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Symposium 2020 Presenters

A list of presenters from the 2020 Symposium on Worship.

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posted on February 3, 2020

Kevin Adams is the senior pastor of Granite Springs Church, Rocklin, California, and a program affiliate with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

Jared E. Alcántara is the Paul W. Powell Associate Professor of Preaching at Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary in Waco, Texas. An ordained Baptist minister, he has served as a youth pastor, associate pastor, and teaching pastor in Illinois, Massachusetts, Oregon, and New Jersey. His recent books are The Practices of Christian Preaching (Baker, 2019), Crossover Preaching: Intercultural-Improvisational Homiletics in Conversation with Gardner C. Taylor (IVP, 2015), and Learning from a Legend: What Gardner C. Taylor Can Teach Us About Preaching (Wipf & Stock, 2016).

The Aeolians of Oakwood University, established in 1946, performs choral music repertoire from the Baroque era to the 21st century, under the direction of Jason Max Ferdinand. They have collaborated with symphony orchestras to present masterpieces of Brahms, Mozart, Schoenberg, Dvorak, Hailstork, Verdi, Dett and many other renown composers. They have also performed and recorded with artists, such as Kathleen Battle, Angela Brown, Take 6, and Jacob Collier. In early 2012, they performed in Moscow, Russia, and competed in the summer at the 7th World Choir Games and earned three gold medals, along with the championship in the Spirituals category. In 2017, they won the Choir of the World award at the LLangollen International Musical Festival, Wales, United Kingdom. In the summer of 2018, they won three gold medals at the 10th World Choir Games and the championship in both the University Choirs and the Spirituals categories. In 2019, they became the first HBCU choir to be selected from blind auditions to perform at the National ACDA Conference.

John A. Azumah is the executive director of the Sanneh Institute at the University of Ghana. He is a visiting professor of world Christianity and Islam and the Presidential Visiting Fellow at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.

David M. Bailey is the director of Arrabon and a CICW Program Affiliate. Arrabon is a ministry that inspires, empowers, and equips Christians to shape worshiping communities to value and cultivate the flourishing of all people. He is also a music producer, speaker, and the author of Arrabon: Learning Reconciliation through Community & Worship Music (Making a Melody, 2012).

Elizabeth Bajema is a member of First Christian Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she has served as a deacon. She is on the board of Friendship Ministry and is a recent recipient of the Spirit Award from Compassionate Heart Ministry. 

Jeff Barker is a professor of theatre and worship arts at Northwestern College, Orange City, Iowa. He is a playwright and storyteller. His most recent book is Iowa Ethiopia: A Missionary Nurse's Journey Continues (Hendrickson Publishers, 2019). He also mentors the Northwestern Drama Ministries Ensemble and teaches in the doctoral program at the Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, Orange Park, Florida.

Elise Erikson Barrett previously served as a United Methodist pastor. She is the author of What Was Lost: A Christian Journey through Miscarriage (Westminster John Knox, 2010).

Cheryl Bear is a Nadleh Whut’en from the Dakelh Nation and Dumdenyoo Clan (Bear). An artist, pastor, and educator, Cheryl has helped build bridges of understanding between Christian and First Nation communities through her music, storytelling, and humor.

David Beelen is the senior pastor of Madison Square Christian Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and serves as a staff member of the Vocational Formation Office at Calvin Theological Seminary.

Amanda Benckhuysen is Johanna K. and Martin J. Wyngaarden Senior Professor in Old Testament Studies at Calvin Theological Seminary and an ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church. Her recent books are The Gospel According to Eve: A History of Women’s Interpretation (IVP Academic, 2019) and Loving Our Migrant Neighbor (Calvin University Press, forthcoming).

  • Engaging with the Bible for the First Time (All Over Again)

Hans Boersma (PhD, University of Utrecht) holds the St. Benedict Servants of Christ Chair in Ascetical Theology at Nashotah House Theological Seminary in Wisconsin. His books include Seeing God: The Beatific Vision in Christian Tradition (Eerdmans, 2018), Scripture as Real Presence (Baker Academic, 2017), and Heavenly Participation (Eerdmans, 2011). Among Boersma’s theological interests are Catholic thought, the church fathers, and spiritual interpretation of Scripture.

  • A Sacramental Vision for Public Worship
  • Participation and Modernity (Friday only)

Joyce Borger is an ordained minister of the Christian Reformed Church in North America, serving the denomination as the director of Worship Ministries and as the senior editor of the ecumenical journal Reformed Worship. She has also served as editor of several musical collections, including Lift Up Your Hearts: Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs (Faith Alive Christian Resources, 2013) and Psalms for All Seasons (Faith Alive Christian Resources, 2011).

Emily R. Brink is a resource development specialist for congregational song for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, editor of three hymnals, and  editor emeritus of Reformed Worship, a quarterly journal published by the Christian Reformed Church in North America. Her areas of interest include congregational song from all times and places, psalmody, hymnal editing, and consulting with a wide range of churches on worship renewal issues.

  • When the Story about a Song Changes How We Sing the Song

Jonathan Brooks is the senior pastor at Canaan Community Church in West Englewood, a neighborhood on the southwest side of Chicago, Illinois. He holds a master’s degree in teaching from National Louis University, Chicago, Illinois, and Master of Divinity with emphasis on Christian community development from Northern Seminary, Lisle, Illinois. He is the author of Church Forsaken: Practicing Presence in Neglected Neighborhoods (IVP, 2018).

Calvin University Worship Apprentices are student worship leaders mentored by Paul Ryan, the associate chaplain for worship.

Karen Campbell is co-pastor at Church of the Servant, Grand Rapids, Michigan. She previously served as pastor of Kilbride Presbyterian Church in Ballyclare, Northern Ireland. 

Mark Charles is a speaker, writer, consultant, and program affiliate with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. He is a founding partner of a national conference for Native American students called Would Jesus Eat Frybread?

Kai Ton Chau is a resource developer for the Calvin Institute for Christian Worship, an associate editor of the Reformed Worship journal, and a member of the chapel planning team at Calvin Theological Seminary. He attends and directs the choir at Blythefield Christian Reformed Church in Rockford, Michigan.

  • Choral Music for the “Faithful Fifteen” (a.k.a. Small Church Choirs)
  • Online Resources for Worship Planning

The Choral Scholars is a chamber choir based in West Michigan. Since its debut in 2005, it has established itself as one of West Michigan’s premiere chamber ensembles. With repertoire spanning a variety of sacred and secular genres, the group has performed in concert series and festivals throughout the region, giving several of its own concerts each year. To date, the group has released two full-length recordings, Gaudeamus (2007) and Sing Joyfully (2014), as well as two recordings with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, Global Songs for Worship (2010) and Cry Out to God! (2012).

  • Living in Justice and Light (Deuteronomy 24:17-22)

Todd Cioffi is associate professor of congregational and ministry studies at Calvin University and the director of the Calvin Prison Initiative, a unique academic program that provides a Christian liberal arts education to inmates at the Richard A. Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia, Michigan.

Carlos Colón, a native of El Salvador, is a composer, liturgist, and the assistant director for worship and chapel of the Office of Spiritual Life at Baylor University, Waco, Texas. He is also a resident scholar at Baylor Institute for the Studies of Religion.

Elizabeth Conde-Frazier is the Coordinator of Relations for Theological Entities at the Association for Hispanic Theological Education (AETH) and a visiting scholar at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. She is a practical theologian whose research areas include various aspects of worship, such as preaching, music, liturgy, and education. Her method of inquiry is qualitative as it connects best with Freirean pedagogies. This means that bringing communities together for sharing ideas and critical thinking is at the crux of her work.

Dale Cooper is a resource specialist for liturgical spirituality at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, as well as chaplain emeritus and adjunct faculty in the Congregational and Ministry Studies department at Calvin University.

María Eugenia Cornou is a program manager for international programs and intercultural learning at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. She is a co-author of the bilingual children’s book En la escuela de los Salmos / At Psalms School (GIA Publications, 2019) and the co-managing editor of the bilingual (English-Spanish) hymnal Santo, Santo, Santo / Holy, Holy, Holy (GIA Publications, 2019).

Betsy DeVries is a PhD candidate at Emmanuel College of the University of Toronto, Ontario, where she is studying homiletics.

Dennis R. Edwards is an associate professor of New Testament at North Park Theological Seminary, Chicago, Illinois. He is the author of 1 Peter of The Story of God Bible Commentary series (Zondervan, 2017) and the forthcoming What is the Bible and How Do We Understand It? (Herald Press, 2019).

Lynn Barger Elliott is an affiliated faculty in the congregational and ministry studies department at Calvin University and a resource specialist for intergenerational and youth initiatives for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

Scott Erickson (@scottthepainter) is a touring painter, performance artist, and creative curator who mixes autobiography, biblical narrative, and aesthetics to create art that speaks to our deepest experiences. He is currently touring with his multi-media storytelling piece Say Yes: A Liturgy of Not Giving Up On Yourself. He is the co-author of Prayer: Forty Days of Practice (WaterBrook, 2019) and May It Be So: Forty Days with the Lord’s Prayer (WaterBrook, 2019).

  • The Well We Draw From
  • Engaging Visual Artists for the Sake of the Church

Ronald J. Feenstra is the Heritage Professor of Systematic and Philosophical Theology at Calvin Theological Seminary. He previously taught at Marquette University in Milwaukee and has participated in official Roman Catholic-Reformed dialogue for two decades. He and a Catholic dialogue partner are working on a study guide for local communities to engage in Roman Catholic-Reformed dialogue.

  • Lessons from Protestant-Catholic Dialogue (Saturday only)

Jason Max Ferdinand is a professor, the director of choral activities, and the chair of the music department at Oakwood University, Huntsville, Alabama. He is in his twelfth season conducting the world-renowned Aeolians of Oakwood University. He maintains an active schedule as a composer, presenter, adjudicator, and guest conductor for high school, collegiate, and church choirs throughout North America, Europe, Asia, and the Caribbean. His choral series bearing his name is in circulation by Walton Music, a division of GIA Publications, Inc. His greatest passion is watching those who he has mentored become conductors and composers in their own right.

Christopher Flesoras is the pastor of Saint Anna Greek Orthodox Church in Roseville, a parish of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco. He received his PhD from the University of California, Davis, in the foundations of education and Christian pedagogy in the Byzantine East.

Steve Fridsma is an architect, designer, and consultant in a wide variety of building types. Throughout his career, he has focused his learning and experience on physical environments for worship and ministry, particularly for churches seeking to address worship renewal, reflect a missional mindset in their architecture, and create communities for emerging generations. He is passionate for discerning an appropriate design for each church and its unique ministry context.

  • Aligning your Worship Space with Your Vision for Worship

Terence Gadsden is the coordinator of urban outreach and the athletic chaplain at North Park University, Chicago, Illinois. He holds a Master of Divinity with emphasis on Christian community development from Northern Baptist Theological Seminary, Lisle, Illinois.

Dominique DuBois Gilliard is the director of racial righteousness and reconciliation for the Love Mercy Do Justice (LMDJ) initiative of the Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC), where he has been ordained as a minister. He is the author of Rethinking Incarceration: Advocating for Justice That Restores (IVP, 2018).

Anna Greidanus is a professor of art at Calvin University, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and has been engaged in art-making and teaching for nearly thirty years. She exhibits work all around the world and has received recognition from organizations, such as the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts and The National Art Education Association. Her art features sculptural ceramics and mixed media installations.

  • Hands-On Clay Retreat: Create, Reflect, Celebrate

Jonathan Hehn, OSL, is the choral program director and organist, director of the Notre Dame Basilica Schola, and assistant director of the Liturgical Choir at the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana. He is a passionate practitioner, writer, and thinker. You can find him on social media @jonathanhehn.

Michelle Higgins is the executive director of Faith for Justice in Saint Louis, Missouri, her hometown. She serves as an organizer and administrator with the Electoral Justice Project of the Movement for Black Lives. Michelle can be heard as a co-host on the podcast Truth's Table. She holds a Master of Divinity at Covenant Theological Seminary in Saint Louis. 

InSoon G. Hoagland is a retired army chaplain and combat veteran of the US Army. Holding a Master of Divinity degree from Calvin Theological Seminary and a Master of Arts in psychology and counseling, she is both a certified clinical chaplain and a pastoral counselor ordained by the Christian Reformed Church in North America.

Scott Hoezee is the director of the Center for Excellence in Preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary. His recent books are Actuality: Real Life Stories for Sermons that Matter (The Artistry of Preaching Series, Abingdon, 2014) and Why We Listen to Sermons (Calvin University Press, 2019).

Rod Jager is the worship director at Friendship Christian Reformed Church in Byron Center, Michigan, and a chemistry teacher at South Christian High School. In addition to teaching, he leads the school's biweekly chapel services. He has also hosted summer camps on sound technology in churches and written for the Reformed Worship magazine.

