No orders of service from either of Charles G. Finney’s pastorates are extant. However, orders of service from the First Church in Oberlin, Ohio, are available from the pastorate of Finney’s successor, James Brand, dating from the 1890s—a full twenty-five years after Finney’s retirement. In addition, sermon notes (c.1850) from Finney’s son-in-law, James Monroe, containing order-of-service outlines, are also available. The orders of service described in Monroe’s notes correspond to the orders of service observed at First Church of Oberlin nearly a half-century later. We can, therefore, have a certain amount of confidence that the order of service given below (a hybrid developed from Monroe’s notes and the First Church orders) is similar to the liturgy employed during Finney’s tenure.
Introduction
There is nothing different or new about this order of service; it resembles that of many American churches with nonliturgical, low-church traditions. (Finney’s own religious background was Presbyterian.) The novelty is not so much in the order, but in the way in which the various elements of the service were expressed.
Text:
Prelude
Usually on the organ, although at times a small orchestra was employed. The Prelude was designed to set the mood of the service, to prepare the worshipers for the sermon—to soften their hearts for the touch of the Holy Spirit.
InvocationDoxology
The place of the Doxology in the liturgy seems to have been flexible. Its alternate placement is denoted by an asterisk (*).
Anthem
Here we notice a substantial difference from the traditional model of worship. Revivalism brought the choir to the fore, not only physically (from the balcony to the nave), but liturgically. Whereas earlier the choir had been used to help lead congregational participation through song, the choir now had a specific role in the liturgy, derived from its role in the revival meeting. The anthem was a musical mini-sermon of sorts, a message in song directed at the hearts of the congregation.
Finney reportedly loved music because it touched him personally. Choral music at First Church ranged from arrangements of popular hymns to more traditional pieces such as the “Hallelujah Chorus.” The issue with Finney was not whether a musical piece was or was not traditional, but whether it produced a “heart-felt” response to the gospel.
Scripture Reading
A passage tied to the topic of the sermon.
Prayer
An extended prayer, containing praise and adoration, thanksgiving, and addressing the various needs of the congregation. In the revival services a prayer such as this addressed particular persons by name and prayed for their salvation. A certain amount of these emphases probably remained in Finney’s pastoral services.
(*) Doxology
Hymn
As in the revival meetings, hymns were frequently directed at the needs of the sinner. Through the hymns’ lyrics, the sinner’s attention would be directed to his or her sinfulness, and consequent need of repentance. Although usually associated with later revivalists, Fanny Crosby’s hymns reflect the prevailing sentiment:
Pass me not, O gentle Savior—Hear my humble cry!
While on others Thou art calling, Do not pass me by.
Offering
Sermon
While Finney’s revival sermons lasted up to two hours, Sunday, pastoral sermons probably were shorter. Given, however, their substantial length in manuscript outline, they were substantially longer than modern sermons, and were probably close to one hour. Their topics ranged widely, from exhortations on elements of the Christian life to the amelioration of social ills (most notably the abolition of slavery and advocacy of temperance). Characteristic of Finney’s sermons were his passionate, pleading delivery and his pedagogical approach which rooted all points in the individual Christian’s need for holiness, or full consecration to Christ. The pursuit of such a holy life was squarely on the shoulders of the individual person who must choose, of his or her own volition, to follow Christ.
Altar Call
By no means a regular occurrence on Sundays for Finney, the addition of an altar call demonstrates his new approach to worship. While it shows the change from a Calvinist to an Arminian soteriology (which has become standard in much of modern American Protestantism), the inclusion of an altar call also demonstrates the change in ecclesiology noted above.
Prayer
For Finney, the final prayer was one last opportunity to reinforce the message of the sermon to the individuals in the congregation, often asking God to “drive home” the message, and “melt hard hearts. ”Finney often employed agricultural imagery (“breaking up the fallow ground”) which spoke much more poignantly to his rural parishioners than to the residents of the modern urban age.
Hymn (Usually of slower tempo, providing one last opportunity for the penitent to respond.)
Doxology
Benediction