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Historical Foundations of Worship
A Historical Look at the Development of Worship
This volume brings together an ecumenical team of scholars to offer a historical overview of how worship developed. The book first orients readers to the common core elements the global church shares in the history and development of worship theology and historical practice. It then introduces the major streams of worship practice: Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant, including Reformation traditions, evangelicalism, and Pentecostalism. The book includes introductions by John Witvliet and Nicholas Wolterstorff. A previous volume addressed the theological foundations of worship.
Melanie C. Ross (PhD, University of Notre Dame) is associate professor of liturgical studies at Yale Divinity School and Institute of Sacred Music in New Haven, Connecticut.
Mark A. Lamport (PhD, Michigan State University) is professor of practical theology at graduate schools in the United States and Europe. He has coauthored or edited over a dozen books.
This volume brings together an ecumenical team of scholars to offer a historical overview of how worship developed. The book first orients readers to the common core elements the global church shares in the history and development of worship theology and historical practice. It then introduces the major streams of worship practice: Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant, including Reformation traditions, evangelicalism, and Pentecostalism. The book includes introductions by John Witvliet and Nicholas Wolterstorff. A previous volume addressed the theological foundations of worship.
Melanie C. Ross (PhD, University of Notre Dame) is associate professor of liturgical studies at Yale Divinity School and Institute of Sacred Music in New Haven, Connecticut.
Mark A. Lamport (PhD, Michigan State University) is professor of practical theology at graduate schools in the United States and Europe. He has coauthored or edited over a dozen books.
- GenresTheology
320 pages, Paperback
Published April 12, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 28, 2022
This is primarily a collection of 18 academic essays/chapters grouped into 5 parts and written by a different expert focusing on a specific element of christian worship (for most traditions, this means an examination of how the liturgy or worship service evolved) with a significant portion of the book (37%) given over to citations. This was an especially timely read for me as I had just finished my Liturgy and the Sacraments class and had just started my Canon Law class … so this fit right into what I was already learning about. The format of each chapter opened with a bit of context before digging into the subject at hand, then ending with a section on “Practical Implications for Worship” (sort of a where are we now review) and suggested Further Reading … which is great because the biggest complaint that I had was that I always wanted to explore the topic more after finishing the chapter.
Part one of the book looks at what all of the main line christian denominations have in common: baptism, communion/eucharist and celebrations (aka liturgical time). Then in part two, we get a survey of what we think the early church looked like (as well as acknowledging that there is still a lot that we just don’t know). In the next three parts, we get a look at Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholicism and several flavors of Protestant churches. Sadly, the tradition I grew up in (the Stone/Campbell Restoration movement) doesn’t get much press here, but that is okay, because it actually pulls a lot from the traditions that are covered; namely Lutheran, Calvinist/Reform, Anglican/Episcopal, Methodists, Anabaptist, Baptists, Evangelicals and Pentecostals. That last one was perhaps the weakest of the essays (or I just didn’t get it … which is also possible). Still, this book is an easy to read primer on a wide variety of christian societies that would be useful to any academic or lay person interested in ecumenical outreach (which I am).
I was given this free advance review copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
#HistoricalFoundationsofWorship #NetGalley
Part one of the book looks at what all of the main line christian denominations have in common: baptism, communion/eucharist and celebrations (aka liturgical time). Then in part two, we get a survey of what we think the early church looked like (as well as acknowledging that there is still a lot that we just don’t know). In the next three parts, we get a look at Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholicism and several flavors of Protestant churches. Sadly, the tradition I grew up in (the Stone/Campbell Restoration movement) doesn’t get much press here, but that is okay, because it actually pulls a lot from the traditions that are covered; namely Lutheran, Calvinist/Reform, Anglican/Episcopal, Methodists, Anabaptist, Baptists, Evangelicals and Pentecostals. That last one was perhaps the weakest of the essays (or I just didn’t get it … which is also possible). Still, this book is an easy to read primer on a wide variety of christian societies that would be useful to any academic or lay person interested in ecumenical outreach (which I am).
I was given this free advance review copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
#HistoricalFoundationsofWorship #NetGalley
December 27, 2022
Very thorough. Good for in-depth study, or a slow and steady read.
November 4, 2023
One of the best books I’ve read in a long time. Ross and Lamport’s book is so readable and you’ll learn so much about church history.
December 4, 2025
Balanced and AWESOME
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews