Westminster Presbyterian Church in Calgary is now utilizing the Narrative Lectionary throughout the congregation: Sunday worship, church school and in the home.
So, to answer your first question, "what is the Narrative Lectionary?" It is a four year cycle of readings that has been imagined and managed by Luther Seminary in the USA. This is what the creators say about the motivation behind this four year old lectionary: "Though the Revised Common Lectionary has united the church in its reading of scripture and has given much-needed structure, it doesn’t present scripture -- especially the Old Testament -- in a way that helps people to become fluent in the first language of faith. The Narrative Lectionary is an attempt to take nine months to do just that."
So, to answer your first question, "what is the Narrative Lectionary?" It is a four year cycle of readings that has been imagined and managed by Luther Seminary in the USA. This is what the creators say about the motivation behind this four year old lectionary: "Though the Revised Common Lectionary has united the church in its reading of scripture and has given much-needed structure, it doesn’t present scripture -- especially the Old Testament -- in a way that helps people to become fluent in the first language of faith. The Narrative Lectionary is an attempt to take nine months to do just that."
The Frequently Asked Questions page also has a video intro to the overall plan of the Narrative Lectionary. Resources week by week are provided on-line--and free-- at workingpreacher.org. This site, also managed by Luther Seminary, provides both written and audio podcasts on lectionary texts for both the Common Lectionary and the Narrative Lectionary.
So how is Westminster using the Narrative Lectionary? The minister hosts a Bible study group weekly on the lectionary texts for the upcoming Sunday. In advance of the goup's meeting participants are sent links to the written and podcast resources for the texts found at WorkingPreacher. Group discussion helps participants delve more deeply into the texts and the insights that arise help shape Sunday's sermon. The church school follows the same texts, so children deal with the same stories as their parents do on Sunday morning. Curriculum materials for the church school teachers are all available on-line for downloading so classes can be prepared. Finally, the picture at the top of this post shows a page from inside the Grade 3 - 6 home guide. This guide provides texts and suggested activities for daily family devotions.
Westminster has been using this lectionary all this year, but in December is introducing it in this far more comprehensive way across the congregation.
Westminster has been using this lectionary all this year, but in December is introducing it in this far more comprehensive way across the congregation.
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