1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University
© 2026 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
This event was co-sponsored by the Frederik Meijer Chair in Dutch Language and Culture at Calvin College.
A remarkable combination of gifts come together in Psalms Unplugged. To begin, the texts are fresh and contemporary settings of the ancient biblical psalms. In addition, the tunes are also fresh and contemporary versions of 16th century tunes from the Genevan Psalter of 1562, produced under the leadership of John Calvin. A third combination of gifts comes from members of The Psalm Project, professional musicians under the leadership of Eelco Vos who had a vision to dress historical treasures in 21st century sounds.
When first learning of the work of The Psalm Project, we at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship were intrigued by their vision and by the excellence of their work. [After all, psalters set to the Genevan melodies are still available in Dutch, English, German, Hungarian, Indonesian, and Japanese. The tune of Psalm 134 is the best known tune in hymnals around the entire world. ] So we eagerly encouraged them to consider a recording with English texts. Psalms Unplugged is the result. We also invited them to participate in the Calvin Symposium on Worship in 2011 to introduce them to a North American audience. We rejoice in their approach to revive singing of the psalms, the prayer book of the church of all times and places.
“Deconstruction” is a popular term among young people who grew up in the Christian church. In this public lecture, Robert Chao Romero will consider the challenge of widespread deconstruction while offering a hopeful path forward. Expanding on Phyllis Tickle’s analogy of the church having a rummage sale of ideas every few centuries, Romero invites us to consider the contributions of Latina/o theology and the history of the Brown Church as valuable resources for reconstruction on the other side of deconstruction.
Carmen Imes has spent the past fifteen years immersed in the book of Exodus, writing about it for both her master’s thesis and her doctoral dissertation. In this lecture, Imes will share some of the most paradigm-shifting insights she’s had while reading Exodus through an Egyptian lens.
Modern song writers are continually setting the psalms to new music for band-led worship contexts. Join Paul Ryan, Nate Glasper, and the Calvin University Worship Apprentices to sing contemporary psalm settings sung in public worship at Calvin.
“Deconstruction” is a popular term among young people who grew up in the Christian church. In this public lecture, Robert Chao Romero will consider the challenge of widespread deconstruction while offering a hopeful path forward. Expanding on Phyllis Tickle’s analogy of the church having a rummage sale of ideas every few centuries, Romero invites us to consider the contributions of Latina/o theology and the history of the Brown Church as valuable resources for reconstruction on the other side of deconstruction.
Carmen Imes has spent the past fifteen years immersed in the book of Exodus, writing about it for both her master’s thesis and her doctoral dissertation. In this lecture, Imes will share some of the most paradigm-shifting insights she’s had while reading Exodus through an Egyptian lens.
Modern song writers are continually setting the psalms to new music for band-led worship contexts. Join Paul Ryan, Nate Glasper, and the Calvin University Worship Apprentices to sing contemporary psalm settings sung in public worship at Calvin.
Join this excursion through compositional method, use of text, melodic creation, vocal range, and inner insights. The session includes the presentation of new psalm settings by Rawn Harbor.
