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 assist churches in incorporating liturgical arts by offering seminars and workshops, and by producing resources that disseminate these concepts to a broader audience.
To commission art and music suitable for services conducted within the home, to assist home-based churches in worship planning, and to write a series of articles to encourage home-based churches to reflect on their worship practices with respect to intentional liturgy.
To organize a training, discipleship, and spiritual development program for local worship leaders which will gather worship leaders, pastors, artists, and presenters for monthly retreats to engage in prayer, song, theological/ministry reflection, learning, and artistic creation.
To awaken global consciousness and involvement of the congregation in their community through the liturgical movements of gathering and sending.
To deepen the understanding and experience of the Lord’s Supper and Baptism by developing musical and liturgical leadership, enriching the worship environment with visual art relating to the sacraments, teaching children about the sacraments, and reaching out to the community through Passion Week worship services.
To encourage worship leaders to become more deeply rooted in historical expressions of biblical worship while engaging today’s culture through a conference designed to equip worship leaders.
To provide liturgical formation to musicians and others responsible for liturgy through a Summer Camp experience.
To collaborate with three other congregations to prepare children for full participation in the Lord’s Supper through a Sunday school class and the development of a picture book project.
To offer a study week that focuses on both liturgical theology of elements of worship and multi-cultural liturgy for liturgical leaders in the Roman Catholic dioceses of the
To host a series of workshops, each focusing on a unique cognitive or sensory way children worship God through visual arts, music arts, movement arts and writing arts, in order to investigate new ways of worshipping intergenerationally.
To integrate worship, outreach and mission through preaching and pastoral care by enhancing the quality of existing services in long-term care centers, promoting development of services for other long-term care centers, and building bridges between congregations and long-term care center residents through an intergenerational ecumenical project.
To explore with all generations the various ways, including reading, drama, visuals and song, that scripture is presented in the call to worship, assurance and sermon text.
