Every worship service has to begin somewhere, and for most in the liturgical tradition, this is with either a Call to Worship or Invocation. Technically, they are not the same, but often we treat them as one thing. In my tradition the pastor begins with, "In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." Here we are reminded of the words that were pronounced upon us through the baptismal waters, when we were made partakers of God's family. The call to worship is just that - the liturgist or worship leader or pastor - in a variety of ways, calls the congregation to fall before God's presence in collective worship as Creator, King, and Savior. Typically, this is through a Psalm reminding the parishoners of why they are there in the first place.

There is an ancient way of doing this that I really like called the Sursum Corda. The liturgist declares: "Lift up your Hearts!" and the congregation responds, "We lift them up the Lord!" This is the church's version of the baseball phrase, "Heads up." The Sursum Corda is a way of saying, wake up, get ready, we've gathered in the name and for the purpose of bringing honor to our Father God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the upcoming Tales of Thomas album, Divine Service, I begin the album with a Psalm of Invocation called, "Lord, Open our Lips", based in part on Psalm 51:15ff. This is followed by a call to worship based on the well worn Psalm 95 called Venite (or Song of Triumph). Both songs are piano and string driven. I've had opportunity to play them live in a couple settings and I'm happy they have gone over very well, which I was thankful for, because the bridge in Venite takes an unexpected turn into something akin to Hebrew polka? I know. Sounds weird, but its pretty fun to sing and play.

Next post, I'll comment on the happy topic of confessing our sin and receiving absolution (or forgiveness if you don't like that term).