Protestant Services
In most but not all Protestant traditions, services are presided over by clergy wherever possible. However provision is in many cases made for them to be conducted by laymen if clergy are not available.
Services typically include:
- Regular Sunday services. These are a part of most traditions. Holy Communion may be celebrated at some or all of these; Often it is included either once a month or once a quarter. A few denominations have their main weekly services on Saturday rather than Sunday. Larger churches often tend to have several services each Sunday; often two or three in the morning and one or two in the late afternoon or evening.
- Midweek services. Again, Holy Communion can be part of these, either on every occasion or on a regular basis.
- Holiday services. Treated like a regular Sunday service, but made more specific for the day.
- Marriages. These are normally separate services, rather than being incorporated into a regular service, but may be either.
- Funerals. These are always separate services.
- Baptisms. These may be incorporated into a regular service, or separate.
- Confirmation. This is normally incorporated into a regular Sunday service, which will also include communion. It was traditionally the first Communion of the confirmee, but more recently children whether confirmed or not are invited to communion in some denominations.
- Ordination of clergy.
- Closure of ministry of a clergyman.
- Opening of new churches or church buildings.
- Dedication of new missionaries or those about to be sent on new missions.
Other acts of worship can be sometimes incorporated into services, and sometimes not. Sometimes the line is hard to draw. These include:
- Blessings for the openings of school and university terms and many other events.
- Prayers for healing of particular persons, whether present or not, and for other specific issues.
Read more about this topic: Service Of Worship
Famous quotes containing the words protestant and/or services:
“There was a young lady called Alice
Who peed in a Catholic chalice.
The Padre agreed
It was done out of need
And not out of Protestant malice.”
—Anonymous.
“The community and family networks which helped sustain earlier generations have become scarcer for growing numbers of young parents. Those who lack links to these traditional sources of support are hard-pressed to find other resources, given the emphasis in our society on providing treatment services, rather than preventive services and support for health maintenance and well-being.”
—Bernice Weissbourd (20th century)