CICW has awarded Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grants for over 20 years to teacher-scholars and worshiping communities in 45+ states and provinces and across 40+ denominations and traditions—including Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, non-denominational, and other Protestant communities.


While worship styles and practices vary greatly across these traditions, the grant projects typically explore at least one of CICW’s ten core convictions related to worship. Explore the hundreds of projects we’ve funded across both streams of the program.

Architecture/Space
Select Year
Select State/Province

St. Mark's Cathedral Parish

To enable the congregation and community to integrate worship into their daily lives by making the cathedral space available and facilitating varied acts of worship for people to engage in the space.

Worshiping Communities
Seattle, washington
2024

St. John’s Lutheran Church of Sweet Air

To learn about worship symbolism and accessibility concerns that hinder welcoming all worshipers through engaging in learning groups that explore relevant resources and analyze other worship spaces.

Worshiping Communities
Phoenix, maryland
2023

David's United Church of Christ

To create sacred space by experimenting with seating arrangement, various forms of artwork, and sensory experiences in innovative and interactive ways, while being responsive to the needs of ministry during the pandemic.

Worshiping Communities
Canal Winchester, ohio
2022

Shalom Hill Farm

To create a unique opportunity for worshipers to recognize the beauty, majesty, mystery, and holiness of God by developing a dedicated worship space in a barn, and facilitating worship experiences that foster a sense of holy vocation with and among all of God's creation as participants, rather than observers.

Worshiping Communities
Windom, minnesota
2022

Cristo Rey Jesuit High School

To facilitate the full participation of worshipers from all faith backgrounds by enhancing both the physical space for worship and the forms of music and visual arts in the liturgy.

Worshiping Communities
Minneapolis, minnesota
2020

First Baptist Church on Fifth

To reflect the church's renewed mission to become a sanctuary for the city by broadening worshipers' imagination for worship and deepening its engagement with the community.

Worshiping Communities
Winston-Salem, north carolina
2020

University of Dubuque (2018)

To raise up the value of sacred space by exploring how the practice and visually marking of sacred space in the chapel can extend into the rest of the campus.

Worshiping Communities
Dubuque, iowa
2018

Glen Ellyn Evangelical Covenant

To strengthen and encourage intergenerational worship through the church year and creative excellence in all aspects of worship including music, visual arts, sacred space design, spoken and written proclamation, prayer, and liturgy—all guided by the psalms. 

Worshiping Communities
Glen Ellyn, illinois
2014

Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church

To initiate study and experimentation into the theology of worship space and worship hospitality that will inform anticipated renovations to the worship space so that they are done with theological integrity, artistic and architectural excellence and sensitivity to the needs of the worshiping community.

Worshiping Communities
Asheville, north carolina
2013