A Body of Praise: Understanding the Role of Our Physical Bodies in Worship
During the global COVID-19 pandemic, many church leaders and places of worship adopted or expanded virtual technologies to better allow digitally mediated worship to enter the homes of their congregants when in-person gatherings were not possible for most. While these efforts were certainly well-intended, for some Christians, it has raised the question of whether corporeal fellowship is really necessary in the modern age.
A literary piece twenty-five years in the making, author W. David O. Taylor’s book, A Body of Praise,is a timely and comprehensive work examining the involvement of the physical body in worship, both prescriptive and spontaneous, contending “God created us to worship with our whole bodily selves…along with every cell and sense in our physical bodies.” Taylor, an ordained pastor and theologian, nimbly navigates the theological, historical, and physical dimensions of how our bodies engage in corporate worship, arguing that we must, need, and get to worship God with our bodies. This book offers readers better insight into a wide variety of worship traditions, emphasizes the imperativeness of physically gathering for worship, and serves to inspire more meaningful engagement of our physical bodies during worship.
A Body of Praise is divided into sections that compellingly address the theological implications of bodily worship. In the opening chapters, Taylor establishes a framework for what he terms “the landscape of the body at worship” so readers might better understand the history and significance of the body in various religious traditions. Citing scripture, historical texts, Christian theology and practices, as well as personal experience, Taylor argues that the physical body is not merely a vessel for spiritual expression; rather, is integral to the experience of faith itself.
The middle section delves into scientific and artistic perspectives of the body in worship. Through describing the body’s active role (standing, kneeling, etc.) and its experiential role through the five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch), Taylor’s inclusion of the natural sciences affords the reader a brief glimpse “under the hood” to the physiological workings of the human body. Citing examples from artistic mediums, such as painting, dance, and architecture, Taylor next draws the reader’s attention to benefits offered through incorporating the arts into worship, stating the arts appeal to our five senses, connect us with our emotions, and deepen our understanding through imagination and metaphor.
The book concludes by addressing both prescriptive and spontaneous uses of the body during worship, closing with Taylor’s message that all of the discussed physical elements of worship allow us to offer our bodies so that we might become, serve, and love like Christ.
Among the book’s strengths is its interdisciplinary approach interwoven with Taylor’s personal experiences and thoughtful reflections. His writing is scholarly without sacrificing readability, making complex ideas consumable for a broad audience. More specifically, I deeply valued Taylor’s discussion in the ninth chapter over ethical considerations surrounding those with disabled, unseen, and digital bodies. I found this chapter highly relevant and necessary. Here, Taylor addresses the pain and exclusion often felt by those within the disabled community when a church’s worship service and physical space is designed primarily for the able-bodied. Taylor also includes the elderly, terminally ill (and their caregivers), shut-ins, homeless, and those who experience severe anxiety in social settings as persons often marginalized from liturgical life due to their unique needs, thus offering rationale as to why virtual worship may be the preferred, or quite possibly the only, way for many of these “unseen bodies” to participate in worship, fellowship, and community as “digital bodies.”
While this book skillfully explores the role of the physical body in corporate worship through several perspectives, I feel it omitted practical solutions for rectifying some of the book’s aforementioned ethical issues in the midst of controversy over virtual worship in this post-pandemic landscape. Although detailed endnotes are provided by the author to be a guiding resource for further study, and Taylor does acknowledge not all topics and traditions are represented in this book, I do believe some suggestions for effectively reaching those who are “unseen” and/or “disabled” would have been appropriate to aid congregations in moving forward in the most meaningful way possible, together,as the Body of Christ.
A Body of Praise is an insightful study that offers a fresh perspective on the critical role of the body in worship across a variety of traditions. Taylor successfully invites readers to reconsider their own practices and views about praise and embodiment as people made in God’s image. I recommend this book for church leaders, those serving in an audio-visual capacity for their church, churches considering structural renovations, or anyone interested in the dynamic relationship between worship and the human body. It serves not only as a scholarly resource, but also as a call to engage more deeply with the physicality of worship, individually and collectively.
This has relevance for our understanding of how we worship in “heaven.” God did not create us for disembodied worship. Therefore the importance of the resurrection