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On the campus of Calvin University
© 2026 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
Six pastors reflect on two events that make all the difference for the Christian church
Fifteen years ago Roberto Ghione was commissioned by God to start a church in Simi Valley, California, with a vision to bring people one step closer to God and spiritual growth. That is how New Hope Church was formed, which is affiliated with the Evangelical Covenant Church, and currently has about 120 members.
Dr. Otto René Azurdia, originally from Guatemala, is the pastor of one of the largest Latino congregations in the United States.
A slideshow of images from the 2015 conference
Really? In the face of so much global need, the arts are a necessity?
Any church leadership team that hopes to increase the observance of the Christian year in their congregation will first need to identify how much shaping influence this practice has at present.
A denominational guide to worship resources
Jorge Navarro found Christ amid the difficult life he had chosen to follow. Drugs of all kinds were his daily bread, until one day everything changed. The force that had fueled his down-slide was the same force that fueled his desire to passionately serve the one who called him.
On Good Friday, as congregations meditate on the betrayal, suffering, and death of Jesus, some liturgies call the Church to identify with those who judged, persecuted, mocked, and killed our Lord. This is a sobering reality, and appropriate. But, like many stories in the Bible, there are multiple implications within this narrative.
A denominational guide to worship resources
How rich is the congregation who observes the Christian Year carefully!
So now, here is your dilemma – you are leading a congregation that worships pretty well, but they don’t know much about the Christian Year. Outside of Advent, Christmas, Lent, Good Friday, and Easter, there’s isn’t much else about it. And what’s more, they don’t seem to miss it, or feel they ought to change things. And some of them are a bit suspicious of the whole idea. And besides, you don’t trust your knowledge about it all either, and you have no idea where to begin.
