Ministering with My Generation
October 1, 2000
The young woman standing before us looks a lot like Morticia Addams. Like the classic TV character, her hair is long, black, and stringy. Her skin is typing-paper white, except for her lips, which are painted black, matching her floor-length sheath. She is pierced. She is the worship leader. In this incarnation, Morticia's warm contralto is replaced by an intense soprano that hugs a melody line of only three or four notes. Her tango is a rich, rhythmic amalgam of classical, grunge, and funk, produced by the band behind her: cello, bassoon, violins, flute, keyboard, guitar, bass, and drums. The sound is neo-classical funk, a little bit Celtic, a little bit rock-and-roll; Isaac Watts' hymns set to new tunes. To untuned ears, it is strange, stirring, not that singable, and in this setting, very right. This is Seattle. The place is a Seventh-Day Adventist sanctuary, rented on Sunday for two services. The congregation—numbering about 150 in the early service—is mostly under 30, college students, a few artists, perhaps, and young professionals, some with small children. The service depends heavily on liturgy, including the Lord's Prayer, the Nicene Creed, and a question from the Heidelberg Catechism. The Lord's Supper will be served, as it is every week. A trim young man with short blond hair, a former Army Ranger, greets by name each person who comes to the table. He peers into the eyes of each communicant. "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" A pop quiz. A pause. "Um, no one?" "That's right. This is the body of Christ, broken for you." This is Grace Seattle. The blond man is Tom Allen, the pastor. He is warm. His style is unadorned, but over lunch he is passionate about his ministry. He is hesitant to be labeled. ...
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