Two months out Richard Klafehn and congregational children during the Dr. Seuss liturgy.
‘We pray for people here and there. We pray for people everywhere.’
For you have given us this great time, filled with laughter, humor and rhyme. And you have shown us your holy love, that you have sent from heaven high up above.
I
f you think that sounds like Dr. Seuss, you’re as sharp as the Cat in the Hat. It’s just part of a Dr. Seuss liturgy used at churches celebrat- ing the life and work of Theodor Seuss Geisel, whose birthday is March 2 (he would be 108 this year). Last year, when the famous Lutheran’s birthday fell prior to Lent, two upstate New York congregations, Transfiguration (Rochester) and Bethlehem (Webster), treated worshipers to an unusual Sunday service of rhyming phrases. Children brought Dr. Seuss toys and adults wore playful hats. One congregation served—what else?: green eggs and ham.
Rick Klafehn was interim pastor at the time. He now serves a Lutheran-Episcopal partnership in Oswego and Fulton, N.Y. “Dr. Seuss’ dad was Lutheran and his mom was Episcopalian, so I’ve sug- gested we make Dr. Seuss a symbol of our faith partnership,” he said. Klafehn adapted materials from an Episcopal congregation near
Pittsburgh that offered “A Seusscharist.” But he also knew a Presbyte- rian pastor who did lessons from Seuss as a Lenten series, and he con- sidered what a big event Geisel’s birthday is in libraries and schools. “Dr. Seuss’ outreach to children, his use of imagination and creativity, his celebration of life and all its diversity all mirror God’s own mission, and I would pray also the church’s,” he said. “His lessons for living mirror what Scripture teaches. Jesus used stories and the life experi- ences of ordinary people. Why shouldn’t we today use stories familiar to us, like those of Dr. Seuss?”
Clearly a Seuss enthusiast, Klafehn lists several examples of gospel- like characters, including Horton who comes to the aid of Whoville, and the mess that the Cat in the Hat makes—a sinner in need of a savior. Klafehn said the worship teams caught a vision and were willing to give it a try: “I think they were more courageous than I was.” But folks were hesitant in one of the congregations, asking: “Can
we really have fun in worship? Will this be silly and irreverent?” As press releases came out “they came on board and prepared a feast of
genuine green eggs and ham, [and] children came with stuffed animals and favorite books,” he said. “They were really happy.” At the other congregation, grandparents brought grandchildren who didn’t normally come to church. Curious visitors came and attendance rivaled Christmas and Easter, Klafehn said, adding, “I think by the end of a long, lingering winter, at the end of February we all wanted a happy celebration. The Spirit gave it!”
The liturgy itself was more reverent than expected, he added. “Theodor Geisel reached many adults when they were chil- dren, and I think he still speaks to many adults in a safe, nonthreatening way,” Klafehn said. “He speaks to the child in all of us—in simple ways—as Jesus did too.”
Klafehn’s tips for a Dr. Seuss liturgy:
• Be not afraid. Have fun! • Make it a cooperative effort of creative people: cooks and bakers, musicians, teach- ers and librarians. • Pick songs and hymns that speak to and of children and child-like faith, and that cel- ebrate God’s creation and all God’s creatures. • Decorate your sanctuary with Seuss books from personal or public library collections. • Encourage children to bring a Seuss stuffed animal or their favorite book. • Preachers may refer to The Gospel Accord- ing to Dr. Seuss by James W. Kemp (Judson Press, 2004) or The Parables of Dr. Seuss by Robert L. Short (Westminster John Knox, 2008). • Worship leaders should practice the liturgy so they read and pray it with dignity and rev- erence, not in a sing-sing, silly way.
For a sample from the Dr. Seuss liturgy, go to
www.thelutheran.org/ feature/january. Contact Klafehn at rkklafehn@gmail. com for more information.
Send congregational stories—both those for a specific month/holiday or your best timeless idea—to
julie.sevig@
thelutheran.org. January 2012 39
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