It seemed such an easy question to answer. Our liturgy tutor asked us to think about our experience of worship. What is it that we do when we "go to church"? When you are put on the spot, made to think through and explain your response in detail and then reflect on other replies, that initial thought rapidly fades!

I found one analogy particularly helpful. How would we compare a congregation at a church service with the audience at the theatre? There the division is fairly straightforward. It is the actors who perform; it is the prompters who enable and it is the audience who listen and watch. In a church, for some people, it is the clergy and leaders who perform; it is God who prompts the clergy and it is the congregation who listen and judge the clergy performance. Having looked a little at what we understood by worship and liturgy, we thought the roles should be totally different. Worship is the offering to God of praise, glory, honour and love. Liturgy is what enables the people of God to worship together. It will often involve a compromise since it enables people collectively to experience something intensely satisfying. Thus it should the whole congregation who "perform"; it is the clergy who enable or prompt and it is God who listens and watches.

How we as a congregation are helped to do this is a complex subject. We are all different; for example we see and think about the same facts from different perspectives. The formats and structures of our church services are both complex and varied. At the core are concepts that involve considerable subtlety. The way a service is crafted, celebrated and guided all have the power to include or exclude people. We can be drawn into a time of worship or we can remain unmoved. And it's not only about the words, whether we use traditional or modern forms, but also about engaging all our senses. Simple things like the choice of music, whether we can see and hear what's going on, our posture, the actions and position of the clergy and even whether we are too hot or cold can all make a huge difference to our focus or our ability to join the worship around us. The liturgy has not worked simply because we leave feeling uplifted or peaceful. I think worship works when we all participate and the congregation has not just been an audience.

That throws a huge responsibility on those people who have to design or lead worship. Like so many other subjects, I have been challenged to think more deeply and carefully about worship and liturgy and how they affect the spiritual life of a parish. The deep purpose of worship is to be in touch with the living God. We do not create worship; we simply join ourselves for a while to the perpetual worship around the throne of God. To be allowed to help enable the worship of my church community is such a privilege and responsibility. My prayer is that my training will equip me to do this with sensitivity, care and love.