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.
Bethany Lutheran Church
To offer weekly courses which will include examples of liturgical forms and explanations of the meaning and relevance of those forms to daily life int he 21st century, and to incorporate this information through visits with people and through mentoring seminary students.
Big Rapids Deanery of the Grand Rapids Diocese
To conduct a series of 6 sessions for reading, study, and reflection on the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy and the influence it has on liturgy and the people who gather for worship.
Diocese of Gaylord (2002)
To develop a three-year Institute for Liturgy offering 10 courses which will equip participants to offer regional and congregational educational events regarding church liturgy.
Office of Worship and Christian Initiation
To establish The Liturgical Institute of the southwest, a certification program for training liturgical leaders in the planning and implementation of sound pastoral liturgy.
St. Gregory the Great Parish
To develop excellence in liturgy by training lay worship leaders, including cantors, lectors, adult and children's choirs, by providing days of retreat and reflection, and by educating liturgy and music personnel to use use music software.
The Good Shepherd Christian Reformed Church
To develop comprehensive training in music and liturgical planning for musicians, worship teams and congregations in Hispanic churches.
Bethel-Bethany UCC
To encourage the use and appreciation of multicultural music and liturgy in the worship services of four Lutheran and Reformed congregations located in a multicultural neighborhood through the development of a congregational/ecumenical model for worship renewal.
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
To educate a parish and other diocesan congregations about worship rituals and the liturgical life of their communities during a cathedral renovation project
Corpus Christi Church
To collaborate with neighboring religious institutions to form an increased awareness of the relationship between private spiritually and public discipleship through a Lenten Vesper Series
Eighth St. Mennonite Church
To provide vision for and promote engagement in ecumenical worship through a series of planned worship services and other events.
Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions (2001)
To offer a Liturgy Summer Camp to provide a basic understanding of liturgy to lay persons in Michigan and Ohio
Knox Presbyterian Church (2001)
A liturgy training program for lay people in six rural/small town Presbyterian congregations in southwestern Ontario