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This session is for organists, aspiring organists, the curious, and the inquisitive. No one person has as many sounds at their disposal [or as many keys and buttons!] as an organist. Let's discover new sounds together in this session by listening to new organ music for worship, learning ways to incorporate the organ into your services [even if you don't have a regular organist], and exploring some of the many tonal possibilities the organ has to offer.

This workshop is designed for interested lay folks, ministry leaders, and pastors for the sake of exploring the expansive intellectual/spiritual tradition of scripture. The biblical thought-world can hold its own with the ancient Greeks and modern scientific enterprise alike, yet we often don’t understand how scripture’s “thinking” can guide us through the thorniest issues in our culture. This workshop will help participants learn to think alongside the biblical authors by accessing the coherent systems of ideas across the Old and New testaments that not only permeate our own cultural and intellectual traditions, but offer a sophisticated critique of our society.

Vivid imagery, compelling stories, perceptive exegesis, pastoral sensibilities, theological clarity, cultural fittingness--each of these gifts contributes immensely to compelling, transformative preaching. Compelling preaching features the dynamic interplay of each of these strengths. This conversation will explore how these dynamic interactions come about, how we cultivate them, and how the practice of polishing, and studying, exemplary sermons can stretch not only award-winning authors but also those of us struggling to shape compelling sermons for people who may not always seem to appreciate it.

What does it mean to be religious? Spiritual? How does a sense of place, identity, culture, and embodied engagement relate to a young person’s sense of belonging to Christ’s church, including the public worship gathering? We will explore these questions and share stories about how young people actively participate in the life of the church.

This first session is part of “Experiencing the Contours of Early Modern Worship,” a series of five linked sessions bringing participants into the world of Reformation Europe. What was it like to attend worship in Wittenberg in 1530, Geneva in 1550, London in 1570, or Venice in 1590? When people in different confessional contexts joined in worship and participated in the sacraments in this period, what differences and similarities were there? Join Meeter Center Director Karin Maag in an exploration of congregational worship in early modern Europe from the perspectives of both the clergy and the worshiping community.

Every Sunday, thousands of worshiping communities in the United States and all over the world rely completely or partially on contemporary praise and worship [CP&W] in corporate worship. How has CP&W evolved, what are the movement’s main trends, and how is it experienced around the world? How is CP&W shaping Christians’ understanding of God, themselves, and the world? Join us to learn from renowned scholars in the field.

Learn about the remarkable story of the World Christian Gathering of Indigenous Peoples and gain insights about worship and culture emerging from the accredited theological degrees offered by NAIITS—An Indigenous Learning Community. We’ll hear wisdom from the experiences in Australia of engaging a colonialist Christian history and develop a vision for how Christians in every continent can better work together to learn from each other and grow together in Christ.

This panel will discuss ongoing research on the practice of lamentation in the Black church tradition as a formative pedagogical tool for both theological education and the broader community. Special attention will be given to the value of embodied learning with a cohort of seminarians, religious practitioners, scholars, and faith leaders who have visited sites where massacres and atrocities against Black life have occurred.

In this session, Te-Li Lau will contrast the current culture's understanding of shame with the biblical framework, suggest ways to rehabilitate our fractured understanding, and draw out the implications of a renewed understanding for public worship.

In this session panelists share best practices for navigating difficult topics that divide the church and discuss the importance of Christian unity.

It is tempting to think of sermons as a solo “performance”—something a preacher prepares in isolation. What if we changed our vision to think of preaching as a communal activity from start to finish? How does a congregation shape a sermon as it is being preached? How can preachers intentionally engage the congregation as they prepare sermons and when they discuss or reflect on sermons after worship? We’ll discuss proven practices and try to imagine some new possibilities too.

