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Worship Renewal Grant Recipients—Year 2004

You can view posters displayed at Colloquium for grant recipients from the years 2003-2008. Click on the organization's name for an image of the poster. (You may need to zoom in to read the text on the poster.)

Alamosa Christian Reformed Church, Alamosa, Colorado To explore through study and a seminar how we use our hearts (emotions), our heads (intellect), and our hands (service) in an active way as we gather to worship as the Body of Christ.

All Nations Christian Reformed Church, Halifax, Nova Scotia To develop a set of liturgies for the seasons of Lent and Eastertide, use them in worship, study them with a range of fellow congregants, and prepare them for dissemination to a broader audience.

Amazing Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, Baltimore, Maryland To collaborate with four urban multicultural congregations to train and nurture children to lead worship through a youth choir.

American Baptist Seminary of the West, Berkeley, California To gather representatives from Northeastern Asian Indian, Native American and Asian American worshipping communities to assist each in lifting up its own “voice” in Christian worship, and to develop and disseminate the resulting worship resources through a conference.

Arts Ministry, Inc., Chapel Hill, North Carolina To equip, encourage and enable Christian composers and leaders/pastors within a broader Christian context of Biblical theology and mission by offering the Forging Links Conference, and to encourage integration of new material through workshops and communication with worship and arts leaders.

Asociación para la Educación Teológica Hispana, Austin, Texas To gather Latino worship leaders to share the wealth of worship materials with deep roots in Hispanic culture and traditions that have been created in recent years, to promote critical theological reflection on the value and use of these materials, and to encourage their continuing creation.

Baptist Student Center, Cape Girardeau, Missouri To offer an inter-disciplinary, ecumenical symposium on the history and theology of artistic expression in worship, to host a course entitled “Worship for the Church in the 21st Century;” and to sponsor a retreat for the purpose of developing a cross-cultural theology of worship.

Bethany Christian Services, Grand Rapids, Michigan To identify the most important spiritual needs of adolescents in residential treatment programs, to develop worship utilizing music, art, drama and design which addresses those needs, and to develop a training module for staff and volunteers who lead worship in residential treatment settings.

Bethel Lutheran Church, Chicago, Illinois To create contextually appropriate worship opportunities for African American young adults through the training of young leaders and the development of a Praise Dance Ministry.

Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Longmont, Colorado To offer monthly worship services which utilize Light into the World: Hope for a New Day, a bluegrass setting of the Lutheran liturgy with all original music by a young composer, Kent Gustavson, to train volunteer musicians and to lead workshops both locally and nationally to share what they have learned.

Blackhawk Presbytery, Oregon, Illinois To challenge and support the 89 Presbyterian Church (USA) congregations of northern Illinois through workshops that equip members of the congregations to promote the study of corporate worship in the Reformed tradition in each congregation.

Bridge of Peace Community Church, Camden, New Jersey To seek new models of worship which provide a theological framework of multicultural worship in an urban context by offering Multicultural Worship Festivals and a worship conference.

Caledonia Presbyterian Church, Vevay, Indiana To collaborate with three small, rural churches to create a series of twelve banners, each representing and interpreting an element of worship. Work group members will research and study the theological meaning of each element of worship, collaborate to create a visual representation of that meaning, construct the banner and write narratives interpreting their symbolism so that the banners can be incorporated into worship.

Calvin Presbyterian Church, Corvallis, Oregon To develop multi-sensory experiences to help worshipers more deeply understand and experience the sacrament of Communion.

Campus Chapel of Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor, Michigan To train students in leading congregational singing, presenting liturgy and Scripture and performing drama during services.

Catholic Diocese of Belleville/St. Benedict the Black Friary, Belleville, Illinois To offer symposiums in worship planning, music, art, liturgy and drama for high school students and faculty who seek to plan and lead worship that is richly African-American and authentically Christian.

Centennial Park Baptist Church, Grimsby, Ontario To enhance the accessibility of the preaching of the word to worshipers of all ages through the use of drama, visual arts, music, and puppets and to design a children’s bulletin that encourages active listening.

