Local Psalm Festivals
As part of the Dwelling in the Psalms year, the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship has provided resources to support Psalm festivals around Canada and the United States. These events are open to the public and many will be livestreamed.
July 9, 2026
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4 min read
I Will Give You Rest
“Trauma” is not a word we are likely to find in any Bible translation, but it has seemed to frequently appear everywhere else in recent years. Perhaps that began in 2020 with the COVID pandemic. Resonances of that trauma reverberated through churches, too, while many denominations were already facing internal difficulties and the loss of members and congregations. Pastors have been wounded, and many have had to leave beloved ministries. The global political scene seems more fiercely riven than any other time in our memory. Just watching the daily news these days can feel traumatic.
July 7, 2026
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2 min read
Psalm Festival Reflections
In the fall of 2025, the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship invited worshiping communities to join together in dwelling in Psalms, the prayer book and songbook of the Bible. Each psalm festival that resulted is unique and crafted for its individual context. What follows are examples of psalm festivals from these communities. These examples are for your inspiration and encouragement. If you borrow ideas, litanies, or music from these resources, please provide proper attribution and make sure those items are not copyrighted. You must secure your own permission to use any copyrighted material from these examples.
July 2, 2026
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2 min read
CICW Announces Next Round of Worship and Preaching Grants
Dozens of Vital Worship, Vital Preaching grant awards will support worship renewal projects for teacher-scholars and worshiping communities.
June 30, 2026
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2 min read
Ryan Turnbull on Anglican Poetics and Worship
Studying Anglican poetics helped Anglicans in Manitoba, Canada, enter more deeply into worship and liturgical life. It also helped them connect with non-Anglicans as they explored shared human experiences through metaphor, imagination, and writing poems.
June 23, 2026
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7 min read
Peter Levenstrong on Living Stories Sermons
Imagine if people came to worship asking not “What will the preacher say?” but “What will we discover together?” Living Stories Sermons is a collaborative preaching model that brings new life to worship and helps people feel as if they belong. It involves exegesis, wondering questions, and small-group reflection, and it trusts that the Holy Spirit can speak through everyone, not just the preacher.
June 16, 2026
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9 min read
Tiempo ordinario, mes de julio: En las crisis de la vida, la esperanza nos renueva
Los salmos de este mes, a la luz de la resurrección de Jesús y del triunfo de la vida sobre los poderes de la muerte, nos recuerdan realidades que no podemos soslayar. Los sufrimientos diarios pueden sobrellevarse a partir de la memoria de lo que Dios ha hecho por nosotros, como pueblo y como individuos (Salmo 77). En las grandes crisis nacionales, el Señor está con su pueblo como refugio seguro (Salmo 48). Si es cierto que los jueces humanos se venden al mejor postor, y la justicia parece ausente de nuestros pueblos, tenemos la esperanza de que Dios juzgará a quienes juzgan en la tierra (Salmo 82). Y cuando desesperamos ante la soberbia y la prepotencia de quienes gobiernan el mundo, la palabra profética nos da una firme esperanza de que tales personas serán desarraigadas de la tierra (Salmo 52). Así, cultivamos la esperanza recordando que la vida tiene la última palabra. Jesús, el Mesías, ha vencido, y con él somos más que vencedores.
June 10, 2026
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15 min read
Calvin University Appoints Dr. David Latimore as Executive Director of Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
Experienced academic, church, and business leader will guide CICW into its next chapter by expanding its ongoing work and partnerships in the study and practice of worship.
June 1, 2026
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2 min read
Tiempo ordinario, mes de junio
Los salmos para este mes de primer tiempo ordinario, a la luz de la resurrección y de la victoria del Dios de la vida sobre los poderes de la muerte, ponen de relieve su cuidado y amor profundos e intensos sobre nuestro diario andar en el mundo. Estos se manifiestan en su inescrutable e íntimo conocimiento de nuestro ser y vida (Salmo 139); su reinado como creador del universo y su fidelidad y justicia a favor de las y los oprimidos nos llaman a imitarlo en su amor a los desposeídos (Salmo 146). Además, contamos con su bendición diaria y la intercesión de su pueblo que nos sostienen en el camino de la vida (Salmo 20). Y, al ser testigos de la barbarie y la aniquilación que se han impuesto en nuestro mundo, rogamos que el Señor intervenga de una vez por todas y detenga el derramamiento de sangre inocente que presenciamos hoy (Salmo 9). Así, experimentamos el poder de la resurrección del Señor y participamos de sus sufrimientos (Filipenses 3:10) al transitar los caminos de la vida.
May 18, 2026
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23 min read
Lamenting in Polarized Times
Eight churches in Birmingham, Alabama, took part in a worship renewal grant on using lament in worship. Three years later, leaders from some of those churches talked about how hard it is to practice lament during divided times. Their advice may help your church bring real suffering to God with honesty, protest, petition, and trust.
May 12, 2026
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8 min read
Recovering the “Lost Art of Lament” in Worship
Worship that is faithful to the whole Bible must include lament. A worship renewal grant on making lament a normal part of worship brought together eight churches in metro Birmingham, Alabama. It yielded ideas and practices that can be adapted to any church tradition and context.
Karen Campbell on Considering Lament: Psalms of Protest, Pain and Hope
Technically, the Troubles in Northern Ireland ended in 1998. But just as trauma didn’t end after the passage of the US Civil Rights Act or the work of South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission, pain still lingers in Northern Ireland. Karen and David Campbell composed a new set of lament songs to help Christians voice protest, pain, and hope during worship.
