Cultural Diversity

The Christian Year and Spiritual Wholeness

Approaching the Christian Year through the Lenses of Emotional Intelligence, Cultural Intelligence, and Spiritual Formation. In this discussion, we will explore how ordering our worship and devotion around the life of Jesus has the potential to shape our whole selves, both individually and communally. This is a YouTube Video Premiere panel discussion.

November 16, 2021
One Body, Many Members: Disability and Diversity in the Church

"For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body." -1 Cor. 12:12-13. The body of Christ is one body made up of individual members with both visible and hidden differences in abilities. What difference does it make to believe that each member has been arranged in the body as God has chosen? How can the church better live into the reality of this oneness while celebrating the gifts of its unique members regardless of ability? This is a YouTube Video Premiere panel discussion.

November 16, 2021
Sounds of Latino Worship

A service of scripture, song, and prayer in Spanish & English led by Carlos Lemagne, Program Coordinator at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship

November 10, 2021

Kyle Meyaard-Schaap on Earthkeeping, the Church, and Generational Differences

Many young Christians despair of finding communities that view environmental sustainability and justice as biblical mandates. Here is advice for helping churches catch a vision for biblical earthkeeping.

October 8, 2021
Kai Ton Chau on Worship and Culture Worldwide

Kai Ton Chau teaches Calvin University students to articulate different cultural values so they can discuss and appreciate diverse forms of Christian worship. You can do something similar in your school, church, or worship context to build cultural intelligence among Christians.

September 27, 2021
Gerardo Oberman leads songs from "Santo, Santo, Santo: Cantos para el pueblo de Dios / Holy, Holy, Holy: Songs for the People of God"

Gerardo Oberman demonstrates and talks about five songs as part of the CICW series "Songs from the hymnal 'Santo, Santo, Santo: Cantos para el pueblo de Dios / Holy, Holy, Holy: Songs for the People of God.'"

August 27, 2021

Horacio Vivares leads songs from "Santo, Santo, Santo: Cantos para el pueblo de Dios / Holy, Holy, Holy: Songs for the People of God"

Horacio Vivares demonstrates and talks about five songs as part of the CICW series "Songs from the hymnal 'Santo, Santo, Santo: Cantos para el pueblo de Dios / Holy, Holy, Holy: Songs for the People of God.'"

August 27, 2021
Emmanuel Olusola Fasipe on Oral Culture and Christian Worship

Christians who see themselves as "people of the book" read about the Word made flesh. They may treasure "I Love to Tell the Story" in their hymnals yet feel skeptical of Christians who prefer to express and pass on faith through oral culture. A Nigerian worship scholar explains the benefits of oral practices in church worship.

July 26, 2021
Emmanuel Olusola Fasipe on Yoruba Baptist Indigenous Choruses

The most recent Yoruba Baptist Hymnal includes Orin Idaraya, the indigenous choruses relevant to one of Nigeria's largest people groups. Learning how a Nigerian music scholar analyzed these short songs can help your congregation evaluate whether it offers a balanced musical diet in worship.

July 26, 2021

Everyday Faith: Possibilities, Limits, and Callings, with special guest Danjuma Gibson (Part 2)

What does life look like through the eyes of some of the “Titans” of African American history? Watch this second part of our online conversation with Professor Danjuma Gibson of Calvin Theological Seminary. Dr. Gibson shares additional insights into his approach to learning from the lives of historical figures, identifying key insights from his research that we might apply in our own lives. Professor Gibson is interviewed by Noel Snyder, program manager at CICW.

July 21, 2021
Pearl Shangkuan on 10 Bilingual Choral Pieces

Pearl Shangkuan, director of choral activities at Calvin University and director of the Grand Rapids Symphony Chorus, reflects on her top ten bilingual sacred choral pieces.

July 21, 2021
Anti-Racism in the Renewing of Christian Worship.

May God give us grace and strength to resist lies, arrogance, injustice, racism, and oppression in all forms. In worship, we are called to confess sin, to lament brokenness, and to pray for the end of these travesties, even as we are called to preach and celebrate sacramentally the gospel of Jesus Christ—in which power is made perfect in weakness, in which each person and culture is cherished as God’s gift, in which our hope is based on the life, death, resurrection, and continuing ministry of our ascended Lord, Jesus Christ. We long for a seamless connection between faithful public worship and vital Christian witness in every sector of society and in every cultural context.

July 6, 2021