Josh and Colby Crabtree are avid churchgoers. Here, Josh speaks during a portion of a service.Emily Crabtree shares with the church the importance of it in her life.By Sara StrongUnited Methodist pastor Bart Fletcher prefers not to label the new Sunday service "contemporary."That can sometimes be interpreted as the typical church service, with a few modern songs thrown in. Or, worse, old-school churchgoers might assume a "contemporary" service is only for young people ... or for people who don't want to dress up for church.The United Methodist Church in Luverne is taking "contemporary" to a new height, designing services from scratch and increasing crowds. And Fletcher isn’t the only leader, by design.Church participants in the planning process include: Lori Von Holtum, Joshua and Emily Crabtree, Lyle Behrends, Tammy Moeller, Jack and Felicia Hanson, Kristi Franken and Keith Maine.Fletcher says the Methodist church is making a sincere effort to reach out to those who don’t feel they’re getting useful information for their lives in the standard service.Judy Wiley can relate to that sentiment. She leads services at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Luverne, and is president of the Rock County Ministerial Association. She is also trying to modernize Holy Trinity’s approach to Sunday services. Wiley said of the Methodist New Worship, "That’s a good message for the religious community — to meet people where they are today, not just hold on to traditions."Wiley said Holy Trinity is sampling more modern music and messages. "We’re trying to talk the modern word," she said.Even though Holy Trinity, and many others, is modifying some parts of the church service, Wiley can see where a totally new service would be a good alternative."Sometimes I am talking during the sermon and I see some nods or head shaking, and it would be nice to have a dialogue at that point," she said.The idea of a whole church conversation, rather than ceremony, is just what the Methodist church is creating."This is a new paradigm," Fletcher said, "compared to the old print-based, (one-dimensional, passive) and the paradigm we are pushing toward, which could best be characterized by the acronym EPIC: experiential (versus observer), participatory (versus passive), image-driven (versus print-driven) and community-oriented (versus individualistic)."Dialogue in the Methodist churchVon Holtum said, "I think [the New Worship] really bridges the world and the church."Emily Crabtree was an instrumental part of working with Fletcher to create the new service. She said, "This style of worship energizes me and it’s relevant to me. I leave here on Sunday and take it with me, to my family, to my job — it touches all parts of me. ... And I think that’s what our mission should be."Modern Christian music is certainly a part of the service — but it’s not the sole reason for having a new style of service. Video clips, interaction among people in the pews and timely themes are all included during the service. There are two bands, a youth and adult.It is a true church service, with communion, for example. Each service’s theme includes a pertinent Bible verse too. Crabtree said the music, videos and messages all point to the same theme and provide a continuous flow of faith and information.According to Behrends, the service participants are like a family in themselves. "We're creating a community," he said.People are invited, but not required, to speak during certain parts of the service.An especially meaningful time is the prayer circle that includes people facing each other in a circle and praying together, with time to share prayer requests.While opening up is a challenge for some, at least at first, it has become a treasured part of the service for many.Moeller, who also serves as the parish nurse, said, "People come in from the outside and see us having fun and sharing and they feel like they can because we do."She said people share good things and what they might need help with during the circle prayer time. "It feels appropriate to share in that setting. And I believe people do take that home with them and pray for others," Moeller said.Behrends said he’s happy about the changes in the church. "In coming to the United Methodist Church, Luverne, [years ago] I looked out over the congregation and most heads from the back were graying in color. When Pastor Bart and family came, an integration of younger people spread out into the congregation," he said.Since New Worship has been included in the church, Behrends said even more positive things have happened."As I got to know Pastor Bart, his concern for younger generations is because, without them finding a church home, their spiritual lives would be lost and the church will die."Rather than taking members from the traditional service, and reaching those who would be in church anyway, Fletcher sees the New Worship drawing new people. United Methodist Church has its New Worship, or Catch the Spirit service, every Sunday at 11 a.m. Regular church service is at 9 a.m.For more information, visit the church’s Web site at www.luverneumc.org. There are daily devotionals, information on past services and a guest book for visitors to read.Emily Crabtree said, "We want to reach people who have been turned off from church or who feel that it’s not relevant to them."Behrends said, "Psychologically, I believe that all of us need to belong to something or another. And I believe that it is not possible to do or be everything that God wants us to do or be without his being part of our lives. "We want everyone who needs that kind of connection to come, see and hear with our family of worshippers."… And, incidentally, it is fine to not dress up at this church, whether it’s been labeled contemporary or not.