Laura James is a New-York-City-based professional artist and illustrator. Originally captivated by the Ethiopian Christian art form, her sacred work employs this ancient way of making icons and expands on the collection of stories traditionally painted in this style. She is pleased to help black people see themselves in their sacred texts, in African religions, and in Christianity, a place where racialized people have curiously been excluded in the West. To that end, James was delighted to illustrate The Book of the Gospels lectionary, published by Liturgy Training Publications in 2000. The book is used worldwide by numerous Christian denominations, placing her art at the forefront of the movement toward a more inclusive representation of biblical figures.

  • Guardian Angel Painting
  • Engaging Visual Artists for the Sake of the Church
  • Bridging Centuries and Continents: Ethiopian Art and the Art of Laura James

Peter Jonker is the minister of preaching at LaGrave Avenue Christian Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan. He graduated from Calvin Theological Seminary in 1992 with a Master of Divinity degree and in 2009 with a Master of Theology degree in homiletics. He is the author of the book Preaching in Pictures: Using Images for Sermons that Connect (Abingdon Press, 2015).

Regina Jupp is an artist, consultant, and educator who has dedicated her life to ministry. She equips, empowers, and mentors churches desiring to develop rich collaborative worship arts ministries. Along with her passion for art and theology, she has developed a deep love for art education, the church, and God’s people. Regina previously served as the executive director of a non-profit organization for international students and refugees.

  • Collaborative Art in the Church: How to Start
  • Engaging Visual Artists for the Sake of the Church
  • Collaborative Art in the Church: An Introduction

Najla Kassab is an ordained minister in the National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon. She is the president of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC), elected in Leipzig, Germany, in 2017.

Laura Keeley is a co-director of children’s ministries at Fourteenth Street Christian Reformed Church, Holland, Michigan, and a regional catalyzer for Faith Formation Ministries of the Christian Reformed Church of North America. Her most recent book is Dear Parent: A Guide to Family Faith Formation (Faith Alive, 2019), which she co-authored with her husband, Robert J. Keeley.

  • Praise, Prayer, and Lament: Experiencing Psalms with Children

Robert J. Keeley is a professor of education at Calvin University and a visiting professor of discipleship and faith formation at Calvin Theological Seminary. His most recent book is Dear Parent: A Guide to Family Faith Formation (Faith Alive, 2019), which he co-authored with his wife, Laura Keeley.

Duane Kelderman is a senior consultant for the Strengthening Christian Preaching Initiative, coordinated by the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, with support by Lilly Endowment, Inc. He is a pastor and consultant to churches and church-related organizations. He also serves on the Vital Worship Grants advisory board at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

  • How People Change

Wendell Kimbrough is a songwriter who re-imagines the Psalms for emotionally honest modern worship. His songs are marked by strong singable melodies, steeped in the sounds of folk, gospel, and soul music. Wendell serves as artist-in-residence and worship leader at Church of the Apostles in Fairhope, Alabama. His recent albums are Come to Me (2018) and Psalms We Sing Together (2016).

Roberta R. King is a professor of intercultural communication and ethnomusicology at the School of Intercultural Studies, Fuller Seminary, Pasadena, California. She specializes in global Christian worship and witness as an ethnomusicologist in mission. She is the lead editor of (un)Common Sounds: Songs of Peace and Reconciliation among Muslims and Christians (Cascade Books, 2014), and the author of Global Arts and Christian Witness: Exegeting Culture, Translating the Message, and Communicating Christ (Baker Academic, 2019).

Mimi Larson served over twenty years in practical church ministry and now teaches at Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois, and at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, Illinois. She is also the children’s ministry catalyzer at Faith Formation Ministries of the Christian Reformed Church in North America (CRCNA). She received her PhD in early childhood education from Concordia University Chicago. Her forthcoming book is Bridging Theory and Practice in Children’s Spirituality: New Directions for Education, Ministry and Discipleship (Zondervan, 2020), which she co-edited with Robert J. Keeley.  

Nikki Lerner is an artist, teacher, author, and culture coach, helping others engage relationally and across culture lines. Her passion is seeing people come to an understanding of one another through music and conversation and learning to remain human with each other.

Swee Hong Lim is the Deer Park associate professor of sacred music and the director of the Master of Sacred Music program at Emmanuel College of Victoria University in the University of Toronto, Ontario.

