Our guest bloggers today are Thomas Alexander and Ariana Gonzalez-Bonillas, two members of the EYE 2014 Mission Planning Team serving on the Liturgy and Music Team.

Ariana created the following short video report and Thomas the written report that follows.

Report from the EYE Liturgy and Music Team
Meeting held on Monday, September 9, 2013

I am continually mesmerized by the capability of the Episcopal Church in the twenty-first century.

Eight people of the Liturgy and Music Team for Episcopal Youth Event 2014 came together on Google Hangout for their first meeting to start planning the event. It was a “virtual” gathering bookended in thoughtful prayer, and the inspirational conversation was as follows:

• We began the discernment process for the kind of worship we need at EYE 2014. This is a huge portion of our ministry on the Liturgy and Music team, because our goal is to provide a worship experience for those attending EYE that is a passionate response to the current needs of the Episcopal Church, and Christianity as a whole.
• We discussed what we would like to see in the liturgical leadership at EYE. There are countless Christians who all could be a wonderful gift to the experience, but if the worship will respond to a need of the Church, the combination of preachers, presiders, etc. is very important to consider.
• We discussed what we would like to see in the music at EYE. This is a very broad umbrella of possibilities, under which we had several ideas, but we want to begin by reaching out to those who express an interest in a ministry of musical performance and leadership. This event will need musicians who can lead a large audience in singing, learning, and all together, praising.

Overall, there is a positive direction for the worship experience at EYE. As Episcopalians, one of our gifts to the world is providing an experience of God’s grace through liturgy and the sacraments. It is that gleaming quality of the Episcopal Church that we want to express at EYE 2014, as the Liturgy and Music team.