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Calvin Symposium on Worship

Presenters 2004

James Abbington is a professor of music at Morgan State University, Baltimore, Maryland. He was associate editor of the African American Heritage Hymnal (GIA 2001), executive editor of the GIA African American Sacred Music Series, and the author of Let Mount Zion Rejoice: Music in the African American Church (Judson 2001).
Alexis D. Abernethy is associate professor of psychology at Fuller Theological Seminary, where she also serves on the steering committee of the Brehm Center for Worship, Theology, and the Arts. She is known for her writings and consultations on the relationship between health-related outcomes and spirituality.
Alison Adam, a member of the Iona Community in Scotland, is currently based in London, England. Her passion for congregational song and participative worship brings her to many congregations and churches, helping them to develop and invigorate their worship.
Joanne Alberda teaches art at Dordt College, Sioux Center, Iowa, and works with many churches as a designer and creator of liturgical banners. She has particular interest in the textile arts—weaving, dyeing, stitching, and quilting, and frequently serves as a consultant to churches on liturgical textiles and worship environments.
Ben Allaway is composer-in-residence and choir director at First Christian Church in the heart of inner-city Des Moines, Iowa. His eclectic body of compositions (more than 60 commissions in the past decade) shows the influence of his travel throughout the world and his passion for connecting ethnically diverse communities through music.
Ken Baker is pastor of Third Christian Reformed Church, Kalamazoo, Michigan.
M. Craig Barnes is senior pastor of Shadyside Presbyterian Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the Meneilly Professor of Ministry and Leadership at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. His most recent book on worship is titled Searching for Home.
Roy Berkenbosch is campus minister and director of interdisciplinary studies, The King's University College, Edmonton, Alberta; before moving to King's, he was involved in pastoral ministry in the United States and in development work in Bangladesh.
Michael Bloss tends the musical voice of Toronto’s St. James Cathedral, the seat of the largest diocese in Canada, where he seeks to animate the song of God’s people in worship in choral, instrumental, and congregational ways. He also provides consulting assistance to churches going through staff transitions to help develop holistic visions for pastoral music ministry.
Joyce Borger is a writing and research associate for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and worship and music editor at Reformed Worship.
Carl Bosma is professor of Old Testament at Calvin Theological Seminary.
Emily Brink is editor of Reformed Worship and senior research fellow for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. She also served as editor for three hymnals: the Psalter Hymnal, Songs for LiFE, and Sing! A New Creation.
Timothy Brown is Henry Bast Professor of Preaching at Western Theological Seminary, Holland, Michigan.
Aimee Wallis Buchanan is the associate pastor for Christian education and youth ministries at Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church in Asheville, NC, and a member of Theological Expressions in Arts Ministry (TEAM), an organization dedicated to using the arts to powerfully reach young people. She is coauthor of All That We Are and Making Worship Real.
Moses Chung is pastor of GenNext ministries and worship leader at New Life Community Church, a multiethnic (Reformed Church in America) congregation in Los Angeles.
Eileen D. Crowley coined the term, “Liturgical Media Art.” A liturgist and media producer, she offers a unique perspective on the challenges of using media in worship. A writer, presenter, and consultant on a variety of topics in worship, arts and communications, she most recently served as faculty in the Drew University liturgical studies doctoral program. Dr. Crowley is completing a book on Liturgical Art in a Media Culture (Liturgical Press).
David R. Davidson is the Director of Music and the Arts, Highland Park United Methodist Church, Dallas, Texas, and the Director of the Dallas Symphony Chorus. He also teaches choral conducting and handbell pedagogy at the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University.
Norma de Waal Malefyt is resource development specialist for congregational song at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. She has 25 years of experience in the area of pastoral church music, including 17 years as director of both youth and adult handbell choirs at Hillcrest Christian Reformed Church, Hudsonville, Michigan.
Joy Engelsman is worship coordinator of Worship II—a new experience of intergenerational reformed worship—at Cherry Creek Presbyterian Church (EPC) in Denver, Colorado. She will graduate from Denver Seminary with a Masters of Divinity in May, 2004.
Steven P. Fridsma is a project architect with ProgressiveAE's Worship Environments Studio, which specializes in the design of spaces for worship and fellowship. He is the leader of the worship design team at CentrePointe Ministries in Kentwood, MI, where he also serves on the media and music teams. Steve teaches an Interim course at Calvin College on architectural design theory.