Mark MacDonald became Canada's first National Indigenous Anglican Bishop in 2007. He is presently the North American president of the World Council of Churches.

Mariachi Ágape is a Christian musical ensemble of the familia Ortiz. They spread the gospel message through the gift of música ranchera and minister at churches, festivals, funerals, weddings, and other events that extend across Texas and beyond.

Nicole Massie Martin is the founder and executive director of Soulfire International Ministries (www.sfiministries.org). She teaches at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and serves with the American Bible Society. She is the author of Made to Lead: Empowering Women for Ministry (Chalice Press, 2016).

Esau McCaulley is an assistant professor of New Testament at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois. His research and writing focuses on Pauline theology and the intersection of race, Christian identity, and the pursuit of social justice. He is also a priest in the Anglican Church in North America where he serves as Provincial Director for Leadership Development, which involves oversight of the recruitment and formation of clergy and lay leaders. He is also one of the creators of Call and Response ministries, an organization committed to hosting conferences and creating resources for Black and Multi-Ethnic churches.

Philip McKinley is an ordinand in the Church of Ireland (Anglican). He is a singer-songwriter and co-founder of the Discovery Gospel Choir, an intercultural ensemble that reflects the new-found cultural and ethnic diversity in Ireland. He has worked extensively in faith-based reconciliation and social inclusion initiatives for the Irish Council of Churches. As a chaplain at Dublin City University’s Inter Faith Centre, he co-founded the University of Sanctuary programme and the Hard Gospel reconciliation project, which emerged from the Drumcree standoff (1995-2000) in Northern Ireland. In 2018 he delivered a TEDx talk, "Why Every Nation Needs Its Own Harp."

Clair Mesick is an assistant professor of religion at Calvin University. She holds a PhD in Christianity and Judaism in Antiquity from the University of Notre Dame. Her areas of specialization include Pauline literature and early Christian social ethics.

Maria Monteiro is an assistant professor and the chair of the music department at Baptist University of the Américas, San Antonio, Texas, and the music director at Primera Iglesia Bautista Mexicana (First Mexican Baptist Church) in San Antonio. She is also a doctoral student in church music at Baylor University, Waco, Texas.

Anna Nekola is an assistant professor of music at Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg, Manitoba. As a musicologist, she is interested in ways in which people across time and cultures have created and engaged with sound. Her research areas include exploring music's role in Christian worship and analyzing how ideas about musical style both create and reflect particular theological, ideological, and cultural currents.

Barbara J. Newman is a church and school consultant for All Belong Center for Inclusive Education and a program affiliate with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. She is the author of several books, including Accessible Gospel, Inclusive Worship (CLC Network, 2015), Autism and Your Church (Friendship Ministries, 2011), and Helping Kids Include Kids with Disabilities (Faith Alive Christian Resources, 2012). 

Northwestern Drama Ministries Ensemble is a team of students from Northwestern College, Orange City, Iowa, who are passionate about creative and effective communication of the Scripture through drama. Under the direction of Jeff Barker, it has performed across the US and in Ethiopia, Japan, and Albania.

    G. Sujin Pak is an associate professor of the history of Christianity at Duke Divinity School, Durham, North Carolina. She specializes in the history of Christianity in late medieval and early modern Europe. Her teaching focuses on the theology of the Protestant reformers, the Protestant Reformation and the Jews, women and the Reformation, and the history of biblical interpretation.

    LaTonya McIver Penny serves as the pastor for New Mount Zion Baptist Church in Roxboro, North Carolina. She is the founder and director of Mary’s Grace, Inc., a nonprofit organization that creates programs and ministries of inclusion for persons with disabilities and their families in their churches and communities.

    Cornelius Plantinga Jr. is a senior research fellow at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and president emeritus of Calvin Theological Seminary. For more than a decade Plantinga has co-hosted a summer seminar for preachers on reading for preaching in connection with the Center for Excellence in Preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary. He is the author of Reading for Preaching: The Preacher in Conversation with Storytellers, Biographers, Poets, and Journalists (Eerdmans, 2013).

    Matt Postma is the discipleship pastor at Calvin University, where he helps students engage their Christian faith and love Jesus.

    Satrina Reid is a program manager at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, providing program leadership for consultations with key partners related to strategic topics. She also is a key contributing team member for cross-cultural networking and resource development, the Vital Worship Grants team and the Ministry Leadership Cohort at Calvin University. She serves as the director of worship at Tabernacle Community Church in Grand Rapids, MI.

