1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary
© 2025 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
This workshop looked at biblical and historical examples of how ancient Christians prayed in public worship.
Certainly advances in presentation technology provide opportunities to do new things in worship. But they can also enhance our ability to do the ancient things of worship. This session discusses integrating presentation technologies both into the worship space and the worship service.
This workshop will explore the implications for liturgy and preaching which arrive from recognizing afresh 1-- the reality of Christ's priesthood and 2-- that we are, in George Herbert's phrase, "Secretaries of thy praise."
To help children grow in faith we want our churches to be places where they are nurtured and where they feel that they have a place. We will look at things that churches can do to become more child friendly and encourage faith-nurturing adult-child relationships.
"Where is God when it hurts?" "Why me, Lord?" For worship leaders, the time to prepare yourself and those who you love for times of disaster is before the disaster strikes. We will examine the impact disasters can have on people's lives and the spiritual preparation necessary to help you plan worship in ways that help you and your congregations face disasters in your own lives and the lives of those whom you love.
This session explored an ecology of practices designed to deepen youths' participation in the Lord's Supper/Eucharist and to form them to interpret and act in the world eucharistically. Participants learned creative pedagogies for teaching youth about the Eucharist; how youth may be engaged in ministry at the Table; the importance of creating a broad ecology of liturgical and extra-liturgical Eucharistic practices through which youth may be formed; and the means to invite youths? personal and theological reflections on Eucharistic life.
American historian James Bratt will explore the alternative destinations in style, ritual, and spirituality which the antebellum pilgrims sought and found on the road out of revivalism. Liturgical scholar Lester Ruth will respond and discuss analogies on the worship scene in the 21st century, especially noting the recurring popular impulse for alternate forms of worship.
Although sermon preparation involves lots of steps-everything from selecting a text to embodying the sermon on Sunday-the search for meaningful illustrative material during the week is often the most frustrating.
While funerals have often been seen as family affairs or private activities, the fact is that death impacts entire communities: both the faith community and the community at large.
This session covered how to sing effectively as a worship team, and how to make the truths you are singing come alive.
This workshop explored the biblical teaching on the central role that the Holy Spirit plays in worship. Dependence and freedom, order and spontaneity, reverent silence and joyful noise will be some of the paradoxes to explore in the framework of Scripture. Our purpose is to inform some of our present-day worship practices and enrich, challenge, and transform them for the glory of the Lord we worship.
Rather than attempting unity in our services through a commonality of style or form, how much richer and spiritually nourishing to use a biblical or theological theme as a unifying principle. This approach allows for the use of a rich variety of forms and styles, and gives time to focus on and respond to an aspect of God and his truth in a way that is edifying and serves a catechetical function over the long run.
