This month Caspar's Corner focuses in on a book published by the ministers of our Conference through our Conference's Board of Publication in 1928. It is called Book of Worship for Church and Home with Orders of Service, Prayers, and Other Aids to Devotion.

In the early 1900's, the ministers of the conference working through the "Committee of Ministers," which is now called the Schwenkfelder Ministerium, composed a book to be used in public worship. The ministers involved were Edwin S. Anders, Robert J. Gottschall, Harvey K. Heebner (editor), Elmer E. S. Johnson, Lester K. Kriebel, Oscar S. Kriebel (chairman), and Levi S. Hoffman.

All of these ministers served in the Schwenkfelder Church. Some of them have been very influential on our church. Rev. Levi S. Hoffman was the pastor of the Towamencin and Worcester meeting houses that he led to eventually form our church in 1951. Rev. Edwin Anders also ministered at the Towamencin and Worcester meeting houses. Rev. Harvey K. Heebner exerted a great deal of influence at First Schwenkfelder Church and on our Dr. Jack Rothenberger. His funeral was at our church, and he is buried in our Garden of Memories. Elmer E. S. Johnson was an editor for the Corpus Schwenkfeldianorum, the volumes of Caspar Schwenckfeld's writings.

These ministers compiled the Book of Worship to meet a felt need amongst the Schwenkfelder church for a more vibrant and attractive public worship. It contains suggestions for portions of the worship service that we use today such as ideas for the Call to Worship, Offertory, and Benediction. It also contains orders of service for marriages, funerals, and the dedication of church buildings.

There are sections of this book that could stimulate our own thinking about other aspects of church life. It contains prayers and verses to consider when sick. The book makes suggestions for family worship.

It also contains services for the installation of officers and deacons. While we do not hold separate services for the installation of church officers, the ideas in this small book speak of the great responsibility and privilege to serve as an officer of the church.

This small book continues to exert influence in our church life today. While it was to be passed down to future church leaders, the book is recommended to all Schwenkfelder members as is stated in the introduction:

We urge every member of our Body to possess a copy, and to faithfully read and meditate upon it. By thus becoming familiar with the various elements of the order of public worship, mind and heart will be ready before participating in the service to receive all that God has prepared in the Holy Place.

Copies of this book can be found at our Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center