    John D. Rempel is a senior fellow at Toronto Mennonite Theological Centre, Ontario, and a retired professor of theology at Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Indiana, where he taught historical theology and Anabaptist studies for nine years. He is the editor of Minister's Manual (Faith & Life Press, 1998) and the newly published book Recapturing an Enchanted World: Ritual and Sacrament in the Free Church Tradition (IVP Academic, 2020).

    Melanie C. Ross is an associate professor of liturgical studies at Yale Divinity School and Yale Institute of Sacred Music. Her book, Evangelical versus Liturgical? Defying a Dichotomy (Eerdmans, 2014), facilitates the intersection of popular American evangelicalism and academic liturgical theology.

    Sue A. Rozeboom is the associate professor of liturgical theology at Western Theological Seminary, Holland, Michigan, where she and her students delve deeply into a variety of topics on Christian worship, such as Trinitarian worship, the Holy Spirit and the sacraments, and historical Christian practices and their implications for the church today. She holds a PhD in liturgical studies from the University of Notre Dame and is a co-author of the book Discerning the Spirits: A Guide to Thinking about Christian Worship Today (Eerdmans, 2003).

    Lester Ruth is the research professor of Christian worship at Duke Divinity School, North Carolina. He is passionate for studying the history of worship to enrich the worship life of current congregations regardless of style. He is the author of Worshiping with the Anaheim Vineyard: The Emergence of Contemporary Worship (Eerdmans, 2017) and Lovin’ On Jesus: A Concise History of Contemporary Worship (Abingdon, 2017). His upcoming books are Flow: An Ancient Way to Contemporary Worship (Abingdon, 2020) and Essays in the History of Contemporary Praise and Worship (Wipf & Stock, 2020).

    Paul Ryan is the associate chaplain for worship at Calvin University and a resource specialist for mentoring worship leaders at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. He is also the director of the university's Campus Choir.

    Leopoldo A. Sánchez M. is the Werner R. H. and Elizabeth R. Krause Professor of Hispanic Ministries at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri, where he teaches systematic theology. He is also the director of the seminary’s Center for Hispanic Studies. His published work includes: Sculptor Spirit (IVP, 2019); Receiver, Bearer, and Giver of God’s Spirit (Pickwick, 2015); and Immigrant Neighbors among Us (Pickwick, 2015), co-edited with M. Daniel Carroll R. Sánchez teaches regularly in the United States and abroad. In the community, he is the principal double bass player with the St. Louis Civic Orchestra.

    Greg Scheer is a composer, author, and speaker. His life’s work includes two sons, two books (The Art of Worship, Baker, 2006, and Essential Worship, Baker, 2016), and hundreds of compositions, songs, and arrangements in a dizzying variety of styles.

    • New Song. A Skillful Song.
    • Everything I Know about Worship Bands I Learned from The Beatles

    Amy Schenkel is a pastor in the Christian Reformed Church in North America, serving the denomination's Resonate Global Mission as the Great Lakes Regional Mission Leader. Her passion is working with her team to help congregations develop a missional imagination to connect with their community, and to embolden every member to live missionally.

    • Framing Worship in New and Established Churches

    Chris Schoon (ThD, Wycliffe College) is the director of Faith Formation Ministries for the Christian Reformed Church in North America. Previously, Chris has served as a pastor in both Michigan and Ontario. Along with contributing regularly to periodicals such as Reformed Worship and The Banner, Chris is the author of Cultivating an Evangelistic Character (Wipf & Stock, 2018), which takes an in-depth look at worship and discipleship in the missional church movement. You can find him on Twitter: @chrisjschoon.

    Ruth Ann Schuringa graduated from Redeemer University College, Hamilton, Ontario, with a BA in music with piano performance concentration. She went on to Calvin University to study more about worship and music through voice training, organ lessons, and conducting courses. Since 2003, she has been the worship director at Immanuel Christian Reformed Church in Brampton, Ontario. From 2015 to 2019, she served also as the worship ministry team leader at CrossPoint Christian Reformed Church in Brampton. Recently Ruth Ann has been endorsed as a worship coach for the Worship Ministries of the Christian Reformed Church.

