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Introduction to the Ten Core Convictions

A reflection on a selection of CICW’s Ten Core Convictions from the introductory session of the 2021 Virtual Vital Worship Grants Event, led by John D. Witvliet, Director of the Calvin Institute of the Christian Worship, and featuring Vital Worship Grants Advisory Board Members James Abbington, Kimberly Belcher, C. Michael Hawn, William H. Johnston, and Leopoldo A. Sánchez M.

July 20, 2021 | 55 min video
Everyday Faith: Possibilities, Limits, and Callings, with special guest Christina Edmondson

How does Christian faith relate to anti-racism efforts? What does faithful anti-racism work look like in today’s world? Watch as Dr. Christina Edmondson shares insights from her work with the online “Faithful Anti-Racism” courses and cohorts she teaches and leads in collaboration with CICW. Hear some of the core principles she teaches and some of the lessons participants have learned. Dr. Edmondson is interviewed by Noel Snyder, program manager at CICW.

July 9, 2021 | 62 min video
Anti-Racism in the Renewing of Christian Worship.

May God give us grace and strength to resist lies, arrogance, injustice, racism, and oppression in all forms. In worship, we are called to confess sin, to lament brokenness, and to pray for the end of these travesties, even as we are called to preach and celebrate sacramentally the gospel of Jesus Christ—in which power is made perfect in weakness, in which each person and culture is cherished as God’s gift, in which our hope is based on the life, death, resurrection, and continuing ministry of our ascended Lord, Jesus Christ. We long for a seamless connection between faithful public worship and vital Christian witness in every sector of society and in every cultural context.

July 6, 2021 | 7 min read

God Gives Us Life Everlasting

Worship for the Vital Grants Event 2021. This service is based on Revelation 22:1-6.

June 22, 2021 | 2 min read
God Provides in the Desert

Opening worship for the vital grants event 2021. The service is based on Exodus 17:1-7.

June 22, 2021 | 2 min read
God Leads Us to Springs of Living Water

Worship for the Vital Grants event 2021. This service is based on John 4:4-26.

June 22, 2021 | 3 min read

Christian Mindfulness: Resting in God's Presence

Come for a time to rest in God’s presence through Christian mindfulness practice. The session will be interactive and will include an overview and instruction on Christian mindfulness, time to practice resting in God’s presence, and a time of reflection.

June 22, 2021 | 1 min read
Karen Roberts on Moving from Inclusion to Belonging

First Presbyterian Church in Aurora, Illinois, is on a journey from being a congregation that includes people with disabilities to becoming a place where people of all abilities belong. A sermon series on the ten dimensions of belonging helped them take another step.

June 21, 2021 | 7 min read
Sermon Series and Study Guide on Belonging for All Abilities

Your church can use new resources, such as a sermon series and study guide, to help your congregation move from including people with disabilities to becoming a place of belonging for all abilities. Then you can pass on what you've learned to other congregations.

June 21, 2021 | 7 min read

Everyday Faith: Possibilities, Limits, and Callings, with special guest Danjuma Gibson (Part 1)

What does life look like through the eyes of some of the “Titans” of African American history, such as Frederick Douglass, Fanny Lou Hamer, and Martin Luther King, Jr? Watch as Danjuma Gibson of Calvin Theological Seminary shares insights from his research into the qualities, dispositions, and decisions that led these ordinary people to live such extraordinary lives. Professor Gibson is interviewed by Noel Snyder, program manager at CICW.

June 18, 2021 | 59 min video
Cultivating an Ecclesiological Understanding: An Interview with C. Michael Hawn led by John Witvliet

An interview on the occasion of Michael Hawn's retirement from the Vital Worship Grants Board in May 2021.

June 16, 2021 | 57 min video
Two Pastors on Christian Worship in Politically Divided Times

Many preachers and congregations claim that politics have no place in their worship. But pastors Meg Jenista Kuykendall and Katie Ritsema-Roelofs say that addressing public issues in worship is essential for congregations to become to Christlike communities.

June 9, 2021 | 8 min read