Shaped by Love
"...our identity is shaped by what we ultimately love or what we love as ultimate–what, at the end of the day, gives us a sense of meaning, purpose, understanding, and orientation to our being-in-the-world. What we desire or love ultimately is a (largely implicit) vision of what we hope for, what we think the good life looks like. This vision of the good life shapes all kinds of actions and decision and habits that we undertake, often without our thinking about it...What's at stake is not primarily ideas but love, which functions on a different register. Our ultimate love/desire is shaped by practices, not ideas that are merely communicated to us."
Desiring the Kingdom | James K.A. Smith
And this is why our worship, argues Smith, is so important. Not important in that we only get right ideas into our heads–though that can and should happen. But more rooted, more foundational, more core-centric than that is that our love and heart's desire is shaped by what we do. And on a surface level we know this to be true. As I mentioned in a sermon some weeks back, there is very little in my heart that desires to follow slow speed limits. More than that, it is a nuisance when others drive so slowly. The gas pedal does go further. Really. And regardless of how many laws and rules and statistics I might read, it is all information that is not affecting my heart. But when I am drawn towards first loving my neighbor in all aspects of my life, only then would I first seek their good above my own.Only then might I seek to follow a slow limit. Maybe I would even just call it the "speed limit" and leave off the judgmental adjective "slow."
Our liturgy is shaped and intended to shape and orient our hearts towards God's gracious love of us and his world. Each section or movement of our liturgy is intentional and connected to the others. And they are laid out that our love might be shaped and formed, not just our heads.
Consider the Summary of the Law. When Jesus was asked to sum up the Law he did so by leading with "love the Lord your God"–taken from Deut 6 and the first tablet of the Law. He followed that up with "love your neighbor as yourself"–taken from Lev 19 and the second tablet of the Law. But how do you and I do with that daily, let alone weekly? How can we love God so fully and our neighbors in our own strength? We need the mercy and grace of God to aid us in that work–or better yet, that way of living–which is why the Kyrie is sung next. We ask for God's mercy to aid us in loving rightly. And this is then followed by a hymn where we praise God for who he is and that he guides and leads us in loving him and others.
How does this movement shape our love? We hear of God's righteous and good law for our world and we see that he also provides what is needed that we might live out his instruction. He does not lay a heavy burden on us and is unwilling to do anything about it. Rather we see him doing as St. Augustine prays: "Grant what you command, and command what you desire."
Grace & Peace