Liturgical Nerds

We’re proud to be able to start a new resource on LN: Field Reports. From time to time, a first-person account of a unique or innovative liturgical event will be featured. The first in this series features Rev. Jeff Slater trying to manage outdoor funerals on the wintry & windy plains…

I’ve long believed that those who call Chicago the “Windy City” have clearly never been to western Kansas. There is a reason wind farms are popping up all over the place out here! And let me tell you, there is nothing quite so miserable as doing a funeral, striving to embody God’s grace, while reading from papers being blown by 30mph wind (on an average day — it often goes much higher!). Add in the fact that winter is still with us– try turning those pages with numb fingers!

And so a few days ago I tried something new: I presided over a funeral using my Kindle. I have to say, it worked remarkably well!

If you aren’t familiar with it, the Kindle‘s screen uses e-ink. It is a technology that is reflective, meaning that unlike most screens which shine a light in your face, e-ink looks just like a piece of paper. Of course it also brings the usual digital advantages, like enlarging the text at the push of a button.

My usual process is to customize the service on the computer then print it out. In this case all I had to do was prep the service in Google Docs then hit the “Share” button to email everything wirelessly to my Kindle. At first there were some formatting problems, but a few easy tweaks and it worked like a charm. The liturgy was beautiful and easy to read.

On the way to the cemetery (it was an hour and a half drive away) I was listening to a podcast that included a narrative from a pastor remembering a funeral he did in the 1920s. I glanced over at my Kindle and considered how times have changed.

When the moment came, God was there. It was 30 degrees out and windy at a cemetery in the middle of northwestern Kansas. The tent they had set up helped block the wind, but it sheltered the family much more than it sheltered me (which is how it should be!) But despite the cold wind it was a truly grace-filled moment. As I “tuned in” to God and to the family and friends of the departed, I changed a few things in the brief sermon and even juggled a few phrases in prayers as the Spirit moved me in the moment.

So, in the end, I don’t suppose it was so different than the 1920s. The difference is that unlike my predecessors, standing in almost the exact same spot on the same plot of land nearly a century ago, MY my pages were not blowing in the wind and MY numb fingers didn’t have to turn pages. The family didn’t know any different (I had the Kindle in its book-like cover so the device itself wouldn’t be a distraction) but I was able to dedicate less of myself to the logistics and more of myself to the Spirit.

What more could we ask of technology?

Jeff Slater is one of our young United Methodist clergy colleagues. He serves in Kansas, blogs at life | emergent and tweets as Qohelet. Ask him why he’s called Mr Universe…