Brian Fuller spent the last decade as a professor of film, broadcasting, and communication and is currently proprietor of Full Circle Media. Screened at festivals worldwide, Fuller’s work has earned distinctions that include an Emmy Award for his music video, Falloff. His recent efforts have helped individuals and churches employ media and presentational technologies in performance and worship.
Steven Garber has a great love for the questions which are at the heart of the university years, exploring their meaning both for those who teach and for those who are taught. The author of The Fabric of Faithfulness (IVP, 1996), he serves as Fellow and Lilly Faculty Scholar at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and as Senior Fellow for the C. S. Lewis Institute in Washington, D.C. and the Clapham Institute in Annapolis, Maryland.
Amy B. Gregory is pastor of East Avenue United Methodist Church in Norwalk, Connecticut. She has served as liturgical dance coordinator for the Assembly conference of the United Methodist Women’s Division in Orlando and Philadelphia, and is a consultant for churches in worship and the arts and liturgical dance.
Elizabeth Steele Halstead is an artist who works in oils and printmaking (woodcuts); she also works as continuing education events manager, Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, Michigan.  She has degrees in both art and theology, and is particularly interested in the integration of theology and the visual arts.
Mark Hayes is a prolific composer, arranger, concert pianist, and record producer; he is known especially for his keyboard arrangements and choral compositions for worship. Based in Kansas City, Missouri, Hayes is a frequent clinician at worship conferences.
Scott Hoezee is minister of preaching and administration at Calvin Christian Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan. He also serves as the reviews editor for the journal Perspectives, and is the author of six books, the most recent of which is Proclaim the Wonder: Engaging Science on Sunday (Baker 2003).
Linda H. Hollies is an ordained United Methodist minister and author of five books on worship, including the Trumpet in Zion series of resources in the voices of African Americans. She currently lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan where she is the spiritual director and pastoral counselor of WomanSpace, a division of Women to Women Ministries.
Mary Hulst just completed eight years as pastor of Eastern Avenue Christian Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, Michigan; she is currently a doctoral student at the Institute for Communications Research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Jars of Clay:  Comprised of Dan Haseltine (lead vocals, percussion), Stephen Mason (guitar, bass, vocals), Matt Odmark (guitar, mandolin, vocals), and Charlie Lowell (keyboards, piano, organ, vocals), Jars of Clay comes together with an excitement and spontaneity that is reflective of their youthful spirit and creative risk. Jars of Clay takes its name from II Corinthians 4:7.
Arthur Just is professor of exegetical theology and dean of the chapel at Concordia Theological Seminary, Fort Wayne, Indiana. His volume on the Gospel of Luke for the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture was just published (InterVarsity Press, 2003).
Itonde A. Kakoma is currently studying in the MDiv program at Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa.
Robert Keeley is professor of education at Calvin College where he teaches courses in educational psychology and religious education in the elementary classroom. Along with his wife, Laura, he is also director of children’s ministries at 14th Street Christian Reformed Church in Holland, Michigan where he frequently uses his guitar to lead worship.
Duane Kelderman is vice president for administration and assistant professor of preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary.
Helen Kemp is an octogenarian who has inspired countless children and children's choir directors across North America with her leadership; she is known for her understanding of children's voices and how to encourage them to sing with excellence in worship.
Steven Koster, currently studying at Calvin Theological Seminary, was senior product manager at Avid Technology, Inc. where he was responsible for the content, community, and digital exchange services on AvidProNet.com. He founded and still moderates a world-wide user community of professional film and video editors.
Judith Kubicki, a Felician sister from the Buffalo Province, is assistant professor of theology at Fordham University, New York, New York. She is the author of Liturgical Music as Ritual Symbol: A Case Study of Jacques Berthier's Taize Music (Leuven, Belgium: Peeters).
Cleophus LaRue is the Francis Landey Patton Associate Professor of Homiletics, Princeton Theological Seminary. LaRue specializes in the theory and method of African American preaching and is the author of The Heart of Black Preaching (Westminster/John Knox 2000) and Power in the Pulpit: How America's Most Effective Black Preachers Prepare Their Sermons (Westminster/John Knox 2002).
Arie Leder is professor of Old Testament theology at Calvin Theological Seminary.  He has a special interest in the relationship between creation, theology, and architecture.
Greg Llerena is pastor of Calvin Christian Reformed Church, Holland, Michigan.
Ryan Marsh is an artist-theologian currently serving on the staff of Church of the Apostles in Seattle as director of worship arts and community development. For the past two years he has been a composer-in-residence at Antioch Bible Church in Kirkland and the creator/director of Common Prayers, an ecumenical service that explores the use of the arts in corporate worship at Aurora Church of the Nazarene in Seattle.