Choristers Guild, Garland, Texas To establish new Summer Worship, Arts, and Music Camps which will give children the opportunity to gain an understanding of the structure of worship, skills in leading various aspects of worship, experience with various worship-related arts, and occasions for preparing brief worship services.

Christians in the Visual Arts (CIVA), Wenham, Massachusetts To assist churches in incorporating liturgical arts by offering seminars and workshops, and by producing resources that disseminate these concepts to a broader audience.

Church of the Redeemer, Grand Rapids, Michigan To commission art and music suitable for services conducted within the home, to assist home-based churches in worship planning, and to write a series of articles to encourage home-based churches to reflect on their worship practices with respect to intentional liturgy.

Congregación León de Judá, Boston, Massachusetts To organize a training, discipleship, and spiritual development program for local worship leaders which will gather worship leaders, pastors, artists, and presenters for monthly retreats to engage in prayer, song, theological/ministry reflection, learning, and artistic creation.

Covenant Community Church, Louisville, Kentucky To awaken global consciousness and involvement of the congregation in their community through the liturgical movements of gathering and sending.

Covenant Presbyterian Fellowship (The Cove), Santa Rosa, California To deepen the understanding and experience of the Lord's Supper and Baptism by developing musical and liturgical leadership, enriching the worship environment with visual art relating to the sacraments, teaching children about the sacraments, and reaching out to the community through Passion Week worship services.

Covenant Theological Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri To encourage worship leaders to become more deeply rooted in historical expressions of biblical worship while engaging today's culture through a conference designed to equip worship leaders.

Diocesan Worship Directors of Michigan, Saginaw, Michigan To provide liturgical formation to musicians and others responsible for liturgy through a Summer Camp experience.

Evangelical Covenant Church, North Mankato, Minnesota To collaborate with three other congregations to prepare children for full participation in the Lord's Supper through a Sunday school class and the development of a picture book project.

Federation of Diocesan Liturgical Commissions, Washington, D.C. To offer a study week that focuses on both liturgical theology of elements of worship and multi-cultural liturgy for liturgical leaders in the Roman Catholic dioceses of the United States.

Ferry Memorial Reformed Church, Montague, Michigan To host a series of workshops, each focusing on a unique cognitive or sensory way children worship God through visual arts, music arts, movement arts and writing arts, in order to investigate new ways of worshipping intergenerationally.

First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Blue Springs, Missouri To integrate worship, outreach and mission through preaching and pastoral care by enhancing the quality of existing services in long-term care centers, promoting development of services for other long-term care centers, and building bridges between congregations and long-term care center residents through an intergenerational ecumenical project.

First Christian Reformed Church, Denver, Colorado To explore with all generations the various ways, including reading, drama, visuals and song, that scripture is presented in the call to worship, assurance and sermon text.

First Congregational Church, UCC, Austin, Minnesota To examine the use of multimedia technology and how it can be introduced into an existing congregation, and to offer a workshop to share their learning.

First Presbyterian Church of Burlingame, Burlingame, California To develop the Gathering Around the Word so that it builds community and to examine worship planning and practices with the goal of increasing active participation of all worshipers through leadership training and congregational workshops.

Friends of the Groom, Terrace Park, Ohio To equip young people to present Biblical readings, scenes and readings which are appropriate for worship and to provide training in the purpose and meaning of worship.

Friendship Missionary Baptist Church, Charlotte, North Carolina To empower small to medium, rural, African-American churches who struggle with issues related to worship planning and leadership development by creating a four-day conference, the 2004 Church Music Summit, which will provide practical, hands-on instruction and promote interdenominational fellowship.

Friendship Village of Schaumburg, Schaumburg, Illinois To develop a small-group worship experience modeled on and adapted from the book Young Children and Worship by Sonja Stewart and Jerome Berryman, for persons with dementia in a large, non-denominational continuing care retirement community.

Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, Dana Point, California To create an indigenous worship service which integrates the best of the unique culture of their community with the strength of the Lutheran tradition, and to develop a workbook that will guide a congregation in developing worship practices that are responsive to their own particular context.