    Derek C. Schuurman is professor of computer science at Calvin University where he currently holds the William Spoelhof Teacher-Scholar-in-Residence chair. Besides his technical interests, he is interested in faith and technology issues. He is the author of Shaping a Digital World: Faith, Culture and Computer Technology (IVP, 2013).

    • Technology and the Church

    Marcell Silva Steuernagel is an assistant professor of church music and the director of the Master of Sacred Music Program at Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University, Texas. He holds a PhD in church music from Baylor University, Texas, an MA in music composition from Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil, and a BA in conducting and composition from the School of Music and Fine Arts of Paraná, Brazil. Marcell has been leading worship since the late 1990’s, and is an active performer and composer in liturgical, concert, and popular music contexts.

    Kathy Smith is an associate director of the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and program manager for the Institute’s grants programs. An ordained minister in the Christian Reformed Church in North America, she teaches at Calvin Theological Seminary as an adjunct professor of church polity, and at Calvin University as an adjunct professor of congregational and ministry studies. She is the author of Stilling the Storm: Worship and Congregational Leadership in Difficult Times (Alban, 2006).

    Mandy Smith is a native of Australia and the lead pastor of University Christian Church, a campus and neighborhood congregation with its own fair-trade café in Cincinnati, Ohio. She is a regular contributor to Christianity Today publications and the author The Vulnerable Pastor: How Human Limitations Empower Our Ministry (IVP, 2015).

    Rachel Smith is the Gilkison Chair and Professor of Art History at Taylor University, Indiana. She was a member of the graduate faculty of the School of Comparative Arts at Ohio University prior to joining the faculty of Taylor in 1998. She earned her doctorate from Indiana University with specializations in Italian Renaissance, Medieval, and Asian art. Smith also served on the board of CIVA (Christians in the Visual Arts) for many years and is a founding member of the Association of Scholars of Christianity in the History of Art (ASCHA), for which she currently serves as the president.

    Reginald Smith is the director of the Offices of Race Relations and Social Justice at the Christian Reformed Church in North America and a program affiliate with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

    Rebecca Snippe is a program manager for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, focusing on the PreachingandWorship.org project and music-related projects, as well as providing administrative leadership for the CICW central office support team. She served as co-managing editor for Santo, Santo, Santo: Cantos para el pueblo de Dios / Holy, Holy, Holy: Songs for the People of God (GIA Publications, Inc., 2019).

    Noel Snyder is a program manager at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship in the areas of academic resources and preachingandworship.org. He is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA).

    Elizabeth Y. Sung, a systematic theologian and spiritual director, is a Scholar-in-Residence at Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia. She is the first Protestant to have held the Chester & Mary Paluch Chair of Theology at Mundelein Seminary, the largest Catholic seminary in the US. She was previously an associate professor of Biblical and systematic theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, where she had taught for nine years, received the Faculty of the Year award, and pioneered covenant groups singularly focused on spiritual formation. 

    Elizabeth Tamez Méndez is an ordained minister, artist, and the executive director of New Gereration3, an international organization dedicated to training leaders, conducting research, and providing consulting services. She is a specialist in multicultural youth development, has twenty-five years of diverse ministerial experience, is passionate about cultivating young leaders in the church, and holds a PhD in leadership.

    W. David O. Taylor is an assistant professor of theology and culture at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California, and is the author of The Theater of God's Glory: Calvin, Creation and the Liturgical Arts (Eerdmans, 2017), Glimpses of the New Creation: Worship and the Formative Power of the Arts (Eerdmans, 2019), and Open and Unafraid: The Psalms as a Guide to Life (Thomas Nelson, 2020). An Anglican priest, he has lectured widely on the arts, in various places from Thailand to South Africa. In 2016 he produced a short film on the psalms with Bono and Eugene Peterson.

    Martin Tel is the C.F. Seabrook Director of Music at Princeton Theological Seminary, New Jersey, where he directs the seminary choirs, facilitates the music ministry for daily worship, and lectures in the area of church music. He was a senior editor of Psalms for All Seasons: A Complete Psalter for Worship (Faith Alive Resources, 2011).

    Kevin Timpe is the William H. Jellema Chair in Christian Philosophy at Calvin University, Grand Rapids, Michigan. His research and interest areas include the metaphysics of free will, philosophy of religion, virtue ethics, and philosophy of disability. His most recent book is Disability and Inclusive Communities (Calvin University Press, 2019), as a part of the university's Calvin Shorts series.