Joel Navarro is associate professor of music at Calvin College where he teaches conducting and directs the Capella and the Meistersingers. Prior to this appointment, he was chair of the Choral Conducting Department at the University of the Philippines College of Music, with an international reputation for his touring choirs from the Philippines.
Ronald Nydam is associate professor of pastoral care at Calvin Theological Seminary; he was previously a pastor and served as agency director of Pastoral Counseling in Denver for 14 years.
Christian Oh is pastor of Han-Bit Korean Christian Reformed Church, Rochester Hills, Michigan.
John Newell Oswalt has served on the faculty or administration of two Christian colleges and three theological seminaries. He is passionately interested in the understanding, interpretation, and proclamation of the Word of God. His special focus of study has been on the Book of Isaiah, having published two commentaries and numerous articles on the book and preached numerous sermons from it.
John Ourensma is a pipemaker and voicer for Dobson Pipe Organ Builders Ltd., Lake City, Iowa. Prior to joining the Dobson firm in 1999, he served as full-time director of music in the Presbyterian Church for 25 years. His positions included worship planning, playing organ and piano, directing and accompanying graded choir programs and directing handbells.
David Peterson is principal of Oak Hill Theological College, London, and author of Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship (IVP 2002).
Cornelius Plantinga, Jr. is president and professor of systematic theology at Calvin Theological Seminary.
Christine Pohl is professor of social ethics at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. She is the author of Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition (Eerdmans 1999) and is presently working on a book exploring the practices that make and break community.
Patti Powell is an assistant professor of education and special education at Trinity Christian College and teaches courses in sign language, special education, and fine arts in education.
Robb Redman is pastor of Forest Hills Presbyterian Church, San Antonio, Texas. He is a regular contributor to Worship Leader magazine, served as vice president at Maranatha! Music, and was assistant professor of theology and ministry and director of the D.Min. program at Fuller Theological Seminary. His most recent book is The Great Worship Awakening: Singing a New Song in the Postmodern Church (John Wiley & Sons 2002).
John Rempel, an ordained minister in the Mennonite Church USA, recently left a position as full-time liaison of the Mennonite Central Committee at the United Nations. A central concern of his ministry has been to make the worlds of worship and public life accountable to each other. He is currently teaching at Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, Indiana.
Ron Rienstra is Associate for Student Worship at Calvin College, where he trains and coaches the Worship Apprentices and other student teams that plan and lead LOFT services and Jazz Vespers. He is also a contributing editor to Reformed Worship. His primary interest is emerging worship—helping congregations, worship teams, and individuals learn to deepen and enliven their gatherings with God.
Sue A. Rozeboom is a doctoral student in liturgical studies at the University of Notre Dame and co-author with Neal Plantinga of Discerning the Spirits: A Guide to Thinking about Worship Today (Eerdmans, 2003).
Trevor Rubingh is a Christian Reformed pastor in Jersey City, New Jersey, where he has served in urban ministry for the past ten years, building New City Church and the School for Youth Leadership Development.
Paul Ryan is a Masters of Divinity student at Calvin Theological Seminary and also serves in an interim position at Calvin College as Associate for Student Worship, working with student-led worship services and the Worship Apprentice Program.
Greg Scheer is the director of music ministries at Northwestern College in Iowa where he teaches in the music department, leads chapel worship, and oversees the college’s music ministry major. He has written numerous songs and compositions for worship.
Quentin Schultze is professor of communication arts and sciences at Calvin College; his latest book is High-Tech Worship? Using Presentational Technologies Wisely (Baker 2003).
John D. Schwandt is assistant professor of organ, church music, and theory, and the organ curator at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana. He is a nationally acclaimed performer, improviser, leader of hymn festivals, and clinician. Prior to his academic appointment, John held music ministry positions in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Indiana.
Edward D. Seely is on the staff of the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship as manager of the Ministry Resource Center at the Hekman Library, and adjunct professor in educational ministries at Calvin Theological Seminary.  He served churches for over thirty years in worship leadership and educational ministries.
Pearl Shangkuan is chair of the music department and professor of choral music and conducting at Calvin College.
Kathy Smith is director of continuing education for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and Calvin Theological Seminary. She develops conferences and workshops on worship and congregational ministry for pastors and church leaders and also serves as a speaker for many of these events.
Bryan Spinks is professor of liturgical studies at the Yale Divinity School and Yale Institute of Sacred Music, and author of numerous books on worship.
