WORSHIP &
SPIRITUALITY& The Lutheran Campus Ministry at WVU
| Worship in General |
Worship
Offerings |
Worship Schedule |
Worship
Leadership |
Music |
Questions? |
With
five regular worship services each week and opportunities
for private devotion, worship and spirituality at the
Lutheran Campus Ministry can't be digested into a few words.
We can say, "Worship is the heartbeat of the ministry," but
that might not answer your questions. Explore this page and
learn about our regular and special worship offerings,
opportunities for worship leadership, assistance with
private and group devotion, and our general philosophy of
worship and spirituality.Philosophy of Worship & Spirituality
Gottesdienst
Worship is Gottesdienst
(the service of God). Now the question? Is the
"service of God" the service we render to God? Or is it
the service God renders to us? For the grammar junkies out
there, is this a case of the objective genitive or the
subjective genitive? Answer: We think it is both. Worship
(Gottesdienst) is
what we give to God and what God gives to us. In as much
as worship is the prayer, praise, and thanksgiving that we
offer up to God, it is our service rendered to him. So it
is that the priest exhorts the people in the mass' Sursum corda and the
people respond
Priest:
"Lift up your hearts."
People: "We lift them up to the Lord."
Priest: "Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God."
People: "It is right to give him thanks and praise."
Priest: "It is meet, right, and salutary that we should at
all times and in all places offer thanks and praise..."
God is not, however, merely a recipient in worship. He
gives, and, in fact, gives first and more abundantly than
we can ever respond. In worship (whether it be the mass or
the prayer office), his Word is presented through the
readings of Holy Writ, recitation of the psalms,
versicles, responsories, antiphons, and the proclamation
of the Word. The Word of God is the source of the liturgy,
its bones, and its flesh. Through this continual
presentation of the Word, the Holy Spirit is mediated to
us by God's grace so that faith might be engendered,
according to God's will, and the justifying grace of God
apprehended by his creature. This gracious Word does not
confine itself to the mediation of justifying grace; it
also teaches the redeemed what is the glorious and holy
end of God's elect so that we might be sustained in all
weariness, trial, and tribulation, and enjoy a foretaste
of the feast to come through the regeneration of the heart
and holy living.
Homo Spiritualis
Now, you might be asking: What about spirituality?
Spirituality is rooted in Gottesdienst.
Backing up just a little, Luther talked about the Homo spiritualis (the
spiritual human). The spiritual man or woman was one whose
heart and mind was regenerated by the sanctifying work of
the Holy Spirit. Since the Holy Spirit is mediated by the
Word of God in both its aural and sacramental forms, we
look to worship where Word & Sacrament hold central
place (along with the mutual conversation and consolation
of the brothers and sisters in Christ) as the beginning
point of spirituality. Without severing ourselves from
this font, we exercise the new disposition of the heart in
the world.
Private devotion and study accompanies corporate worship
and study. Together with struggle of daily life as those
in the world but not of it, we grow in grace through the
Holy Spirit's continual preservation until we are
perfected in the beatific vision.
Worship in General
Lutheran Campus Chapel worship is centered in the Gospel
ministry of Word & Sacrament. We are committed
to multiple weekly worship offerings when the university
is in session and a reduced, variable schedule when the
university is not in session or in summer session. We are
unabashedly "smells & bells," offering a worship life
unique on the WVU campus.
We are committed to offering prayer offices (services)
throughout the week. Campus is a hectic, frenetic, and
cacophonous place. Providing a place of peace and quiet so
that we might calm ourselves in presence of God and find
renewed strength and direction in him is our gift to
students, faculty, staff and all others who wander through
our doors.
Our worship services are open to all. Of course, the
university community is the primary constituency with
students making up the bulk of that, but we have always
been blessed to receive faculty and staff as well as
townsfolk. We do not try to be all things to all people;
we do try to offer an encounter with the Divine in a mode
faithful to the Lutheran Confessions, the liturgical
legacy of the church, and the Anselmic motto Fides quaerens intellectum
(faith seeking understanding). Consequently, you will find
worship and preaching which seeks to engage the mind as
well as the heart because faith and intellect are not
enemies.
We attempt to keep the sanctuary open as much as possible
throughout the week so that those seeking relief from the
day might be able to come in for private or small group
prayer, meditation, and contemplation.
