1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary
© 2024 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
This interactive seminar explored the cultural forces shaping teenagers' attitudes towards life as well as current research on teenage spirituality, in order to help think strategically about connecting young people with the Christian faith through worship.
This workshop discussed how contemporary short stories from writers such as Flannery O'Connor, Doris Betts, and Raymond Carver resonate with New Testament themes and how such stories might help preachers find ways to relate contemporary themes to their listeners.
This session considered what we can learn from the early Christians about dealing with musical problems in the midst of a pagan culture.
The 21st century is characterized by people moving and mixing all over the world, trying to fit into new communities that are varied and diverse. That reality is pushing the church to be multiethnic like the church of the 1st century. We'll explore how to plan worship that is inclusive, allowing everyone to feel welcome by including musical gifts from their culture and worship "back home" in their new church home.
The relationship between churches and the news media is too often one of mutual indifference or mistrust. This session explores practical ways of connecting with local reporters and maintaining healthy and beneficial relationships with the media.
Throughout church history views of worship have tended toward polarization: Spirit or Word? Planned or spontaneous? Reverent or celebratory? Relevant or historically rooted? For God or for us?
As preachers we commonly assume that preaching and proclamation are synonyms. This workshop will introduce ways in which proclamation has distinct forms that are in contrast to those of teaching. By becoming familiar with them we can be more faithful to the gospel, more creative in our articulation of it, and more effective in making our sermons a joyous witness to the triune God.
All congregations experience crises, transitions, and conflicts. Worship will be affected by these difficult times, and can be the place where healing begins and continues.
This session considered a church building as being part of, and contributing to, the neighborhood that surrounds it. We explored how a building connects to a neighborhood in terms of scale and style, helping to shape the public realm, and how threshold points operate between the church and the public.
The physical locations and buildings that we use for worshiping the Triune God are influenced by the theological beliefs and choices of those who have gone before us.
The small choices preachers make provide hearers not only with a better understanding of the text, but also with a keen understanding of the preacher.
Preaching extemporaneously, without a manuscript, can enliven delivery and improve communication. This session will explain and demonstrate how to carefully make the transition from text to outline, and then from outline to embodied delivery.
