1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA
On the campus of Calvin University
© 2026 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship
As good as it is to reconnect with former pastors and see old church photos, there's a lot more you can do to plan a meaningful church anniversary in your congregation or denomination. A feature story exploring the celebration of church anniversaries.
As good as it is to reconnect with former pastors and see old church photos, there's a lot more you can do to plan a meaningful church anniversary in your congregation or denomination. A feature story exploring the celebration of church anniversaries.
A seminar led by N.T. Wright on the sacraments of the Lord's Supper and Baptism, discussing the larger questions of space, time and matter within which our understanding of sacraments must be located.
Talk about worship aesthetics need not polarize people. Frank Burch Brown tells how to be more inclusive in arts and worship, yet also more discerning. A feature story exploring the idea of "taste" and aesthetics in Christian Worship.
This session investigated possible hymns and choruses in the New Testament and discussed if this material is beneficial in our choice of music today.
This workshop reflected on the rise of Alternative Worship in the United Kingdom over almost two decades, which has led at different times to both sublime and ridiculous innovations in worship practice.
What is spiritual formation?
In this workshop, participants were led to discover the form of Biblical lament and how lament can be used in worship to facilitate the revitalization of a Gospel community experiencing loss and change. The workshop was based on the presenter's book, When Steeples Cry: Leading Congregations through Loss and Change.
What is the homiletical counterpart to the "Emergent" church movement/conversation? In an increasingly postmodern world, how does the church speak a Word from God? The panel explored some of the current experiments in postmodern proclamation as the church makes its way to finding a culturally authentic "NuHomiletic."
Back by popular demand from the 2003 Worship Symposium, this session reviewed a series of proverbs for worship planners, reflecting a summary of Calvin Institute of Christian Worship learning from past conferences, grant recipients, and publication projects.
In this session philosopher John Cooper presented key points in the theology and philosophy that undergirds our understanding of God's providential care in a world where terrible things happen all the time. Why do bad things happen to good people? Scott Hoezee connected these thoughts to the pastoral care that preachers can provide from the pulpit. This session aimed to be both rigorously thoughtful and pastorally practical for the life of the church.
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.
