In many churches, laypersons are asked to read from the Scriptures in the worship services. Many of these readers mouth the words of the Scripture monotonously. If there is an amplification system, the words will, at a minimum, be heard; that is, the monotony and the aridity of the reading will be imposed upon every ear. Like the dry bones that the Lord showed Ezekiel in the valley, the words of God will remain lifeless.
No responsible person takes on a public role without preparing for it in some way. No responsible reader of Scripture in church walks to the lectern to read aloud without having reviewed and even studied the test using some standard questions as a guide. Who was the human author of this Scripture? Who was the original audience? What was the writer's purpose in composing this text? What message did the author wish to deliver to his audience? How has the author structured the text? What is the larger context of this reading? Are there unfamiliar words that will have to be pronounced? (There almost always are.) How can I emphasize certain words to make the author's meaning and the structure clear for the listeners?
Having thoughtfully prepared the text, the reader must now turn to preparation of the role she is about to play in the worship service. We can think of preparation as a series on concentric circles. The reader's outermost circle of preparation, further from the core, is getting up from a seated position and walking to the reading position. There is a moment of physical adjustment to the lectern and a good breath. The next circle inward is making eye-contact with the words written on the page.
The next circle inward may seem mysterious, but it needn't. The reader must now recall the human author's purpose in composing the text for its original audience. The author's purpose was not merely to read to his audience. Perhaps the author's purpose was to tell the listeners a story for their edification? Or, was the author prompting them to a particular course of action? Was the author reprimanding them? Bolstering their spirits? Consoling them? Admonishing them? Witnessing to them? The reader now joins with the spirit of the original human author and speaks for that author, assuming the author's purpose, to contemporary worshipers. In doing this, the reader has undergone a transformation; she has become the voice of the Word.
But nor the voice only. Readers who genuinely pursue the original author's purpose will find that their bodies will become involved, if, in some cases, only slightly. There may be a tensing drying of the throat, and , finally, a physical release and relief having fulfilled the original author's intention. It is not unusual for people to limit themselves to using their heads, faces, and voices in their efforts to communicate. We hear the phrases "talking heads" in reference to anchor persons on television news programs and to "neck-up actors," who do not use their bodies when they perform. While there is certainly no sin attached to being a talking head, it seems a shame not to employ all the physical gifts we have been granted. Recall Jesus' articulation of the first of the two great commandments. "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength." I suggest that one can love the Word of the LORD with all one's strength, as well.
An effective oral interpretation of the Scripture may well stand out in comparison with other readings and some people will say that the well-prepared reader seeks attention for herself. I disagree. A reading prepared in this manner does not draw attention to the reader, but to the text and the purpose of its original author. It proceeds from a belief that God's Word is as relevant for today's hearer as it was for the first hearers. (Note: the central character Soul Purpose play Forty Days is a reader of Scripture aloud in the assembly who undergoes the transformative experience of reading aloud in the assembly.)