United Methodist Altars: A Guide for the Congregation (Revised Edition)

By Hoyt L. Hickman

This basic, fully illustrated manual for congregational leaders explains how to prepare the sanctuary and its furnishings for the celebration of worship and sacraments throughout the Christian year. This practical, informative guide is an indispensable companion for worship committees, altar guilds, or individuals whose responsible for these vital tasks in their church.

United Methodist Altars includes: care, cleaning, and storage instructions for all vestments and appointments; a calendar of the Christian year, with appropriate colors for each season; responsibilities and suggested organizational structure for the altar guild; an explanation of the history and meaning of worship furnishings; preparation instructions for the various United Methodist services; and, a glossary.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Abingdon Press
• Release date: Jul 1, 2011
• ISBN: 9781426730696

Hoyt L. Hickman

Hoyt L. Hickman has been a visiting professor of worship both at Drew University and at Vanderbilt University. From 1972-1994, while at the General Board of Discipleship, he directed the worship resources development team and wrote many of the worship texts that appear in the United Methodist Hymnal and Book of Worship. He is the General Editor of "The Faith We Sing." He has also been a member of the North American Academy of Liturgy and Societas Liturgica for more than 20 years.

Book preview

UNITED METHODIST ALTARS

UNITED METHODIST ALTARS

A Guide for the Congregation

HOYT L. HICKMAN

Revised Edition

Abingdon Press

Nashville

UNITED METHODIST ALTARS, REVISED EDITION

A GUIDE FOR THE CONGREGATION

Copyright © 2984, 2996 by Abingdon Press

(new Preface and some new text added)

All rights reserved.

No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed in writing to Abingdon Press, 201 8th Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37203.

This book is printed on recycled, acid-free paper.

ISBN: 0-687-00562-0

Scripture quotations unless otherwise noted are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyrighted 1946, 1952, 1971, © 1973, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission.

Symbol drawings by William Duncan from Symbols of the Church edited by Carroll E. Whittemore. Copyright © 1959 by Carroll E. Whittemore. Used by permission of the publisher, Abingdon Press.

02 03 04 — 10 9 8 7 6

MANUFACTURED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

[CONTENTS]

PREFACE

THE ALTAR GUILD

SPACE AND FURNISHINGS

SYMBOLS

VESTING FOR WORSHIP

Vesting the Place of Worship

Linens

Paraments

Lenten Veils

Banners

Vesting the People

WORSHIP APPOINTMENTS

The Cross

Candles

Other Altarware

Altarware Maintenance

Flowers

THE CHRISTIAN YEAR

The Calendar

The Basic Colors

Visual Suggestions for the Days and Seasons

PREPARING FOR SERVICES

General Responsibilities

Before and After Every Service

Holy Communion

Holy Baptism

Weddings

Funerals and Memorial Services

FOR FURTHER READING

GLOSSARY AND INDEX

[PREFACE TO THE REVISED EDITION]

This book was first published in 1984 in response to an urgent and widely expressed need for a United Methodist Altar Guild manual.

For many years the book that had met this need in the former Methodist Church was Methodist Altars by Dessie Ash Arnett, Betty Isaac Stewart, and Lenace Robinette Clark. It was first published in 1951 and went through several later editions. The last edition, entitled United Methodist Altars, was published in 1970, just after the union that produced The United Methodist Church. This book went out of print soon thereafter, and there was a demand for a new manual to take its place.

Meanwhile United Methodists and other Christians were experiencing an extraordinary reform and renewal of their worship patterns and practices. These reforms at their best sought to make worship authentic to the oldest Christian traditions and appropriate to contemporary life. They were accompanied by many signs of new vitality. On the other hand there was a parade of passing fashions in worship, and many people who were looking for stability and continuity in their worship understandably reacted against them.

Many United Methodists turned to Altar Guild manuals published in other denominations. They discovered that the traditions and practices described in these manuals were so different from those of United Methodists that they did not meet the needs of United Methodist Altar Guilds.

United Methodist Altars represents an attempt to build upon the strengths of the old (United) Methodist Altars and of the manuals of other denominations, while providing the help needed by today’s United Methodist Altar Guilds.

The author acknowledges with gratitude the helpful criticisms and suggestions received from liturgical scholars James F. and Susan White and from these persons active in local United Methodist Altar Guilds: Rachel Drumright (Belmont, Nashville), Jack Inman (Belle Meade, Nashville), and Elizabeth Jones (First Centenary, Chattanooga).

During the past ten years the reform and renewal of United Methodist worship has led to the publication of The United Methodist Hymnal and The United Methodist Book of Worship. While both these official books and the reactions received by the author from readers have affirmed the basic content of United Methodist Altars, certain details have become out of date and have needed revision. This revised edition brings the book into harmony with our new official books and with current practices.

Further criticisms and suggestions are invited from readers and will be taken into account in any future revisions.

Hoyt L. Hickman

January 23, 1995

[THE ALTAR GUILD]

You may not call your committee or group an Altar Guild. In your church you may be the worship commission or the chancel committee. Or you personally may be the Communion steward, or you may change the candles and the altar cloths, take care of the flowers, make banners, or keep things the way they should be in the sanctuary. You may be the pastor or the custodian doing some of these things. But if you or your group have been entrusted with any part of the care of the sanctuary and its furnishings or the things that pertain to the worship services, you have a special responsibility and a privilege of the highest order. It is for you that this book is written.

How many people or how much organization you need depends on the size and character of your congregation and the sanctuary where you worship. Whether or not you have an organized Altar Guild, you should be aware of certain basic principles that apply.

1. The purpose of your service is to provide the best possible environment