The following discussion is from the second part of a session led by Dr. Charlotte vanOyen Witvliet, Rev. Cindy Holtrop, Dr. Warren Kinghorn, and Dr. John Swinton at the Calvin Symposium on Worship in January 2018. The first section appeared in Reformed Worship 129 and dealt with the promises and pitfalls around public worship and mental health. The rest of the session focuses on prayer.
Articles by this author:
Mental Illnesses and Worship: Prayer, Lament, Language, and Discipleship
A Conversation from the Calvin Symposium on Worship, Part Two of TwoMental Illnesses and Worship: Promises and Pitfalls in Preparing for and Practicing Public Worship
A Conversation from the Calvin Symposium on Worship Part 1 of 2The following is an adapted transcript of the first part of a session led by Dr. Charlotte vanOyen Witvliet, Rev. Cindy Holtrop, Dr. Warren Kinghorn, and Dr. John Swinton at the Calvin Symposium on Worship, held in January 2018 at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan. In this first section they discuss together the promises and pitfalls of worship and mental illnesses. The remaining portion of this session focuses on prayer and will appear in RW 130.
Practical Insights for Leading Worship
How to Be Inclusive of Persons with Mental IllnessesIn early 2007, Gabriel Surjana, 16, began reaching for the communion cup and the tray of bread as it was passed in worship. Before that he had shown interest, but now he was indicating in his own way that he wanted to eat and drink the Lord’s Supper like his parents, Pearl Shangkuan and Okke Surjana. So they explored with his Sunday school teachers the possibility of Gabriel professing his faith in Christ at their church, Neland Avenue Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Robbie Castleman. Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1993. 139 pp. $10.99. Reviewed by Cindy Holtrop, program director for grants and congregational formation, Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
During the last year I have been leading workshops and retreats on hospitality for many churches. Congregations who want to be hospitable can benefit from seeing their building, their practices, and their worship services through the eyes of a visitor.
I developed the following service for Immanuel Christian Reformed Church in Langley, British Columbia, a congregation committed to hospitality and to welcoming neighbors to their faith community.
Are you looking for a way to make the Scripture narrative come alive for your congregation during Advent and Christmas this year? Try a program based on one of the gospel accounts of Christ's birth. Make the experience even more meaningful by basing your Advent sermon series on the same passages.