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Christian Worship in Reformed Churches Past and Present (Eerdmans, 2003)

Description
Worship renewal is now on the agenda of many Reformed churches, as the need for adaptation and new approaches is acutely felt all over. How can the church faithfully worship God in the midst of rapidly changing situations? How can it constructively relate to widely differing cultural contexts? What is its place in the wider ecumenical scene? In preparing a sweeping survey of Reformed worship across time and place, this volume provides some help to those engaged with vital questions like these.

Written by theologians and liturgical scholars from a wide range of churches and countries, these chapters explore the history of Reformed worship on every continent from the sixteenth century to the present. Surveying the most significant developments in the growth of Reformed worship, the book identifies the major “ingredients” that make the Reformed worship tradition distinctive and highlights those aspects of Reformed worship that are particularly relevant to present efforts at renewal. Indeed, an important component of this book is the inclusion of “A Common Reflection on Christian Worship in Reformed Churches Today,” the result of a major consultation in January 2001 at the International Reformed Center John Knox.

Revealing the rich variety of forms and diversity of perspectives that have made and do make up Reformed worship worldwide, this volume will be a valuable resource for church and worship leaders both in and outside the Reformed family.

Editor
Lukas Vischer, formerly director of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches, is professor emeritus of ecumenical theology at the University of Bern, Switzerland. 
Contributors:  Horace T. Allen Jr., Emily R. Brink, Livingstone Buama, Coenraad Burger, Bruno Bürki, Gerson Correia de Lacerda, Alan D. Falconer, Kasonga wa Kasonga, Baranite T. Kirata, Elsie Anne McKee, Seong-Won Park, Ester Pudjo Widiasih, Alan P. F. Sell, Joseph D. Small, Bryan D. Spinks, Leonora Tubbs Tisdale, Lukas Vischer, Isaiah Wahome Muita, Geraldine Wheeler, Marsha M. Wilfong, and John D. Witvliet.

Reviews
"This volume (the fruit of an international conference) draws together an impressive roster of liturgical scholars in order to understand both the origins and future of Reformed/Presbyterian worship. Rare among edited collections, this volume reads smoothly as a unified book. Editor Lukas Vischer, long recognized as a senior scholar on ecumenism and worship (he was director of the World Council of Churches' Faith and Order Commission), and series editor John D. Witvliet must be congratulated for having organized and supervised the transitions between such a varied team of specialists. This work is distinguished also in that it brings together the past ("Reformed") and present ("always reforming") impulses inherent in the tradition without privileging one over the other. In this way, it provides a model for transcending polarizing tendencies that often generate more heat than light. ... Even those from non-Reformed traditions will find this an encouraging example of wise reflection on faithfulness both to the message and the mission of Christ's church in our time."
-Michael S. Horton, Books & Culture

"Most of the chapters are well-documented, with references to contemporary scholarship, with a greater sense of context than a previous generation offered. Vischer is to be congratulated on providing not only a useful tool for teachers but also some useful and quizzical pointers from the past as to how Reformed worship worldwide might be more adventurously faithful to the Genevan vision of the People of God worshipping together, regardless of their culture, language, gender or ethnic origin."
-Kenneth Stevenson, The Journal of Ecclesiastical History

CICW Liturgical Studies Series with Eerdmans
This series is designed to promote reflection on the history, theology, and practice of Christian worship and to stimulate worship renewal in Christian congregations. Written by pastoral worship leaders from diverse communities and scholars from a range of disciplines, these volumes seek to nurture worship practices that are at once spiritually vital and theologically rooted. To find all the books in this series, go to Publications and under "Publisher," select "Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing."

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