1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary
© 2024 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 facilitate worship and learning opportunities centered around the sacraments of baptism and eucharist to help multicultural and multigenerational families in the local community become grounded in their faith.
To deepen the capacity of Asian American pastors for worship and congregational leadership in their cultural contexts by offering a nine-month learning cohort for pastors.
Matthew Kaemingk
To create a handbook that will provide leaders with a host of songs, prayers, blessings, sample worship services, sermon topics, and guides for small-group discussion to equip pastors and worship leaders with practical ideas, advice, and resources to lead effective worship for workers.
To support and diversify our ministry to those struggling with mental health by working with psychologists, theologians, ministers, therapists, worship leaders, and artists to create prayers and songs for the worship context that acknowledge and express experiences of psychological suffering.
Jennifer Ackerman
To study the impact arts-based training encouraging curiosity, creativity, and courage has on pastoral leadership to increase pastors' capacity to lead vibrant, justice-oriented communities of worship.
To equip leaders to create a pilgrimage experience in their own context by together engaging the embodied experience of pilgrimage and developing worship resources for their communities out of that experience.
To develop a dynamic intergenerational worship resource guide for Brethren in Christ U.S. congregations that promotes meaningful worship practices that reflect BIC values, theology, and mission.
To enrich the theological understanding of worship in the United Holy Church of America and encourage African American worship leaders by hosting monthly virtual workshops and an in-person conference.
Sunggu A. Yang
To develop the practice of artistic-holistic preaching using examples from pottery, photography, Indigenous dancing, advertising, and poetry to offer innovative and practical resources for preaching education.
To gather, share, and celebrate personal testimonies and connect them to the gospel story to illustrate in gathered worship the ways participants worship in all of life.
To strengthen public worship and witness by building capacity in the music ministry, instituting a public worship event, and creating an outdoor mural.
To enhance spiritual connection among all age groups by creating generationally diverse worship teams, educating worship leaders about inclusive worship, and using intergenerational teams to plan worship and develop new liturgical resources.