Mary Sytsma is a youth leader at Wheaton (Illinois) Christian Reformed Church and teaches English at Elmhurst College, Elmhurst, Illinois. She is co-author with Jane Vogel of Sunday Morning Live: How and Why We Worship (Faith Alive 2003), a curriculum for high school students.
Mark Torgerson is assistant professor of worship arts at Judson College, Elgin, Illinois. He teaches a variety of worship courses at Judson College and several seminaries, and works with architecture students in sensitizing them to worship space design issues. He is also a painter who produces two dimensional pieces for worship celebrations and occasionally exhibits his work.
Kevin Twit is a pastor in the Presbyterian Church in America who serves as Campus Minister with the Reformed University Fellowship (RUF) at Belmont University, Nashville, Tennessee. He is also a musician; one of the results of his working with college students, many of who are musicians, has been the production of two CD’s of old hymn texts set to new music and the RUF Hymnbook.
Maria Vanden Bosch teaches music grades K-5 at Ada Christian School, Ada, Michigan.
Howard Vanderwell is resource development specialist for pastoral leadership with the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. After serving in the pastoral/preaching ministry in four congregations, he now devotes his time to providing encouragement and resources for others in their ministries. His writing and speaking has focused on preaching, worship, and worship planning.
Leanne Van Dyk is Dean of the Faculty and professor of reformed theology at Western Theological Seminary, Holland, Michigan.
Willis (Bill) Van Groningen was recently appointed the director of Ministry Development for Christian Reformed Home Missions. Before moving to Grand Rapids to take up this work, he was involved in campus ministry for 17 years at Queen's University (Kingston, ON) and then four years based in Ann Arbor as the Christian Reformed Campus Ministry Director for North America.
Kenric Van Wyk is president of Acoustics By Design, an independent acoustical and video design firm in Grand Rapids, Michigan; he has over 12 years of professional experience as a consultant in the design of acoustics, audio, and video systems for churches, and is also technical programming director for HomeFront Church in Grandville, Michigan.
James Vander Molen is a senior architect and leader of ProgressiveAE's Worship Environments Studio, which specializes in the design of spaces for worship and fellowship. He has presented on topics such as art and liturgical design, worship and architecture, and the history of church architecture. Jim is a member of Church of the Servant Christian Reformed church in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Leonard J. Vander Zee has served as pastor of the South Bend Christian Reformed church for over 13 years and has been a pastor for over 33 years. He is the author of In Life and In Death: a Pastoral Guide for Funerals and the upcoming Christ and the Sacraments from IVP, as well as the author of numerous articles on the spiritual life and the practice of ministry.
Jane Vogel is a youth leader at Wheaton (Illinois) Christian Reformed church and is a free-lance writer. She is a graduate of Calvin Theological Seminary and has been working with youth and worship for 20 years, both in professional and volunteer positions. Her latest book is Sunday Morning Live: How and Why We Worship (Faith Alive 2003), a curriculum for high school students that she co-authored with Mary Sytsma.
James C. Ward is a songwriter, pianist, recording artist, music educator, and director of music at a cross-cultural urban congregation, New City Fellowship PCA in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He has ten recordings and a master’s degree in jazz performance from the University of Tennessee.
Karen M. Ward is an ordained pastor in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America (ELCA) and currently ministering at Church of the Apostles, a one-year-old “emerging church” plant of the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia, Washington and the Northwest Washington Synod of the ELCA.
Robert E. Webber is the William R. and Geraldyne B. Myers Chair of Ministry at Northern Baptist Seminary, Lombard, Illinois. His latest two books are Journey to Jesus: The Worship, Evangelism and Nurture Mission of the Church (Abingdon 2001) and The Younger Evangelicals: Facing the Challenges of the New World (Baker 2001).
Linda S. Welker is a performance studies scholar/practitioner in the communication arts and sciences department at Calvin College. Combining ethnography and performance research methods, she explores human communication, especially of faith narratives.

Christopher Wells is a doctoral student in historical theology at Notre Dame, specializing in medieval and modern theology with particular interests in the history and future of the ecumenical movement.

John D. Witvliet is director of the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship and author of Worship Seeking Understanding: Windows into Christian Practice (Baker 2003).
David J. Wood is pastor of First Baptist Church in Gardiner, Maine, and on the staff of the Fund for Theological Education as the coordinator for the Transition into Ministry Program—a Lilly Endowment-funded grant program.
Anne Zaki is resource development specialist for global and multi-cultural resources at the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship. She recently moved here from Cairo, Egypt, where she was involved in youth ministry at Heliopolis International Church and at an Arabic-speaking congregation.