Honey dears, there’s a bit of stage direction I want to give you for when you’re leading worship of any kind. It is this:
When you take a step in a direction, TAKE THE FULL STEP. Do not move hesitantly in worship. It is hugely distracting and no matter how confident your words, your body betrays insecurity and nervousness.
Do not make half gestures. Finish them. Practice them in the mirror if need be, and need does be: eg, Raising arms to signal a congregation to rise. Holding the arms out and lowering them to indicate that the congregation may be seated.
You need to claim these gestures, know what you’re doing with them, understand their history and their meaning. These are not gestures to fool around with and do with hesitation or gracelessness. You better know what you’re doing down the way you light the candles.
If you’re telling a story and moving around, do not rock back and forth. Plant your feet and engage your whole self energy, and then move to a new stance. Don’t bounce between stances and make half-moves. Practice this.
Song leading, too: you are either leading the congregation in some way that you understand, have planned and/or are confident about doing or else you risk confusing the people who are distracted by your uncertain gestures. No half-way commitment to doing call-and-response or leading a round or whatever it is you are trying to accomplish. Know what you’re doing or don’t do it. This is a public performance of an ancient nature and you are responsible for that congregation’s experience of ritualized movement.
But most of all, please work on your movement when you’re out from behind the lectern or pulpit. You must move confidently around the chancel or bima or risk betraying nervousness, distraction or lack of preparation. If you have prepared only your content but not the actual flow of worship itself, you haven’t prepared.
This goes for any presentation but most especially for worship.
Episcopalians, stop snickering. We don’t all get trained in the secret handshakes the way you guys do.
Thank you for this – so true.
Relatedly, when I started the ordination process, my dad told me “whatever you do, do it confidently. Because if you do it confidently, it becomes the right thing to do. And anything you don’t do confidently, however right it is, will look wrong.” And that stays in my head every time I lead worship (I should probably tell him that…!)
I did a quick check, and I don’t think this link has been posted here:
http://www.ted.com/talks/amy_cuddy_your_body_language_shapes_who_you_are
(Forgive me if it has.)
Last winter I took a one-day Acting for Non-Actors workshop and it really busted through the low-level depression I was feeling. The goofier it feels offstage, the more it helps when you’re out there in front of people. Now I try to remember how beneficial making big, sweeping movements to waltz music is, as well as how important it is to stretch my eyes and face and warm up my vocal chords before I teach. .
Well said. A great reminder for those of us who have not watched ourselves on film or in a mirror in awhile.
Yes!
I had a director once (when doing an acting thing) who said, “Don’t move unless you have to, and if you have to move, move like you mean it.” I’ve found that when I remember it, this rule translates well from stage to chancel.