Is Reformed Worship Eurocentric? Interacting with the Idea of 'White Worship'

Last week, we spoke about the irony of the mockery Jesus faced (you can listen to that sermon here).  Toward the end of that message, we noted the irony of the unsuspecting disciple, Simon of Cyrene.   He just happened to be in Jerusalem for the feast when Romans forced him to pick up a cross and follow Jesus.

So, we have Jesus, a near-eastern or Palestinian Jew in Israel.  Simon's hometown in modern day Tripoli, Libya; he's Jewish, but from North Africa.  Later, in the Book of Acts, we meet the Ethiopian Eunuch, another African who was likely of non-Jewish descent.  As the early church carried out its missionary journeys, converts and churches appeared in diverse cultures throughout the ancient world.

Such an important heritage reminds us that the gospel and worship of the early church transcended any particular people group.  However, some have wondered if the doctrines of worship found in Reformation Europe too restricted the church to "white" preferences.  Do we need to renounce the regulative worship we learn from the sixteenth century Reformers, de-centralizing a Eurocentric understanding of worship?

In short, the answer is no, according to Pastor Terry Johnson of Independent Presbyterian Church here in Savannah.  At a recent conference, he demonstrates that the worship arising from the Reformation was, itself, a restoration of early-church, culturally-transcendent, biblical worship.  You can listen to his talk here:


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