Worship Offerings
While many have asked about our "regular" worship schedule, it should be noted that our worship schedule changes year to year (sometimes semester to semester) to match the ebb and flow of the academic year and the spiritual needs of those we serve. To review an up-to-date worship schedule, click here.Among our regular offerings you will find...
| Sunday Mass | No need to crawl out of bed before noon! Our principal worship service...this is a full high mass (smells & bells) which includes preaching and the administration of the Sacrament of the Altar (Holy Communion). Throughout the fall and spring academic terms, nearly every Sunday evening features this worship service at 7:00 PM. |
| Compline | A contemplative close to the day. A.k.a., "prayer at the close of the day," this liturgy lasts less than fifteen minutes. This brief prayer office brings a restful and contemplative end to the day through short Scripture readings, simple chants, and moments of silence. This liturgy is prayed Sundays, 9:00 PM, and Thursdays, 9:45 PM. |
| Wednesday Sext | A midday respite. A.k.a., "noon prayer." Lasting less than 10 minutes, this very brief prayer office is drawn from the Benedictine tradition. It includes a hymn, psalm, and reading of a brief Scripture. It is a midweek, midday moment of silence and serenity in the midst of a noisy and hectic campus. We pray sext Wednesdays, 12:00 Noon. |
| Wednesday Matins | "O Lord, open my lips...." For those looking for a prayerful way to start the day, matins (a.k.a., "morning prayer") lasts about 20 minutes. Even if you start a little bleary-eyed, you'll be awake by the final "amen." Matins is prayed Wednesdays, 7:30 AM. |
| FCI Mass | One Saturday each month, the Lutheran Campus Ministry visits the Federal Corrections Institution in Morgantown and offers the Sacrament of the Altar to the inmates. As this is a prison setting, those interested in prison ministry or related fields should contact the chaplain. Background checks require two weeks to process. |
Among our seasonal and festival offerings you will find...
| End of Term Compline | Since "prayer at the close of the day" is a wonderfully restful and contemplative service, what better time to do it than dead week and exam week. Prayed every weeknight during those weeks at 9:45 PM, we offer spiritual refuge and nourishment in the midst of one of the most stressful times of the term. |
| End of Term Sext |
The same is true of
midday prayer. Prayed every weekday throughout
dead week
and exam week,
it provides a much needed opportunity to recenter
and refresh. |
| Minor Offices | Terce, sext, and none are known as the minor offices. Lasting less than 10 minutes, these brief prayer services are drawn from the Benedictine tradition. They punctuate the day, encouraging an integration of prayer and work. We pray these offices on days of special observance. |
| Festivals & Commemorations |
As much as practical, we observe the various lesser festivals. In most cases, we celebrate mass. In other cases, we use various rites and rituals of the church, e.g., service of healing, corporate confession and forgiveness, vespers, matins, etc.. |
| Seasonal Liturgies | We observe the liturgical calendar with appropriate liturgies, e.g., Ash Wednesday imposition of ashes, Tenebrae, Triduum liturgies, All Souls' Requiem, etc.. When practical, these liturgies are offered in conjunction with St. Paul Lutheran Church and/or our ecumenical partners. |
 MusicThose interested in some extra-curricular instruction in church music (e.g., liturgical form and considerations, seasonal and lectionary based music selection, roles and relationships, etc.) should contact the chaplain. |
Alternative liturgies...
While we use the normative liturgies found in the Lutheran Book of Worship and the Occasional Services, we also use other liturgical resources theologically and liturgically consistent with the Lutheran movement. Some occasions call for particular liturgies, e.g.,...- Reformation Sunday -- Luther's German Mass, Samuel
Simon Schmucker's Proposed Liturgy (1863), The
Washington Service (1869), The Common Service (1888,
1917, and 1958)
- Henry Melchior Muhlenberg Day -- the Muhlenberg Service
- In time of war -- The Service from the Army and Navy Service Book (1917) of the General Council.
Participating in worship leadership...
Those interested in- assisting in planning, leading, or assisting worship,
- attending or being notified of worship schedule updates, or
- commenting
Schola Cantorum
Founded in 2005 under the direction of DMA candidate Jonathan Neiderhiser, the Schola Cantorum specializes in early music, beginning with Gregorian chant. Visit the Schola Cantorum website to learn more about its work and opportunities.Worship Committee
From time to time, we've found it helpful to have a Worship Committee to help plan and execute the liturgies of the Chapel as well as shape and direct the the devotional life (private and public) of the campus ministry. If you are interested in such a group, let us know. Other matters & Questions...
If there is something you would like to see (but we are not
currently offering), please contact
us. Ask, and it may be granted.Ask if you have any questions about anything you have read here (contact us).
Also, should you like to be kept informed (i.e., receive notices) about worship offerings, please contact us.
[ Return to FAQs ]