Grace Fellowship Christian Reformed Church, Pella, Iowa To develop a collaborative, intergenerational visual arts project with adults, youth and children to create art for worship, and to share these projects with the community through a seminar.

Home Acres Reformed Church, Kentwood, Michigan To equip people of all ages to participate actively in worship through an instructional program that teaches basic music skills and understanding of the role of music in worship and the life of the congregation.

Hope Network, Grand Rapids, Michigan To prepare ten congregations from a wide range of Christian traditions to include persons with physical and mental disabilities through seminars, training and consultation with clergy and lay leaders, and to assist them in developing a congregational plan for the intentional inclusion of these persons in worship, fellowship, education, service and justice activities.

House of Mercy in Lowertown, St. Paul, Minnesota To create a musical setting of the Eucharistic service which reflects the theological and musical aesthetic of the faith community, and to offer educational workshops to introduce the history and practice of liturgical singing.

IMAGO DEI: Friends of Christianity and the Arts, Lawrence, Kansas To train worship leaders in liturgical dance, visual arts, drama, music, and liturgical environment through a series of educational workshops.

Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church, Evanston, Illinois To commission a new cantata which will contain elements from the classical Lutheran tradition, integrate the cantata into worship and offer an educational series for the congregation.

Jacksonville Campus Ministry, Jacksonville, Florida To fully engage visually and hearing impaired persons by developing a consortium of members of various educational communities of Northern Florida to design and implement worship that allows for full participation of all people.

Lafayette Orinda Presbyterian Church, Lafayette, California To prepare worshipers of all ages to present scripture in worship through dramatic interpretations of scripture, original musical works based upon the reading, story-telling and visual representations of scriptural themes.

LOGOS System Associates, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania To develop resources that engage all ages in understanding the parts of a worship service and integrate their renewed appreciation of worship into congregational life.

Lower Susquehanna Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania To enhance the leadership of musicians in smaller congregations by offering training in musical, pastoral and leadership skills through the Leadership Program for Musicians Serving Small Congregations (LPM).

Midtown Fellowship, Nashville, Tennessee To lead the Midtown community into a deeper understanding of the triune God and a more intimate union with Him through studying and practicing individual and corporate prayer.

Monroe Community Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan To explore Old Testament worship as a guide for understanding worship elements and to gain a depth of understanding of our own covenant renewal in worship.

Montana Association of Churches, Billings, Montana To educate, equip, and support lay leaders in rural settings in order that the life of the church might continue to be blessed with excellent and meaningful liturgy, music, prayer, homilies, and sacramental ministry.

New England Chapel, Franklin, Massachusetts To create an intergenerational service to help people experience and express God living and working through all life stages by exploring new ways of leading people of all ages in worship together.

New Hope Community Church, Durham, North Carolina To introduce traditional hymns and spiritual songs to a new generation of believers through a year-long reflection on both the meaning and music of the passion of Christ and the practice of the Lord's Supper.

New Hope Lutheran Ministries, Vandergrift, Pennsylvania To enhance the worship of small member congregations in a liturgical tradition through seminars connecting experts in worship and congregational life with pastors, leaders, and members of these congregations.

New Life Christian Reformed Church, Grand Junction, Colorado To develop an intergenerational study of confession and assurance of pardon through the lens of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which will include a Lenten/Easter devotional series with participation from all ages and worship services focusing on scriptural images for the sacraments.

New Life! Lutheran Church, Oak Grove, Minnesota To equip worshipers to pray more deeply in corporate worship through workshops during Lent, with the goal of deepening and enriching both personal and corporate prayer lives.

North Shore Chapel, Danvers, Massachusetts To develop elements of worship that will foster communion with God and moments of transcendent experience for worshipers by focusing on sacred space, worship education, a midweek worship service, and creativity and arts in worship and music.

Oakhurst Presbyterian Church, Decatur, Georgia To engage members of various ethnic traditions to lead worship by identifying persons who are proficient in the arts, drama, music and writing for multicultural worship services and offering worship workshops, evening programs and retreats for both adults and children.

