NEW WORSHIP RESOURCES COMING FROM CRC PUBLICATIONS
One reason we don't accept advertisements in Reformed Worship is that we always have more to print than we have room for. So here's an in-house "ad" to let you know of a few new products we're working on at CRC Publications that will be ready this fall/winter.
Authentic Worship in a Changing Culture
Available September 1997. See Q&A (p. 44) for information about this important report/study guide on worship.
Two New Drama Series: Noel and Scripture Alive
The Noel Series will offer Christmas programs involving children; Scripture Alive offers dramatic readings from Scripture. Both series are intended for use in worship services, sometimes as the entire service.
Noel Series Two dramas are scheduled for fall. Two more may be released sometime during the coming year.
- Preparing the Way for Jesus (based on the gospel of Luke; a revision of the drama published in RW 33)
- Jesus, the Promised Savior (based on the writings of John)
Scripture Alive Six dramas (complete with music) are scheduled for this winter.
- Upon This Rock (The Story of Peter)
- It Is Finished (The Passion According to John)
- My Lord and My God (Thomas Meets the Risen Christ)
- Were Not Our Hearts Burning? (The Emmaus Story)
- The Fiery Prophet (The Story of Elijah)
- Mother in Israel (The Story of Deborah)
KUDOS FOR REFORMED WORSHIP
Reformed Worship won high honors at the Associated Church Press (ACP) 1996 Awards ceremony held April 22, 1997, in Chicago. In the Special Interest Magazine category, the judges rated Reformed Worship "Best in Class," the most coveted award of ACP, for being "superbly designed" and having a "clear focus for each article." More than two hundred publications belong to the ACP; winners in the various categories for 1996 were selected from more than a thousand entries. ACP judges hailed Reformed Worship as "a powerhouse product."
Reformed Worship also received an Award of Excellence for the cover of its March 1996 Pentecost issue, designed by Dean Heetderks and Ron Huizinga, and an Award of Merit in the "Statement of Purpose" category for best fulfilling its stated mission "to provide worship leaders and committees with practical assistance in planning, structuring, and conducting worship in the Reformed tradition."
RW also participated this year in the Evangelical Press Association (EPA), an even larger group of some four hundred periodicals, organizations, and individuals. We're delighted to announce that James Schaap won first place in the Fiction category for "First Profession" (RW 41:20); actually he tied for first place with himself for another piece in another journal!
CONFERENCES
Nashville, TN, October 3-4, 1997
Liturgical Needlework workshop will teach the history of traditional symbols and some simple needlework design techniques. Participants will work together on a project during the two-day event. Contact: Jenny Smith at 615-340-7485 or Becky Waldrop at 615-340-7557.
Grand Rapids, MI, October II, 1997
The Grand Rapids chapter of the Choristers Guild is sponsoring a workshop on the roie of children in music and liturgy led by John D. Witvliet, president-elect of the Choristers Guild. Contact: Grace Schwanda, 616-940-0476.
Grand Rapids, MI, January 9-10, 1998
Eleventh Annual Symposium on Worship and the Arts, Calvin College. Many clinicians, including Anton Armstrong and John Ferguson. Contact: Department of Music, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Ml 49546; 616-957-6253; fax 616-957-6266.
Grand Rapids, MI, July 12-16 and 16-18, 1998
The Hymn Society in the United States and Canada will return to Calvin College in 1998. Emily Brink and John Witvliet are local co-chairs of what promises to be an exciting conference, to be followed by a two-day "crash course in hymnody" Mark your calendars now!