What’s New at Symposium 2004
We look forward to seeing many of you at the 2004 Symposium on Worship and the Arts on January 29-31 at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Come by yourself or bring several from your church for a few days of refreshment and renewal. If you have not registered, please do so very soon; remember that last year, registrations were closed a few weeks in advance. This year’s change in date will permit us to accommodate more people. Here are some new features this year:
Four All-day Thursday Seminars
- Good and Fitting Use of Technology in Worship—led by Quentin Schultze and a team of those who use presentation technology in worship. There are nine practical breakout sessions; sending three people from your congregation will ensure being able to cover them all.
- Engaging with God: Rethinking Worship from a Biblical-Theological Perspective—led by English theologian David Peterson, author of Engaging with God (see p. 46).
- Creative Improvisation for the Church Keyboardist—led by Mark Hayes.
- The Creation of a Liturgical Textile: Expressing Our Faith in Fabric—led by Joanne Alberda.
More Workshops, More Repeated Workshops
For the first time, we’re essentially repeating the Friday schedule on Saturday. We’re also scheduling workshops throughout the day so people can decide when (or if!) to take a lunch break.
Worship Services Throughout the Day
In addition to the opening and closing services on Friday and Saturday, you may attend a variety of other services in place of workshops all day long and make this conference a spiritual retreat.
Pastors’ Panels
Seven different panels will highlight current issues in congregational worship life. These discussions will feature pastors and are open to all registrants.
Technology Offerings
In addition to the Thursday seminar, other workshops on the use of technology in worship will be held throughout the conference; the worship services will also model presentation technology.
Wednesday Pre-symposium Preaching Seminar
Preachers may wish to come early to spend a day with Cleophus LaRue, the Francis Landley Patton Associate Professor of Homiletics, Princeton Theological Seminary. LaRue specializes in the theory and method of African-American preaching and is the author of The Heart of Black Preaching and Power in the Pulpit: How America’s Most Effective Black Preachers Prepare Their Sermons.
COLAM 2004
The Church Together: Exploring Intergenerational Worship. July 7-10, Denver, Colorado
Ever wondered how best to minister to the multiple generations in your congregation? Ever been frustrated when the needs of one group seem to conflict with yet another group within your church? How do you go about leading and planning worship for such a diverse congregation? Is it possible?
The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and a local Denver planning committee have teamed up to plan an intergenerational conference to explore such questions and to develop biblical, practical, and creative approaches to intergenerational worship—that is, a worship service where all are welcome and each age group is called to serve and to receive, to listen and to be listened to.
This conference is for all ages. Offerings include a nursery for our youngest conferees; a special track for preschool and elementary children; plenary sessions, workshops, and discussion groups for teens and adults; and times of worship and artistic exploration for all ages.
Diverse workshops include sessions of interest to teens, pastors, worship planners, and musicians. Confirmed speakers include Gil Rendle, author of The Multigenerational Congregation: Meeting the Leadership Challenge (Alban Institute, 2002), who offers great insights on the various generations within the church. Speaker Sally Morganthaler is the author of Worship Evangelism: Inviting Unbelievers into the Presence of God (Zondervan, 1995); currently she is writing on postmodern worship. Session topics will include a focus on a particular generation, how to preach with multiple generations in mind, planning intergenerational worship, and more. The conference will be both ecumenical and Reformed, principled and practical, appreciative of a heritage and open to contemporary expression.
For more detailed information on the conference and to register check the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship website: www.calvin.edu/worship.
February 1, 2004, Deadline for Worship Renewal Grant Applications
The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship is in the fourth year of offering grants to congregations and church-related organizations for worship renewal projects. Consult the Institute website (www.calvin.edu/worship) for information about the application process and for descriptions of grants received in previous years. If you have a project you would like to discuss, contact Cindy Holtrop, director of the Worship Renewal Grants program, by phone (616-526-6822) or e-mail (worshipgrants@calvin.edu).
Corrected and Expanded Reference
The Bidding Prayer on page 24 of RW 69 was reprinted from Carols for Choirs 1, edited by Reginald Jacques and David Willcocks (© 1961, Oxford University Press). Used by permission. All rights reserved.
That prayer was part of the service of Nine Lessons with Carols first drawn up in 1880 by E. W. Benson, then Bishop of Truro, for use on Christmas Eve in the wooden shed which serviced as his cathedral. In 1918 this was adapted for use in the chapel of King’s College, Cambridge, by its Dean, the Very Reverend Eric Milner-White, who also wrote the Bidding Prayer, the original wording of which is “May he who by his Incarnation. . . .”
Excerpt
Books Included in This Review
A Better Way: Rediscovering the Drama of God-Centered Worship. Michael Horton. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 2002. 256 pp. $19.99. ISBN 0801012341. www.bakerbooks.com.
