Acolyte - An attendant or helper; one who assists in worship, often by lighting and extinguishing candles and bearing the flame in worship processions and recessions.
Alleluia (also hallelujah) - An ancient worship expression of praise to God.
Amen - To be firm, true; an ancient worship response signifying congregational affirmation, such as when it is spoken by a congregation at the conclusion of an individual's prayer.
Antependia (also paraments) - Hangings on the pulpit, lectern or communion table.
Anthem - A musical selection offered by a choir on behalf of the congregation in worship; often based on a passage of scripture.
Antiphon - A devotional composition sung responsively in worship.
Antiphonal - Refers to worship dialogue involving one group speaking or singing responsively to another group.
Baptistery - The structure housing the pool of water used for baptism.
Benediction - Words of blessing pronounced to the congregation at the close of corporate worship.
Canticles - Biblical hymns other than those found in the book of Psalms; examples include: Song of Moses (Exodus 15), and the Magnificat, or Song of Mary (Luke 1: 46-55).
Cantor - A soloist who leads a choir or congregation, often in responsively- sung music for worship.
Chancel - The space at the front of the sanctuary from where worship leaders often lead worship; physically includes the choir area, communion table, and pulpit.
Christian Year (also known as the Church Year) - A practice borrowed from the custom of Jewish feasts, it is an annual cycle guiding the church's worship through the reenactment of the life of Christ.
Commissioning - A service where persons are encouraged and empowered by a congregation to carry out particular missions and ministries.
Common Worship (or Corporate Worship) - The worship of God through the actions of a gathered body; congregational worship, public worship.
Communion - A name for the Lord's Supper; focuses the partaking of the Supper as a means of fellowship with God and unity among the worshipping body.
Communion Table (also altar table) - The table upon which the elements of the Lord's Supper and other worship symbols are placed.
Confession - The act of worship acknowledging humankind's sinful nature (it is followed by words of assurance reminding of God's expiation, forgiveness and atonement); also, a statement of belief affirmed by the congregation-a confession of faith.
Doxology - An expression of praise to God; often a short hymn sung in worship.
Ecumenical - Relating to the worldwide Christian church in the promotion of unity among churches and religions.
Eucharist - A name for the Lord's Supper; a word derived from the New Testament meaning "thanksgiving'; the Eucharistic Prayer is an ancient prayer-form offered to the Trinity before the Supper in remembrance and thanksgiving for salvation history.
Gloria Patri - Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end; an ascription of praise to the Trinity customarily sung after psalm readings in the early church to bring the Old Testament psalm into a New Testament context; also known as the Lesser Doxology.
Homily - A sermon, especially one intended to edify a congregation on a practical matter and not intended to be a formal theological discourse.
Hymn - A lyric poem of faith designed to be sung by a congregation as an expression of its worship.
Intercession - A prayer on behalf of others.
Introit - A hymn or psalm sung at the entrance of worship.
Invocation - A prayer at the opening of corporate worship requesting and recognizing God's presence in worship.
Lectionary - An annual schedule of scripture readings for use in worship coordinated with the calendar of the Christian year; many ecumenical Christian churches make use of the Revised Common Lectionary which provides a three-year cycle of readings from the Old Testament, Psalms, Epistles and Gospels for use in worship.
Lesson - A passage of scripture read in worship.
Litany - A form of prayer characterized by fixed responses spoken or sung by the congregation in response to a series of short petitions or thanksgivings spoken or sung by an individual.
Liturgy - From a Greek word meaning service to God; refers to worship as the work or service of the people, for God; has come to also denote the pattern and elements of a worship service that involves much congregational participation and action.
Narthex - An entrance hall leading to the nave of a church sanctuary.
Nave - The portion of the sanctuary occupied by the congregation.
Offertory - The time in worship when gifts such as money and music are offered for holy use; for the early church, this included the offering of bread and wine for communion.
Ordinance - Something Christ commanded the church to do; examples include The Lord's Supper and Baptism.
Ordination - The act of congregational encouragement, empowerment and authority given to individuals entering ministerial service.
Parament - An ecclesiastical vestment or hanging-see antependia.
Paschal Candle - A candle adorned with Christ symbols which burns throughout the season of Easter and during memorial or other services as a sign of Christ's resurrected and living presence.
Petition - A prayer of request.
Pulpit - An elevated pulpit desk in the chancel area from which scripture is read and the sermon proclaimed.
Sacrament - A symbolic action which, by faith, can be a means of grace.
Sanctuary - The place where the church gathers to worship God. This is a far more accurate term to use when speaking of the place where the church gathers for worship than is the term "auditorium." Public schools, colleges, hospitals and even large corporate headquarters have "auditoriums." Churches have "sanctuaries."
Sanctus - An ancient song of praise taken from the angelic expressions of Isaiah 6:3: Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord of Sabaoth; heaven and earth are full of thy glory.
Stole - A long embroidered scarf worn over the shoulders of ministers and worship leaders symbolic of taking the "yoke of Christ" in service to others.
Supplication - An earnest prayer of request.
Tenebrae - A "service of darkness" during the final days of Holy Week in which candles are gradually extinguished commemorating the crucifixion of Christ.
Theology - The study of the nature of God and religious truth; a system or school of opinions concerning God and religious questions.
Trinity - A word referring to the theology of the one God being known in three ways: Creator, Christ and Comforter.
Vespers - A worship service held in the late afternoon or early evening.
Vestment - The garments worn by ministers, acolytes, choir members and others who lead worship.
Worship - From the Anglo-Saxon weorthscipe-"worth" and "ship"-meaning one "worthy of reverence and honor;" Biblical words and images for worship include: shachah (Hebrew), meaning "bowing down, to do homage," and proskuneo (Greek), meaning "to kiss toward" or "prostrate oneself" in reverence to another.
Worship Guide - More descriptive than the word "bulletin," a worship guide aids in unifying a congregation's worship as it contains the order of worship and its corresponding words and actions.
Worship Prompters - From Soren Kierkegaard's metaphor of worship as drama in which the congregation are the actors, God is the audience, and those often referred to as "worship leaders" (ministers, choirs, readers, etc.) are prompters to assist the congregation in the words and actions of worship.
