Skip to main content
CICW Logo CICW Logo
  • 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.

    Learn More

    Calendar of Events

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

    Symposium on Worship

    Engage in inspiring worship and workshops to enhance your worship practice. Join thought leaders and practitioners for enriching discussions.

    Upcoming Event

    2025 Black Religious Autobiography Seminar
    The office of Black Church Studies at Duke Divinity School is sponsoring a week-long seminar exploring the autobiographical writings of Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Howard Thurman, Ida B. Wells, and other Black autobiographers and memoirists who used their life stories as weapons in the quest for freedom and humanization. 
    July 19 - 26, 2025
    Durham
    , 
    North Carolina
    View Event
  • About

    About

    The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship at Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary 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 and Calvin Theological Seminary.

    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.

    Funding 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

    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.

    Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary offer many options for learners and students of all ages and contexts.

    Contact Us

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

    Staff Directory

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

    Learn at Calvin

    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.

    Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary offer many options for learners and students of all ages and contexts.

    Contact Us

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


  • Resources

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

  • Events
    • Calendar of Events
    • Symposium on Worship

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

  • 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


Search Results

Generic placeholder image
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.
Article Psalms/Scripture Cultural Diversity

Navajo Christians Build Relationships through Scripture and Culture

Window Rock Christian Reformed Church used a Vital Worship Grant project to connect with more people by engaging scripture in ways reflective of Navajo cultural practices.
Article Christian Year Music/Song

Angels, from the Realms of Glory

The service of Lessons and Carols from 2016 highlights the importance of angels in the drama of the Christmas gospel, startling us to focus our awareness on how the angels enlarge our perception of the beauty and glory of the triune God through their nearness and through their mysterious, wonder-filled transcendence.
Generic placeholder image
Article Intergenerational Cultural Diversity Teaching

Postmodernism and Community Memory

Does your church want to be relevant to postmodern people? If so, how much should your worshiping community connect or disconnect with memory? A feature story exploring Postmodernism and Community Memory.
Article Music/Song Faith Formation Theology

Hymns for a Pandemic: A Brief Historical Introduction

Centuries before 2020’s novel coronavirus, COVID-19, Christians around the world responded to plagues, pandemics, uncertainty, and sin with faith in God’s presence and care—a faith expressed in many theologically rich hymns that can remind modern believers of God’s faithfulness.
Generic placeholder image
Article Planning Worship Theology Psalms/Scripture

The Nuts and Bolts of Worship Planning

A crash course in collected wisdom from 100 congregations.
Generic placeholder image
Article Psalms/Scripture Cultural Diversity Planning Worship

Growing With Peter Series: On the Mountain with Jesus - Matthew 17

A service plan in a Lenten series on the transfiguration of Jesus and what impact that had on Peter.
Arbin Pokharel
Podcast Cultural Diversity Pastoral Care

Arbin Pokharel on Gospel Hospitality in Kathmandu, Nepal

In this episode, pastor and church planter Arbin Pokharel talks with Maria Cornou about the vibrancy of the body of Christ in Nepal--land of Hinduism, birthplace of Buddha, and a caste system society--as they draw from the well of grace and practice their Christian faith so everyone can flourish.
Photo of nebula
Article Cultural Diversity Interdisciplinary Teaching

Science and Faith in Harmony: Positive ways to include science in worship

Deborah Haarsma and Scott Hoezee explain how worship that honors God as Creator can defuse culture wars between science and faith.
Generic placeholder image
Article Intergenerational Sacraments Preaching

N. T. Wright on the Gospel and Meal Jesus Gave Us

What can people inside and outside your church learn about the gospel from the way you preach and practice the Lord's Supper? A feature story exploring the Gospel and Christian Celebration of the Lord's Supper.
  • Load More
Footer Logo

Stay in the know about the study and renewal of worship.

Sign up for our newsletter

Footer

Resources

  • Resource Library
  • Audio & Video
  • 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 and Calvin Theological Seminary

© 2025 Calvin Institute of Christian Worship

Footer Logo