The Christian year was among the practices that the Restoration movement from the Churches of Christ repudiated due to lack of a specific New Testament warrant. Today, most members of the Churches of Christ are unfamiliar with it. Recently, however, there has been a movement toward partial observance of the year, both for evangelistic purposes and for renewal in the church.
Churches of Christ are largely ignorant of the Christian year, and therefore do not make extensive use of it. Historically, churches from the American Restoration Movement have adhered to a nondenominational, free-church tradition that has endeavored to distinguish itself from many of the practices of denominational churches. One of the slogans popularized in the emergence of the Restoration Movement in the early nineteenth century was: “Where the Scriptures speak, we speak; where they are silent, we are silent.” Since the New Testament gives no examples or commands to follow a Christian year, the churches growing out of this tradition did not feel free to make use of this plan. Moreover, the majority of Churches of Christ have never been highly liturgical. Thus, members today are largely unfamiliar with, even unaware of the Christian year.
Evangelistic Motivation
In recent years a growing number of ministers have become aware of the Christian year and are beginning to see value in making some use of its structure. For example, more and more Churches of Christ are planning special services which coincide with the Christmas and Easter seasons. This is being done primarily for evangelistic rather than liturgical reasons, however. People who attend church only at Christmas and Easter might be attracted by special services. Since religious thoughts are already on people’s minds, even unchurched people, during these times of the year, worship leaders reason, let’s capitalize on the situation and try to draw them to a deeper faith in the Lord.
A Means for Church Renewal
Attitudes toward the Christian year are also changing because younger people with fewer ties to church tradition are now coming into positions of leadership in the congregations. These younger leaders, as they seek renewal in the church, are reevaluating the historical positions of the Restoration Movement to see if they are biblically sound. Many are concluding that some of the old positions are based on more cultural reasons than on scriptural principles. Renewing churches view practices such as the Christian year as methods or means to an end. If it is in keeping with biblical principles if it can be used beneficially to advance the cause of Christ, and if it helps worshipers praise God more effectively, the Christian year can be used and adapted without reservation.
Another change slowly making its way into the worship planning of renewing churches is the use of the lectionary. This coincides somewhat with the growing use of expository preaching among many preachers in Churches of Christ. Use of the lectionary is not widespread, and such use made of it is likely to be surreptitious. However, an increasing number of ministers and worship leaders understand the need for better long-range planning for worship. Several ministers in renewing churches report that the lectionary assists their worship leaders in providing more balance throughout the year. Worship services and sermons are planned around passages and themes that might be overlooked otherwise.
Use of the Christian year and the lectionary are not likely to take Churches of Christ by storm in the foreseeable future. However, movement in that direction continues to increase slowly and steadily.