Of lections and lectionaries – one more time

In the discussion of lectionaries let me be quick to say that there are numerous lectionaries that appear throughout history or that are in use today.  There is a four-year, thirty-two-weeklectionary that campus ministries use to move a campus community through worship life in a campus setting.  There is a resource called The Narrative Lectionary that is picking up a lot of traction recently, especially in churches with a more contemporary emphasis to their worship.  Having said all this, I confine most of the rest of these thoughts to the RCL.

The question frequently arises: “Why use the lectionary at all?”  Akin to that is, “Does the church compel you to use the lectionary?”  Answering the latter first, the answer is a profound, “No!”  The Revised Common Lectionary is a resource, but a voluntary one only.

As to the question of “why?” there are several responses.  First, it makes planning a lot easier.  If you have been reading these thoughts from the beginning, you know that my initial query was, “What to preach?”  The RCL gives me a tool in the face of that necessary question.  The preacher always has a right to depart from the lectionary for a day, a season or a year if need be.  But it is handy to have these suggestions in one’s back pocket when staring at a blank piece of paper.

Again, having such a resource makes planning a different activity altogether.  I have a lifelong friend who is old school.  He looks to circumstance, to occasion and inspiration for his selection of preaching texts.  This practice has served him just fine.  He has found a way to make planning for this approach work for him.  He will admit that he can’t (or doesn’t) plan as far ahead as lectionary users, but he believes that this keeps his approach fresh and not “canned.”  I got that.  If that works for someone, my hat is off to them.  I like the safety net of being able to look a week, a month or a season ahead and at least have an idea of the possibilities.

Using a lectionary also helps people with other worship responsibilities (musicians, providers of visuals, etc.) do their preparation.  A lectionary user can say to these folks, “In all probability this is what I’m going to do on a given Sunday.”  A preacher might even take the next step and commit to the lectionary for a certain period and take the guesswork out altogether.

There is some strength in knowing that churches of your denomination – or other denominations – just down the road will be focusing on the same scripture reading that you are this Sunday.  Water cooler talk the next day becomes, “My preacher talked about thus-and-so yesterday.”  Others can respond, “Mine, too.”  This can result in in truly meaningful dialog across congregational or denominational lines.

Lectionary preachers often find that their denominational Sunday School lesson books and other educational materials follow the lectionary.  This integrates Christian education and worship so that church people can be immersed in a passage or topic.  Close cooperation allows teachers to pursue parallel themes to those that the preacher presents in worship.

Preaching a lectionary will also compel a preacher to visit some unfamiliar ground.  The preacher might even face uncomfortable texts that we never would have considered if we were pursuing well-known (and well-worn) readings.

It is also the case that for some of us, if we are left to our own devices and desires, would tend to preach a dozen favorite passages over and over.  I myself would end up preaching the Sermon on the Mount about 45 Sundays a year.  A commitment to a lectionary helps keep the preacher honest.

It is true that a three-year consideration of the Bible of necessity omits some readings.  The Book of Numbers gets short shrift.  The Song of Solomon, if I’m not mistaken, doesn’t have any readings at all in the RCL.  But, beyond that, there are some substantial texts from the gospels and the epistles that get left out.  It may well be that lectionary preachers would occasionally call a moratorium on its use for the sake of inclusion.  Whatever it substituted for will come back around before you know it.  (Visit this link and go to the question, "Where can I get a list of those passages of the Bible that are not included in the Revised Common Lectionary for Sundays? In other words, what passages of scripture are left out of the Lectionary?")

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to start Sunday’s sermon…