Taste and See: How to Teach for Depth in Worship

Directed by
John D. Witvliet, Ph.D.

July 13 - 24, 2009

Seminar Description

This seminar will explore the nature of "full, conscious, and active participation" in Christian worship and probe what role Christian teaching ministries can play in nurturing it. Participants will meet for daily discussions of both classic and contemporary writings on worship, formation, pedagogy, and congregational life, with implications for teaching not only in seminary, but also in the social sciences, humanities, and arts. Discussions will focus on a range of Christian practices worldwide from several denominations and worship traditions. We are especially looking for participants who are designing courses or sermon series for congregations, training programs for worship leaders, or academic courses for colleges, seminaries, and divinity schools- as well as journalists, publishers, non-profit organization program leaders and others whose work forms the imagination of contemporary Christians.

About the Director

John D. Witvliet is Director of the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and teaches worship, theology, and music at Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary. His responsibilities include oversight of the Worship Institute’s practical and scholarly programs, including the annual Calvin Symposium on Worship and the Worship Renewal Grants Program, funded by Lilly Endowment. He is the author of The Biblical Psalms in Christian Worship (Eerdmans, 2007), Worship Seeking Understanding (Baker Academic, 2003) and co-editor of Worship in Medieval and Early Modern Europe (University of Notre Dame Press, 2004) and The Worship Sourcebook (Baker Books/Faith Alive, 2004). A graduate of Calvin College, Dr. Witvliet holds graduate degrees in theology from Calvin Theological Seminary, in choral music from the University of Illinois, and the Ph.D. in liturgical studies and theology from the University of Notre Dame. He is frequent lecturer at conferences on worship, and has published over 50 articles on worship-related topics, with particular interest in the doctrine of the Trinity, liturgical aesthetics, worship practices of the fourth and sixteenth centuries, and new and emerging patterns of worship worldwide.

Seminar Information

Seminars & Workshops 2009

For further information contact:
Seminars in Christian Scholarship
Calvin College
1855 Knollcrest Circle SE
Grand Rapids MI 49546-4402
616.526.8558
fax 616.526.6682
seminars@calvin.edu