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On the campus of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary
© 2024 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
Many congregations today experience collisions between parents who want to spend time with their children and age-segregated church programming, as well as between the children worshiping in their pews and the increasing number of seniors in the same pew. Among the questions these congregations struggle to address are these: Should we try to hold the generations together when we worship/ Is it even possible?
Led by pastor and resource developer Howard Vanderwell, nine writers--pastors, teachers, worship planners, and others serving in specialized ministries--offer their reflections on issues congregational leaders need to address as they design their worship ministry. In addition, numerous sidebars illustrate the diversity of practices in the church today. Contributors do not propose easy answers or instant solutions. Rather, they guide readers as they craft ministries and practices that fit their own community, heritage, and history. Each chapter includes questions for reflection and group discussion, and an appendix provides guidelines for small group use.
The thread that connects these varied contributions is the belief that there is no greater privilege for Christians than worshiping God, and there is no better way to do that than as an intergenerational community in which all are important and all encourage and nurture the faith of the others.
This book explores the practices and purposes of intergenerational worship. It includes chapters on biblical foundations for intergenerational worship, worship planning suggestions, reflections on preaching to an intergenerational gathering, the role of drama and storytelling in intergenerational community, and more.
Gratitude: Why Giving Thanks Is the Key to Our Well-Being
By: Cornelius Plantinga, Jr.
In Gratitude, award-winning author Cornelius Plantinga explores these questions and more. Celebrating the role of gratitude in our lives, Plantinga makes the case that it is the very key to understanding our relationships with one another, the world around us, and God.
Servanthood of Song: Music, Ministry, and the Church in the United States
By: Stanley R. McDaniel
'Servanthood of Song' is a history of American church music from the colonial era to the present. Its focus is on the institutional and societal pressures that have shaped church song and have led us directly to where we are today.
Sound Theology
By: Randall Dean Engle
This book surveys the liturgical soundscape during and after the Reformation with regard to the use of instruments in worship in general, and the (dis)use of the pipe organ specifically.
Gratitude: Why Giving Thanks Is the Key to Our Well-Being
By: Cornelius Plantinga, Jr.
In Gratitude, award-winning author Cornelius Plantinga explores these questions and more. Celebrating the role of gratitude in our lives, Plantinga makes the case that it is the very key to understanding our relationships with one another, the world around us, and God.
Servanthood of Song: Music, Ministry, and the Church in the United States
By: Stanley R. McDaniel
'Servanthood of Song' is a history of American church music from the colonial era to the present. Its focus is on the institutional and societal pressures that have shaped church song and have led us directly to where we are today.
Sound Theology
By: Randall Dean Engle
This book surveys the liturgical soundscape during and after the Reformation with regard to the use of instruments in worship in general, and the (dis)use of the pipe organ specifically.
Worship and Power: Liturgical Authority in Free Church Traditions
By: Sarah Kathleen Johnson, Andrew Wymer
This edited volume models how dialogue among scholars and practitioners can promote worship practices that are faithful and just.
