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  • Resources
  • Grants

    Apply for Grants

    Apply for the Vital Worship, Vital Preaching Grants Program to support and enhance Christian worship practices. We encourage proposals on universal design, cultural engagement, preaching, baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and more. Two grant streams are available.

    Learn More

    All Grants Awarded

    Explore all grants awarded since the program launched in 2000, with funds provided by Lilly Endowment Inc.

    Info for Current Recipients

    Explore detailed guidelines and support resources to help you manage your grant effectively.

    Teacher-Scholar Grants

    Apply for the Teacher Scholar Grant to support innovative research and teaching in Christian worship. Proposals from educators and scholars are welcome.

    Worshiping Communities Grants

    Apply for the Worshiping Communities Grant to support and enhance worship practices within your community. Proposals for diverse and innovative worship initiatives are welcome.

    Teacher-Scholar Grants

    Apply for the Teacher Scholar Grant to support innovative research and teaching in Christian worship. Proposals from educators and scholars are welcome.

    Worshiping Communities Grants

    Apply for the Worshiping Communities Grant to support and enhance worship practices within your community. Proposals for diverse and innovative worship initiatives are welcome.

  • Events

    Events

    Join us for our Symposium on Worship and Summer Seminars. Engage in inspiring sessions, workshops, and intensive seminars to deepen your understanding and practice of Christian worship.

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    Calendar of Events

    Consider joining an upcoming event we sponsor or support. An archive is also available for reference.

    Dwelling in the Psalms

    You are invited to join the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship in a year of dwelling in the Psalms—the prayerbook and songbook of the Bible.

    Upcoming Event

    National Memorial for Peace and Justice
    Montgomery—Arrabon Experiential Learning Trip 2026
    The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship is excited to partner with Arrabon, a spiritual formation ministry that equips Christ-followers to actively and creatively pursue reconciliation and racial healing in their communities, to offer a curated experiential learning trip to Montgomery, Alabama. 
    March 17-20, 2026
    Montgomery
    , 
    Alabama
    View Event
  • About

    About

    The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship at Calvin University advances Christian worship through resources, events, and grants. Since 1997, we have partnered with congregations and organizations to fulfill our mission.

    Learn More

    Mission

    We promote the study and renewal of Christian worship through partnerships at Calvin University.

    What We Do

    We partner with congregations and organizations, focusing on resources, events, and grants.

    Diversity and Inclusion

    We promote worship practices that celebrate diversity and foster inclusion in all communities.

    Partners

    Discover our generous funding partners who make our programs possible through their support and grants.

    Staff Directory

    Find contact information and profiles for CICW staff across all programs.

    Learn at Calvin

    Calvin University offers many options for learners and students of all ages and contexts.

    Learn about MLC

    Learn about MLC

    A program for first- and second-year Calvin University students exploring how their interests intersect with the church.

    MLC Leadership Staff

    Meet the Ministry Leadership Cohort staff.

    MLC Peer Leaders

    Meet the Ministry Leadership Cohort peer leaders.

    A program for first- and second-year Calvin University students exploring how their interests intersect with the church.

    Contact Us

    Get in touch with us for inquiries, support, or more information about our programs and services.

    Executive Director Search

    Learn at Calvin

    Calvin University offers many options for learners and students of all ages and contexts.

    Learn about MLC

    Learn about MLC

    A program for first- and second-year Calvin University students exploring how their interests intersect with the church.

    MLC Leadership Staff

    Meet the Ministry Leadership Cohort staff.

    MLC Peer Leaders

    Meet the Ministry Leadership Cohort peer leaders.

    A program for first- and second-year Calvin University students exploring how their interests intersect with the church.

    Contact Us

    Get in touch with us for inquiries, support, or more information about our programs and services.

