CHARIS LUTHERAN CHURCH, TENALI, A.P., INDIA

I have attended worship services in a wide range of locales – in very large churches, in tiny churches, in parks, on beaches, and on mountains, but never did I worship in a sanctuary building that was in its early stages of construction, yet fully functioned as a house of worship. I bet most of you won’t have done either. Let me tell you, therefore, a bit about worship at Charis Lutheran Church in Tenali this morning. 

Charis Lutheran Church, Krupavaram Comp, Tenali, India

Charis Lutheran Church is a new congregation. It is located at “Krupavaram Compound,” a former mission compound owned by Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church (AELC) which is now leased to a private college.

The congregation’s pastor is Rev. David Emmanuel, the same newly-wed, first call pastor and graduate of Andhra Christian Theological College (ACTC) in Hyderabad whose house blessing I attended a few days ago. The congregation has two worship services, the first mostly attended by the college’s residential students, the second by a more mixed-age congregation. 

Rev. David Emmanuel

The worship service followed a typical Lutheran liturgical format – it even had the obligatory announcements. The lessons were lectionary-based, albeit on a different lectionary than the used by most ELCA congregations. The singing was led by a choir and a drummer. The sermon was markedly longer than US congregations might tolerate. I was told that a typical sermon lasts at least 30 minutes.

I was fortunate in that this was the first Sunday of the month and communion was celebrated. In the absence of an altar rail, those receiving communion gathered in a line in front of the altar, sorting themselves into women on the left and men on the right. I was handed a wafer that, just like US communion wafers, annoyingly sticks to the roof of one’s mouth. The “wine” was very viscous, sweet grape syrup, distributed in individual cups which communion assistants afterwards collected in water-filled bowls.

So far, so good.  Now let’s look a bit at things that were different.  First of all, the buildings had no walls yet.  It did not even have plastered surfaces, paved ground, pews, or permanent pulpit and altar fixtures. The ground was compacted dirt. The congregation sat on a variety of chairs, school desks, plastic chairs, and even plastic tarp. Throughout the worship service, the surroundings were in full view and hearing. I could not help but notice construction supplies, the college classroom buildings, plants, birds, butterflies, and neighborhood noises and chants.

Footwear Taken off upon Entering the Sanctuary

Upon entering the sanctuary, I removed my foot ware, just as is customary in any place of worship in India, whether Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, or Christian.

Woman mostly sat on one side of the sanctuary, men mostly on the other side. A group of young women in matching sarees – the choir – sat on the tarps that were spread out between the altar and the first row of chairs.

The pastor wore a white alb, covered by a matching cassock and a seasonal green stole. He used a wired mike throughout the service. The wiring seemed rather impromptu but safe enough for the attendees.

Both the pulpit and altar were built from rough pieces of wood, hidden by hand-made green paraments. The altar sat on a platform that slightly elevated it.  On top of the altar were the “usual” liturgical items – communionware covered by a veil, a cross, and flowers.  Behind the altar, a large white sheet of fabric was hung to cover up the bare concrete wall.

Afterwards, I learnt that – in small congregations such as this one – the offering collected is handed to the pastor as his (rather meager) salary.  Any other needs (such as charity or building improvements and repairs) are taken care of via separate offerings.

Women Would Cover their Heads with the Saree During Prayers

All in all, by North American standards, the church looked more like a construction site than a finished sanctuary. The surprising part is that none of this mattered. I never felt that I was surrounded by a construction site, but sitting in a house of worship. What mattered were the music, the concentration of the worshippers, the young women and children’s smiles, and the message that the pastor extracted from the day’s Scripture lessons. From the few words of Telugu, some English snippets, and the occasional translation provided to me by my niece and nephew, I gathered that Pr. David was talking about faith as trust in God, based mostly on the Scripture readings for the day (2 Sam 22:21-29, Romans 10:4-18, Luke 7:36-50).

So – did I attend worship and was the Word of God proclaimed? You betcha!