Office of Worship and Christian Initiation, Archdiocese of Santa Fe, Albuquerque, New Mexico To provide an intensive training for liturgical leaders of the diverse minorities of the Catholic community through the Liturgical Institute of the Southwest.

Pasadena Covenant Church, Pasadena, California To express Scripture through creative and artistic means by developing multigenerational ministry teams to engage in the telling and retelling of God’s story from one generation to another.

Presbyterian College, Montreal, Quebec To equip lay people of rural and small town settings to preach, plan and lead worship services, and to develop coaches/mentors for further support.

Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Indianapolis, Indiana To integrate children into planning, leading, and participating in worship through a summer education program, a workshop, a major conference, an internship program, and resource production.

River Rock Church, Folsom, California To equip worship leaders and planners to become more thoughtful, intentional and hospitable in the practice and instruction of the dialogic nature in worship, and to help all worshipers better understand the liturgical elements of and patterns within worship.

Second Christian Reformed Church, Lynden, Washington To build a sense of unity across generations by focusing on renewal and grace during Lent and community outreach during Eastertide, through retreats and a series of worship services which incorporate teachings, music, drama, visual arts, liturgical dance, and particular times of prayer.

St. Luke African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan To train worship leaders about the purpose of worship, preparation for worship, prayer, biblically-based praise, preaching, giving, congregational participation and holiness of life by offering a retreat and workshops for six congregations.

Sugar Hill United Methodist Church, Buford, Georgia To enhance appreciation for, knowledge of, and participation in the Lord's Supper through commissioned art work, increased cross-cultural participation with the Hispanic community, and specific teaching on the history and theology of the Lord's Supper.

Sussex Christian Reformed Church, Sussex, New Jersey To encourage active participation of worshipers of all ages particularly during the Gathering, through practical workshops and deliberate effort for varied leadership during worship.

The River Community Church, Edmonton, Alberta To develop a worship service series that focuses on exploring and encouraging “worship habits” (Vertical Habits) through multi-sensory, intergenerational experiences which help to cultivate a dynamic relationship with God.

Tribe of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California To integrate offering of time, material goods, services and money into liturgical practices so that worshipers better understand the processes by which we offer and receive gifts from God and from one another.

Trinity Episcopal Church, Escondido, California To equip children and youth for Christian worship within the liturgical framework of the Eucharist, and to foster intergenerational church community by fully engaging young people in a corporate worship experience through a newly commissioned Eucharistic liturgy for young voices and Orff instruments.

Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church of Manhattan, New York, New York To connect a multicultural, multi-class group of children and youth with artists/mentors to learn about and practice various art forms including painting, puppetry/drama, photography, dance and music that will be used in worship.

Tualatin Presbyterian Church, Tualatin, Oregon To energize and enrich worship through the congregation-wide shared experience of planning, creating and evaluating relevant, service-specific visual art.

United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio To study the Eucharist and its practice in the United Methodist church through a collaboration with six congregations, and to enrich existing Easter Vigil liturgies through the use of liturgical dance, storytelling, and the electronic media while encouraging other congregations to institute Vigils for the first time.

United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, New Brighton, Minnesota To offer a one-week Summer Institute on worship and the arts for clergy, laity and seminarians with the intent of exploring the intersections of arts and religion and how these intersections can renew worship.

Western Episcopal District, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, St. Louis, Missouri To conduct two three-day leadership institutes focusing on the foundation, formula, form, fervency, and festivity of Christian worship.

Winnetka Presbyterian Church, Winnetka, Illinois To increase involvement and understanding of sermons by engaging youth, leaders and pastors in a process of preparation which will include discussion of the text, life applications and the creation of visual materials.

Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, Gowrie, Iowa To encourage a wide variety of youth and adults who have gifts in music, technology, public speaking and hospitality to create ecumenical worship services which will be offered on Wednesday evenings for people in rural settings who often are unable to gather on Sundays for traditional worship.

Zion Korean United Methodist Church, Warwick, Rhode Island To develop multigenerational worship services led by multicultural worship teams which focus on the community of faith and engages both children and adults through music from diverse cultures and weekly celebration of the Lord's Supper.

Click here for information on the Worship Renewal Grants Program.