As a child, I was a church acolyte. One Sunday each month, I would put on an ill-fitting robe, light the candles, collect the offering, serve communion, and then extinguish the candles. For the rest of the worship time, I would work very, very hard not to fall asleep in front of the gathered assembly. In that congregation, the acolyte sat right up front, on the raised part of the worship space, next to the pastor. There was nowhere to hide. If you nodded off during the psalm, the sermon, or the Apostles’ Creed, everyone could see you snooze!
One of my dreams in junior high was to be “promoted” to the position of church usher. From my acolyte perch, I could see the whole gathering space through windows at the back of the sanctuary. I would watch the ushers pass out worship materials, close the doors a few minutes into the worship service, and then goof off for the next thirty minutes until it was time to collect the offering. A few minutes into the sermon, one of the ushers would always disappear and return with a plate full of donuts from the fellowship hall. “What? I want that gig,” I would mumble to myself in my sleepy stupor.
The definition for usher is varied. The way we commonly think of the position is “one who escorts persons to their seats as in a theater or at a wedding,” as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. That makes sense, because the origin for the word comes from the Vulgar Latin, ustiarius, meaning “doorkeeper.” Ushers in theaters and sporting venues are gate keepers. They make sure you have the right ticket to get to into a certain section and then police disruptive or illegal behaviors.
But we shouldn’t miss an older and alternate usage of the word, which defines an usher as “an assistant teacher.” For many coming to my childhood congregation, the ushers taught what we believed by their welcoming actions. The ushers were the first friendly face that greeted them when they entered. They not only passed out the service bulletin, but also escorted people to their seats. Those doorkeepers opened the doors to parents stepping out of the service with crabby kids or helped a visiting guest locate the restroom. During communion, they invited and guided all to the table flowing with bread and wine, before shaking hands and saying, “See you next week” as people departed.
Little did I understand at that time that ushers were actually the front line of ministry and the “face of the place” for many who crawled out of bed and headed to worship. In some of the congregations I’ve pastored, ushers not only served on Sunday mornings, but were key leaders in serving and learning moments. They saw their time of greeting and passing out bulletins as extensions of their overall ministry to love God and neighbor.
I see that generosity here, too. Yes, you can help set up housing units in our Fellowship Hall for Family Promise or head to Faith Community to dish up the weekly hot meal at Stepping Forward, but what if you also helped once a month with worship or learning? Step forward like so many have before and join a whole group of others who “serve the Lord your God and God’s people” (2 Chronicles 35:3).
Did you know that it takes over fifty volunteers to propel ministry here each Sunday morning? Dozens of people are needed to meet and greet, prepare and serve, lead and teach. Check out this video invitation. There’s a spot for you and your passion. Consider plugging in. Grab a friend or family member and usher someone into this community of faith.
Grateful and hopeful,
Pastor Lowell