This fifth session is part of “Experiencing the Contours of Early Modern Worship,” a series of five linked sessions bringing current-day participants into the world of Reformation Europe. What was it like to attend worship in Wittenberg in 1530, Geneva in 1550, London in 1570, or Venice in 1590? When people in different confessional contexts joined in worship and participated in the sacrament in this period, what differences and similarities were there? Join John Thompson [professor emeritus, Fuller Theological Seminary] and Karin Maag [Meeter Center] as they explore how pastors interpreted scripture and preached to their congregations.

What have we been learning about ministry through the pandemic? What benefits, strengths, virtues, and gifts have surprised us? Our panelists for this session are listeners and learners—people listening for what local ministry leaders are saying and for what is going on under the surface, even things not explicitly spoken. We'll learn from their listening and then receive some tips about how all of us can be more attentive in our listening practices.

The psalms were written to be sung. But if your church favors guitar and band-led modern worship, how do you sing the psalms? Songwriter Wendell Kimbrough answers this question through the use of short antiphonal psalm refrains that are singable and memorable for his congregation and provide a musical entry point into a psalm. They have become a beloved staple in his home congregation’s worship. In this workshop, Wendell will share some favorite psalm refrains, discuss the mechanics of their use, and respond to questions from attendees. The goal is for all attendees to go home with a plan for regularly incorporating musical psalms into their worship services.

In the 2023 Worship Symposium’s five main worship services we are looking at Colossians. In this session the five people preaching on Colossians will reflect together on how the situations facing the Colossian Christians long ago remain relevant today. Najla Kasab, Marshall E. Hatch Sr., Laura de Jong, Danny Román-Gloró, and Scott Hoezee will talk about what they observed in crafting their sermons for this year's symposium and on the larger opportunities all preachers have to bring forward Paul's words to address the many crises of our own time.

In a world of anxiety, depression, and fatigue, how do we both explain and invite people into experiences of profound joy, peace, and gentleness? Where do our practices of worship—our preaching, singing, praying, and communing—contribute to our mental health crises? How might these very practices become means of grace that bring healing and hope? And how might this be true for people in very different generational contexts?

This Vesper service focuses on the theme of Psalm 23, guiding the congregation through a series of hymns, scripture readings, and prayers centered on God's provision and presence. Led by guest contributors and the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship, the service emphasizes global solidarity and hope, specifically addressing those suffering from recent tragedies in the Middle East and beyond.

This session explores a biblical view of disability and practical ways of including people with disabilities in every aspect of the church for the flourishing of the entire worshiping community.

This panel discussion will explore misunderstood or neglected scriptural and theological themes related to Christian formation.

A service of the word and table based on Colossians 3:12-17. The service is led by Laura de Jong, preaching; Ron Rienstra; and Western Theological Seminary Chapel Stewards, past and present [Holland, Michigan].

A worship service based on Colossians 1:15-23. The service is led by Najla Kassab preaching; James Abbington; Brandon A. Boyd; a choir from Calvin Christian High School in Grandville, Michigan, directed by Karel deWaal Malefyt; and a choir from Western Michigan Christian High School in Muskegon, Michigan, directed by Kathryn Becksvoort.

A worship service based on Colossians 1:1-14. The service is led by Scott Hoezee, preaching; Karen Campbell; and members of the Calvin University community.

A worship service based on Colossians 3:1-11. The service is led by Danny Román-Gloró, preaching; James Abbington; Brandon A. Boyd; an orchestra from Calvin Christian High School [Grandville, Michigan] directed by Karel deWaal Malefyt; and an orchestra from Grand Rapids Christian High School [Grand Rapids, Michigan] directed by Cyndi Betts and Erin DeYoung.

A worship service based on Colossians 2:6-15. The service is led by Marshall E. Hatch, preaching; Nate Glasper; Lisa Sung; and the Calvin University Gospel Choir.

What makes a song singable? Meet with Paul Ryan and Wendell Kimbrough as they discuss the morning worship service held in the chapel [10:30–10:50 a.m.] and the qualities of congregational song that help the church join its voices as one.