Beyond the Worship Wars: Building Vital and Faithful Worship. Thomas G. Long. Alban Institute, 2001. 132 pp. $16.00. ISBN 1566992400. www.alban.org.
Christian Worship in Reformed Churches Past and Present. Lukas Vischer, ed. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003. 444 pp. $45.00. ISBN 0802805205. www.eerdmans.com.
The Conviction of Things Not Seen: Worship and Ministry in the 21st Century. Todd E. Johnson, ed. Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2002. 240 pp. $22.99. ISBN 1587430320. www.bakerbooks.com.
Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship. David Peterson. Downer’s Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2002. 317 pp. $24.00. ISBN 0830826971. www.gospel com.net/ivpress.
The Future of Protestant Worship: Beyond the Worship Wars. Ronald P. Byars. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002. 144 pp. $12.95. ISBN 0664225721. www.ppcpub.org.
The Great Worship Awakening: Singing a New Song in the Postmodern Church. Robb Redman. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2002. 272 pp. $19.95. www.josseybass.com.
Recovering Mother Kirk: The Case for Liturgy in the Reformed Tradition. D. G. Hart. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic. 2003. 264 pp. $24.99. ISBN 0801026156. www.bakerbooks.com.
Reformed Worship. Howard L. Rice and James C. Huffstutler. Louisville: Geneva Press, 2001. 248 pp. $24.95. ISBN 0664501478. www.ppcpub.org.
With Reverence and Awe: Returning to the Basics of Reformed Worship. D. G. Hart and John R. Muether. Philipsburg, N. J.: P&R Publishing Company, 2002. 208 pp. $12.99. ISBN 0875521797. www.prpbooks.com.
Worship by the Book. D. A. Carson, ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2002. 256 pp. $16.99. ISBN 0310216257. www.zondervan.com.
Worship: Reformed According to Scripture. Hughes Oliphant Old. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002. 208 pp. $19.95. ISBN 0664224799. www.ppcpub.org.
Worship Seeking Understanding: Windows into Christian Practice. John D. Witvliet. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2003. 320 pp. $26.99. ISBN 0801026237. www.bakerbooks.com.
To register, or for more information, visit www.calvin.edu/worship. Like last year, registrations will be received only online. Note also the “Preparation & Follow Up Guide” for ways your church can benefit most from the conference.
2004 Conferences
Grand Rapids, MI, January 10
“Why Pastors & Theologians Need Musicians & Artists, & Vice Versa,” a seminar led by Dr. Jeremy Begbie, Professor of Theology and Associate Director of the Institute for Theology, Imagination and the Arts at the University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Scotland. Contact: Continuing Education Office, Calvin Theological Seminary, 3233 Burton St. SE, Grand Rapids MI 49546, 616-957-8733, continuing.education@calvin.edu.
Grand Rapids, MI, January 29-31
The Calvin Symposium on Worship and the Arts. See p. 47 for details.
Chattanooga, TN, March 8-11
A conference led by James Ward at New City Fellowship, to equip church musicians to worship with African, African-American, Latino, and South Asian music. Contact: jward@newcityfellowship.com.
Berkeley, CA, March 19-20
African-American and Asian-American churches in dialogue on worship, with the goal of cultivating mutual insight, appreciation, and collaboration. Held at the American Baptist Seminary of the West. Contact: ryee@att.net.
Conferences of the Presbyterian Association of Musicians (PAM):
Montreat, NC, June 20-26 and June 27-July 3 (2 identical conferences)
Theme: “Led By the Spirit—The Church in Community”
Westminster, PA, July 11-16
Theme: “Weaving the Tapestry of Worship” Contact: PAM, 888-728-7228, x5288; pam@ctr.pcusa.org; www.pam.pcusa.org.
Denver, CO, July 7-10
“The Church Together: Exploring Intergenerational Worship” is the theme for COLAM 2004, sponsored by the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. See p. 47 for details.
Collegeville, Minnesota, July 11-15
The annual conference of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada at St. John’s University and the College of St. Benedict. Contact: 1-800-843-4966; hymnsoc@bu.edu; www.thehymnsociety.org.
St. Catharines, ON, TBA
Arts in Worship Niagara, sponsored by Jubilee Fellowship Christian Reformed Church. Contact: www.artsinworshipniagara.org; 905-938-9446.
Boston, MA, TBA
Congregacion Leon de Juda and the Christian Center for the Arts will sponsor a bilingual (Spanish/English) conference on worship and the arts with a focus on the Arts in Urban Ministry. Contact: return27@bu.edu
Choristers Guild Conferences and Workshops
Workshops are held in many different states for this organization devoted to nurturing the spiritual development of children and youth through music. For information contact: www.choristersguild.org.