    La Verne Tolbert is the vice president of editorial for Urban Ministries, Inc. (UMI), based in Chicago, Illinois—the largest Christian publishing company serving churches and consumers in the African American community. UMI provides curricula for Bible study, Sunday school, and Vacation Bible School, along with commentaries and many other resources. A former assistant professor at Talbot School of Theology, she is the author of Teaching Like Jesus: A Practical Guide to Christian Education in Your Church (Zondervan, 2000).

    Herbert H. Tsang is the president of Church Music Ministry of Canada, Vancouver, British Columbia, and a professor of computing science and mathematics at Trinity Western University, Langley, British Columbia. His passion is in congregational singing and intergenerational worship. He is the author of Worship—You, Me and Him: Church Music (Seed Press, 2008). For more than fifteen years, his monthly column in Christian worship was syndicated in many North American cities benefiting the Chinese Christian community.

    Kathleen S. Turner is the director of Christian Education/Discipleship at the Greater Allen AME Church, Jamaica, New York, and an adjunct professor at New York Theological Seminary. As a liturgical dancer, Kathleen has danced, taught and choreographed for churches, institutions, and Christian productions throughout the United States. She continues to explore the use of liturgical dance as religious education for the church as a community place of learning.

    Urban Doxology is a ministry that writes soundtracks of reconciliation in the racially diverse and gentrifying neighborhood of Church Hill, Richmond, Virginia. The band evolved out of the Urban Songwriting Internship Program, a partnership with Arrabon and East End Fellowship.

    Jo-Ann VanReeuwyk is a professor emerita of art at Calvin University. She continues to serve as the director of the art education program at the university and conducts research in Sacred Space Pedagogy (with her colleague Debra Paxton Buursma, an associate professor of education). Jo-Ann runs a fiber studio and exhibits internationally.

    • Engaging Visual Artists for the Sake of the Church
    • Creativity, Prayer, and Scriptural Metaphors

    Kristen Verhulst is an associate director and program manager at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

    • Plenary Session | Loving Your Neighbor In and Through Worship Practices
    • Lunch Conversation with Mark MacDonald
    • Lunch Conversation with Najla Kassab 

    Isaac Wardell is the director for worship arts at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Charlottesville, Virginia. In 2017, Isaac and his wife Megan founded The Porter's Gate Worship Project, bringing together scholars, pastors, and songwriters to create new songs and resources to help churches grow in the practice of hospitality in worship.

    David Warners is a professor in the biology department at Calvin University. He is a co-director of Plaster Creek Stewards, an initiative of Calvin University to restore health and beauty to the Plaster Creek Watershed, Kent County, Michigan, one of the most polluted watersheds in the state. For the past five years he has been working with Garrett Crow to document the remaining high quality natural areas in West Michigan. And together with Matthew Heun, a professor of engineering at Calvin University, he co-edited a recently published book, Beyond Stewardship: New Approaches to Creation Care (Calvin University Press, 2019), which offers fresh insights from fourteen Reformed scholars from diverse disciplinary backgrounds.

    Eric Washington is an associate professor of history and the director of African and African Diaspora Studies Program at Calvin University. His research interest is in studying the African-American church from its development in the late 18th century through the 19th century as well as individual Christians, primarily Calvinists.

    Lisa M. Weaver is an assistant professor of worship at Columbia Theological Seminary, Decatur, Georgia. She is an ordained clergy of American Baptist Churches USA and an advisory board member of the Vital Worship Grants program at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

    Joanna Wigboldy is a program manager at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship in the areas of Vital Worship Grants and the new Ministry Leadership Cohort program at Calvin University.

    Kate Williams is the senior managing editor at GIA Publications, Inc. In addition to her love of shaping sung prayer with GIA’s finest composers, she serves as a music minister in the Archdiocese of Chicago, following a passion to serve in multicultural, multi-generational communities.

    Cory Willson is the Jake and Betsy Tuls Assistant Professor of Missiology and Missional Ministry at Calvin Theological Seminary. Some of his research interests include missiology, public theology, Biblical theology, interfaith engagement, and theology of work.

    John D. Witvliet is the director of the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and professor of congregational and ministry studies, music, and worship at Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary, respectively. He is a co-editor of Psalms for All Seasons: A Complete Psalter for Worship with Joyce Borger and Martin Tel (Faith Alive Christian Resources, 2012).