    Executive Director Search


  • Resources

  • Grants
    • All Grants Awarded
    • Info for Current Recipients
    • Teacher-Scholar Grants
    • Worshiping Communities Grants

  • Events
    • Calendar of Events
    • Dwelling in the Psalms

  • About
    • Mission
    • What We Do
    • Diversity and Inclusion
    • Partners
    • Staff Directory
    • Learn at Calvin
    • Learn about MLC
      • Learn about MLC
      • MLC Leadership Staff
      • MLC Peer Leaders
    • Contact Us
    • Executive Director Search

  • 1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA

    On the campus of Calvin University

    © 2026 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship


Search Results

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Article Intergenerational Faith Formation Theology

Vertical Habits: Relational words that expand worship language

Focusing on simple phrases helps develop worship habits that affect our whole lives. Vertical habits expand how people talk with God during church worship and school chapels. A feature story exploring relational words that expand worship language.
Article Theology Teaching Faith Formation

Constance Cherry on Competing Metaphors for Worship

Most churches measure worship services against a certain ideal. They may think of worship like a concert, entertainment, dialogue, or something else. Even if they have not consciously chosen an operating metaphor for worship, their pattern greatly influences how individuals and congregations live out their faith.
John D. Witvliet
Video Theology

On Three Meanings of the Term Worship

The term “worship” for a dictionary on modern Christian usage would need to have at least three definitions.
Article History Justice/Reconciliation Planning Worship

Helen Rhee on Early Christianity’s Views on Wealth and Poverty

Many Christians think that how they acquire and use money is peripheral to the gospel. Relatively few preachers address wealth and poverty in their sermons. Yet early Christianity proclaimed and practiced the countercultural value of caring for the poor. Their worship services reflected this value.
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Article Theology Prayer Preaching

Take the Name and Hold if High - Psalm 34, 86, HCLD 47

A service plan from the Lord's Prayer focused on the use of God's name and how we are to honor it in a series on prayer as explained in the Heidelberg Catechism.
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Article Leadership Teaching

Repertoire for 2005 Charles Herbert Flax Memorial Concert at Hampton University

Meeting at Hampton with people from several denominations reminds conferees how many ways they can praise God through music. Besides singing through several genres in morning and evening worship services, conferees and visitors enjoy anthems, hymns, spirituals, contemporary gospel, and new arrangements of old favorites at the annual Charles Herbert Flax Memorial Concert.
Art by Susan Seavitt
Article Christian Year Music/Song

Songs for Ascension: Looking Beyond Your Hymnal

Breakout session by Greg Scheer from With a Shout, a day-long conference held in 2006 exploring the meaning of the Ascension culminated in a community worship service at Woodlawn CRC.
Article Planning Worship Cultural Diversity

If They Don't Change After Worship, Then They Just Came To Do Cardio

From his native Guatemala, Pastor Jorge Fuentes came and established himself in the United States. For 18 years, he has been the pastor at the Church of Christ Elim Central in Los Angeles, a numerous and prosperous congregation in Southern California.
Article Music/Song Theology Faith Formation

Jeremy Zeyl on Singing the Heidelberg Catechism

Jeremy Zeyl is an award-winning singer-songwriter and the director of worship at Talbot Street Christian Reformed Church in London, Ontario.
Article Technology Pastoral Care Planning Worship

Shaping Worship During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Livestream at Christian & Missionary Alliance Churches in Hong Kong

Yvette Lau explains how Christian & Missionary Alliance churches in Hong Kong are deciding whether or how to do virtual worship or even virtual communion. In this edited conversation, she suggests that worship planners consider what will be communal, hospitable, and beneficial to the whole community—during and after COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
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Resources

  • Resource Library
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  • Publications

Events

  • Calendar
  • Symposium on Worship

Grants

  • Teacher-Scholar Grants
  • Worshiping Communities
  • Current and Past Grants

About

  • Our Mission
  • Diversity and Inclusion
  • Funding and Partners
  • Staff Directory
  • Contact Us

1855 Knollcrest Circle SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546-4402 USA

On the campus of Calvin University

© 2026 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship

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