfc.org/

• The Bair Foundation - https://www.bair.org/

• DePelchin Children's Center - https://www.depelchin.org/

• Pathways - https://www.pathway.org/

• Providence Place - https://www.provplace.org/

• SJRC - https://sjrctexas.org/

In all this we seek to extend the grace and forgiveness Christ offers to the broken, ashamed, and grieving. There is no sin too great that it cannot be cleansed by the blood of Christ Jesus. No sin too great. We do not gather to cast stones, for our Lord said "let him who is guiltless cast the first stone" and all walked away. Christ, the only one who is sinless and who has the only right to cast a stone, doesn't. Rather, he offers grace and forgiveness to all who come to him. Perhaps you have felt guilt and shame for your part in an abortion. Hear this good news - Christ does not condemn you but wants to embrace you and shower his love and forgiveness on you!

The peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all!

Pastor Matthew

How to Teach Your Kids to Pray

Prayer is speaking to God and providing Him the space to speak to us through His Word and by His Holy Spirit. In prayer we share our concerns, joys, and thanksgiving with Him and allow Him to convict, guide, and encourage us.

Prayer is not complicated, but it can be difficult. I believe this is true for everyone but it can be especially true of parents with young kids that wake up at the break of dawn and have boundless energy until they are put to bed at night. How is anyone to find time to pray when you have Sonic the Hedgehog in your house?

A lot of helpful advice could be given here but I want to focus on one simple principle - pray with your children. That’s right. While personal time to pray is important, don’t miss the opportunity to pray with your children. Not only does this help you grow in your prayer life, but it also is teaching your kids how to pray. Here are some ideas of times you can stop to pray:

• Before breakfast (take 30 seconds to pray in public and at home)

• In the car on the way to school or work or running errands

• At lunch

• When you pull into your driveway take 60 seconds to thank God for the day and help you invest in your family this evening.

• At dinner

• Before bed

• Anytime!

Now you might be thinking, “I’ve tried that and it’s just too challenging. They don’t focus and I have to get on them every 15 seconds to stop pushing and pinching each other.” I get it. I really do. Here is a secret that has really helped our family prayer times - make use of written prayers.

But aren’t written prayers less spiritual? Some might feel as if written prayers are less spiritual than free form praying, but here is the truth, while they can be prayed in a mindless and rote way, they don’t have to be. In fact this applies to anything in life we do on a repetitive basis. Just because we sometimes fall into reading the Bible mindlessly doesn’t mean we stop reading the Bible altogether. Rather, it means we seek to read it with engaged hearts and minds, asking the Holy Spirit to enflame our hearts with His love. The same goes for written prayers.

Below are four written prayers that you can print and pray together as a family. At first you’ll have to read it but eventually your whole family (even the youngest!) will know them by heart. We don’t do the same prayer every single night but like to mix them up. So a few nights a week we’ll do the Lord’s Prayer and a few nights the Evening prayer. We almost always include extemporaneous prayers as well, I like to give each child a chance to pray using their own words.

The Lord’s Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Morning Prayer

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.

Evening Prayer

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have graciously kept me this day; and I pray that You would forgive me all my sins where I have done wrong, and graciously keep me this night. For into Your hands I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.

Prayer Before a Meal

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Lord God, heavenly Father, bless us and these Your gifts which we receive from Your bountiful goodness, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

I encourage every family to pick up the Lutheran Prayer Book which has written prayers for morning and evening of every day.

The Lamb of God (Agnus Dei)

After humanity actively chose to turn from God and the flourishing life He desired for them, like a cancer, sin infested everything. They knew it and they hid from God. But God in His great mercy would not leave them in that place of shame and guilt but instead provided a covering for that shame. The first sacrifice (death of an animal) was made by God for Adam and Eve. Genesis 3:21 says, “And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.” An animal died, blood was shed, in order that they their shame and guilt would be covered.

Throughout the Old Testament we see the sacrifice of a lamb and the shedding of its blood as the picture of how sin would be attained for, that is how it would be washed and cleansed. God tells us in Hebrews 9:22, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” Along with Abel, Noah, Abraham, David, and Solomon all God’s people would make a sacrifices to God for the atonement of sin. 

One especially powerful story is that of the Passover where death “passed over” each household that had blood on its door post (Exodus 12). The Hebrew people were in bondage in Egypt, slaves to Pharaoh with no hope of escape. God commanded that they sacrifice a spotless lamb, spread the blood on the lintels of their doors, and then eat the lamb with unleavened bread. When the angel of the Lord came to the house and saw the blood, he would pass over the house. But every house that did not have the blood on the door, the first born male was put to death. 

Fast forward to Isaiah 53:7 and we read, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”  Who is the prophet Isaiah talking about? Roughly 700 years later John the baptist would point to Jesus and declare to the crowds, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Jesus was to be that lamb led to the slaughter, Jesus was to be the lamb who’s blood would be applied to the households of faith, Jesus was the one who would be the one who would take away the sins of the world. 

Before Christ’s sacrificial offering of himself he would tell his disciples exactly why his blood was being shed and that he was shedding it for them, “Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”(Matt 26:26-28). Jesus is the lamb of God (Agnus Dei) who came to take away the sins of the world!

As God, a being outside of time itself, Christ continues to graciously give us the benefits of his sacrifice in the Lord’s Supper. It is for this reason that the prerequisite for rightly coming to the Supper is faith in the gospel. All receive but only those who receive in faith receive the benefits. Luke 24:30 we read an account of Jesus making himself known to his disciples after his resurrection in the breaking of bread, “When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight.” Jesus chose to make himself known in that breaking of bread and he continues to make himself known to us in the breaking of bread of the Lord’s Supper! 

When we enter the restoration of all things, it will be celebrated with a great feast called the marriage supper of the lamb. We see this picture in Revelation 19:6-9, “Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. 7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; 8 it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. 9 And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” These the same words we hear every Sunday during the Eucharistic liturgy.

The the first animal sacrifice cover the shame of Adam and Eve and the many sacrifices of lambs throughout the Old testament to make atonement for the sins of the people of Israel are all pointing towards the ultimate Lamb who alone could take the sins of the world upon himself, be crushed by their darkness and weight, and yet then rise victoriously over sin, death, and the devil! 

Praise be to the Lamb of God!