Use of Symbols in Worship

Publisher Description

In the first chapter, the editor attempts to set the place of symbols in the context of our contemporary cultural and to elucidate an understanding of liturgical symbols. The following five chapters aim to provide some theological and historical background to the symbols and then to offer some very practical guidance as to the place and use of symbols in the whole range of Common Worship services. The contributors to the book are teachers of worship and liturgical theology.Twenty five years ago, it was common to speak of a 'crisis of symbolism'. Today the cultural ground has shifted, and in our postmodern, technological age there seems to be a new fascination with symbols. Liturgical symbols are not simply visual aids or unequivocal signs referring to single, simple realities, but are suggestive and evocative. Such symbols belong to a whole matrix of imagery in scripture and in the prayer texts which accompany the ritual acts of worship.