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Not talking about awkward emotions, say after infertility, pregnancy out of wedlock, or adoption, may seem kind. But it's better for churches to include adoption and related issues in baptisms, worship, and church life. A feature story exploring the case for talking about adoption in worship.
Not talking about awkward emotions, say after infertility, pregnancy out of wedlock, or adoption, may seem kind. But it's better for churches to include adoption and related issues in baptisms, worship, and church life. A feature story exploring the case for talking about adoption in worship.
Though no one wants a worship war, discussions about worship change are often more divisive than divine. Howard Vanderwell explains how to ask questions that focus on worship principles, rather than on passions and preferences. A feature story exploring ways to lead worship change, rather than worship wars.
“As religious architects, we have the ability to be holistic and think of the entire church population from Day One,” says Robert “Bob” Nickola, senior principal of Jaeger, Nickola & Associates in metro Chicago.
Becoming an accessible church involves far more than installing a wheelchair entrance. It includes making design choices so anyone can access the platform and lead worship. A feature story exploring accessibility in churches.
God calls us into a relationship that is intensely personal, but never private. This is an important distinction, yet one that many Christians miss. A feature story exploring our Worship as the people of God.
Two articles from Reformed Worship have especially good ideas for helping worshipers to affirm their identity as a baptized people. Arlo Duba suggests ways to incorporate baptism in regular worship and special services. Carrie Steenwyk explains how to include baptism as part of the Easter Vigil, following a tradition dating back to the early church.
In her wonderful book, A Place for Baptism, Regina Kuehn reminds readers that the baptismal font’s shape reveals baptismal truth, and the font points to baptism’s key element, water. She invites churches to think more about baptism’s sacramental weight and "the radical nature of our baptismal promises," than about whether the font is pretty.
No matter what age your church baptizes people, ask yourself this: How consciously are you living your baptism as a way of life, not just an event? A feature story exploring what messages churches send with their Baptism practices and church architecture.
Mark Torgerson shares how to make more of baptism.
Carolyn C. Brown talks about intergenerational worship. A feature story exploring the inclusion of children in worship.
Some helpful tips that congregations are using to encourage people of all ages to worship together
