Christine Longhurst

The Mennonite Brethren Historical Commission met June 7–8, 2019, for its annual general meeting, in Fresno, Cal., at Fresno Pacific University. On Friday evening, it hosted a reception with Doug…

The Mennonite Brethren Historical Commission met June 8 and 9 for its annual general meeting in Hillsboro, Kansas, at Tabor College’s Center for Mennonite Brethren Studies. The Commission heard reports…

What a difference 50 years makes!
Over the past five decades, congregational worship in many of our churches has undergone dramatic change. We’ve seen changes in the language used in worship – from German to English and more. We’ve also seen a steady move away from formality to a more casual approach in language, leadership style, and even dress.

How much of your worship service is spent reading and hearing Scripture? Ten percent? Fifteen? More? Less? In 2004, Constance Cherry, who teaches worship and Christian ministries at Indiana Wesleyan University, surveyed a wide variety of churches in the U.S. to see how much time was spent reading Scripture during worship. She discovered that in traditional, contemporary and “blended” churches, only 2–5 percent of the service was spent reading the Word. In most congregations, significantly more time was taken for announcements than for Scripture reading.