Worship Weblog
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Report from National Ministry Summit
From Betty Grit: This past weekend’s Emerging Models of Pastoral Leadership National Ministry Summit in Orlando, Florida, provided a unique opportunity to meet with old friends and introduce others to the work of CICW. One pastor told me that he is on our website frequently. He finds insights and resources valuable for sermon preparation. Another stopped our CICW exhibition table to say that she knows several grant recipients and appreciates what has been accomplished through Worship Renewal Grants. Dolly Sokol, project director for grants to the Office of Worship and Christian Initiation of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, thanked us for the grants and said that she is “spreading the word” about the grants. We were grateful to talk with Bill Johnston, a member of the Worship Renewal Grants Advisory Board. He had sent us information about this conference and encouraged us to be here to introduce conference participants to CICW and the grants. A highlight of the conference was a conversation with Father Tom Willis, project director of the 2007 grant to the Diocese of St. Augustine Office of Liturgy. This project brought together 18 parish musicians to study music and liturgy. Father Tom told me that the first time the group gathered for a retreat and learning, some participants were in conversation with Kathleen Harmon, the facilitator, until 3 AM. The eagerness to learn has been evident throughout the year. Pastors reported to Father Tom six weeks later that already there was evidence of renewal in worship. The participants have now met with Kathleen twice and recently gathered to reflect and celebrate. Father Tom notes that the learning process has been marked by trust and affirmation. Participants have shared newly composed music and made revisions based on thoughtful input by other participants. A final workshop of the grant year is planned for May. An extensive evaluation process will include participants, pastors and others in the congregation such as choir members. The leadership team is eager to assess the learning that has spread throughout the parish. We are most grateful for the vision and leadership that is creating a model for training local musicians in liturgy and music. Previous Report: Visit to El Buen Vecino Presbyterian
Grants • Interdisciplinary Application • Leadership • Worshipping Communities • (0) Comments • Permalink
Report from El Buen Vecino Presbyterian
From Betty Grit:
It was Sunday morning and the leadership team of El Buen Vecino Presbyterian Church had gathered in their new worship space in Kissimmee, Florida, to tell me about their grant year. Led by Pastor Sandra Luciano-Andujar, they had offered classes in music, dance, visual arts and drama for worship. The previous week participants and members of several congregations had come together to see what had been learned, to celebrate, fellowship and worship concluding with the Lord’s Supper.
The leadership team includes adults and children with many gifts. One young girl, Lauren Marie, told me that she loves being involved in drama and visual arts. We were shown a video of the learning workshops as well as pictures of the recent celebration.
Later today the congregation will worship in a nearby church. Some of the learning through the grant year will be a part of this service that will include a baptism. It is their prayer that construction permits will soon be in place to allow them to worship in their new space.
We are reminded of the privilege of partnering with this young congregation as they develop the gifts of their members for worship. Should we have the opportunity to visit again in four or five years, it is our prayer that we would find fruits of the grants flourishing to provide vital worship in this growing Hispanic community.
Next Report: Report from National Ministry Summit
Grants • Leadership • Worshipping Communities • (0) Comments • Permalink
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Easter Visuals at First Reformed in Pompton Plains
The picture and below note were sent to us by Roy Okma and are posted here with permission:
I am a Calvin graduate and I recently attended your Worship Symposium as a representative of the First Reformed Church in Pompton Plains, NJ. I have attached a picture of our first experiment of using visual arts within the church as a way to enhance the worship experience. I just want to thank-you and the staff at Calvin for an excellent conference and I wanted you to see some of the impact that you are having around the country.
Our church has been around since 1736 and the worship style is more traditional.
Looking at the picture, we made the following changes for our Easter Sunday service:
1) Built and stained the wooden cross in front of the church
2) Ran drapes of white fabric from the cross spreading over top of the entire congregation
The visual effect on Easter was unbelievable as the sunlight played off of the fabric making for an inspiring visual effect. The project was so successful that we are starting a visual art team in our church and also adopted the idea of displaying art work through out the church.
I just wanted to write you an e-mail to share with you and the Calvin staff some of the results from all of your work. As you stated in the conference it is not at all about the “grant money”; these ideas can be implemented by anyone.
Regards,
Roy Okma
Related Resources
Eyes to See: Grassroots Discoveries on Worship and the Visual Arts
Worship and the Visual Arts
Liturgical Arts • Worshipping Communities • (0) Comments • Permalink
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Prayers for Blacksburg - one year later
Today we remember and pray for people in Blacksburg, Virginia, on this first anniversary of the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech University. We got to know several worship leaders in Blacksburg through a Worship Renewal Grant; their collaboration and spirit of gratitude have been a real witness. Anne Campbell of Blacksburg Presbyterian Church sent us this picture shortly after the shootings last year, showing some of the outpouring of support for the VT community.
News • Worshipping Communities • (0) Comments • Permalink
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
Blog reports from Transforming Culture conference in Austin
Blog reports from Transforming Culture, which featured Eugene Peterson, Jeremy Begbie, Barbara Nicolosi, Andy Crouch, David Taylor, and CICW director John Witvliet:
- Two Days After from David Taylor
- Day 3 Panel Discussion from doulos2k.net
Events • Interdisciplinary Application • Liturgical Arts • (4) Comments • Permalink