First Presbyterian Orlando (Traditional service)

Kailey:

First Pres Orlando (Traditional Service)

I loved the robes—brought me right back to my Catholic roots. Black with Red accents and a shiny gold cross occasionally peaking out. Very stylish. And an alter GIRL. How progressive. The general feel of this church will be very comfortable to anyone who is most accustomed to a traditional service, but would like more practical preaching. And the décor—just lovely. Very nearly Catholic, endless stained glass and stained wooden pews, but without all the superfluous dying Jesus statues.

While the music was more traditional than what I’m used to, I must say that they do traditional music really, really well. The piano was fan-TAS-tic. Not the sleepy, borderline-score-for-horror-film organ variety I became intimately familiar with while attending Bishop Leonard Regional Catholic Elementary School. *Chapel every Tuesday and Thursday at 9.

It’s a big church, and there are two video cameras recording at all times—one of these sends a simulcast to the contemporary service next door—though they’re not nearly as noticeable as one might imagine. The space is large enough that they fade into the periphery rather quickly.

The teaching was very practical, and I believe intentionally so. The language was surprisingly casual compared to the garb, as it were. The Pastor made jokes about Presbyterians, and the Presbyterians in the audience laughed at his Presbyterian jokes. I’m always pleased when a Pastor can make fun of his denomination, and even more pleased when the congregation lets him get away with it. I think the only thing I would say I disliked was that, (while there was much discussion of how not following God well *behaviorally* is a reflection of how much we love or don’t love God), there was decidedly little discussion about what we’re missing out on when we don’t follow God well. Behavior is a condition of the heart. Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. And I’d bet that out of the overflow of the heart, the flesh acts. I would have loved to hear more about how following God well can change our very desires, rather than how to manage our behaviors—which are the by-products of desires that may never change, should we not intentionally pursue such refinement.

I liked the service, overall, and it was well executed in all aspects. I give it 68 techni-color dream coats.

Becka:

I think a traditional Presbyterian service is about as “high church” as the evangelicals get. And since I am not used to such an elevated service, I enjoyed it. Highly. Especially (let’s be honest) the parts where the organist/pianist played. Schubert’s “Impromptu in Ab,” Baldwin’s “Be Still and Know That I Am God,” and Best’s “O Praise the Lord With One Consent” according to the program (yes, it was definitely a program as opposed to a bulletin). It was just like going to a concert! And it was free! And during the prelude a couple of middle-school age-ish girls carried tall fancy candlestick-type things down the aisle and lit the candles on the altar. And there was an actual Choir. And the pastor, on occasion, preached to it. So much fun.

This was also one of the first services I’ve been to where I felt like the church paid attention to the room they were actually in when they created the Sunday service environment. Admittedly it was a traditional service in a traditional building so it would have been more of a stretch not to do that, but most (I’d say 95%) of the churches I’ve been in block all the windows (if there are any), get colorful stage lights and maybe a fog machine, dim the lights in the room, and light the stage like a rock concert during the singing. Nothing wrong with that. But there’s no reason it has to be done like that, either. Certainly not so uniformly. It was a refreshing change to be in a room lit on purpose with natural light that illumined the architecture and pews and organ pipes(!) and choir and pastor and congregants.

I award this church twelve sheaves of wheat to go along with the dreamcoats, mostly because I had fun.