1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary
© 2025 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
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.
To strengthen youth ministry and worship through youth interns who will learn about worship, participate in worship planning and leading, and develop intergenerational relationships throughout the congregation.
To promote a reciprocal relationship between scholarship and service by incorporating congregation-based service-learning experiences into the worship curriculum.
To reflect on worship in a university setting by nurturing the practices of prayer, reflecting on possibilities for a new chapel space, and exposing students to local church leaders and various worship traditions.
To incorporate visual arts and video into campus worship in a theologically thoughtful and culturally sensitive way through community conversations and learning events.
To encourage the development of arts ministries and the incorporation of a variety of arts in worship as a regular liturgical practice of the community.
To facilitate a multicultural ministry of reconciliation in worship and life together by engaging Native American history through storytelling and theological reflection that promotes understanding, healing, justice and reconciliation.
To promote deeper understanding and skill for musical worship leaders through learning opportunities related to global traditions and congregational song, following the pattern of the Christian year.
To engage people from different ethnic communities in the practice of basic Christian worship principles in order to promote unity, faith formation, hospitality and missional opportunities expressed in culturally diverse forms.
To develop and deliver culturally relevant drama and visual arts training for worship leaders in prison settings as a means of promoting a vivid awareness and heartfelt response to God.
To explore forms of prayer from various Christian communities in different times and places that will inform and enhance times of communal worship on campus.
To use the Psalms as a guide to deepen the understanding and practice of prayer, and to promote unity among diverse ecumenical, racial, and cultural worship expressions.
To explore the concept of “Ancient-Future” worship and implement what has been learned in a new worship service that is intended to help the congregation stay true to its Reformed roots, understand and enjoy the blessings of connecting to the historic Christian Church and offer a service that will be intelligible to the nonbeliever while being theologically rich and meaningful to Christians.
