Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Program: Featured Lecture, "The Faithful Creator: Affirming Creation And Providence In An Age Of Anxiety.", Ron Highfield

William M. Green Distinguished Christian Lecture Program

Program for the Thirty-Seventh Annual William M. Green Distinguished Christian Lecture Program with featured lecturer Dr. Ron Highfield, Professor of Religion at Seaver College, Pepperdine University.

Obligations Of Grace, Mark E. Roberts

Empowered21 Scholars' Consultations

Grace obliges recipients to respond in gratitude and obedience to God, the giver of grace. While the New Testament emphasizes God's grace given through Jesus Christ in a New Covenant with believers, the Old Testament emphasizes grace more than many Christians recognize. Grace is expressed in the Old Testament especially through God's free choosing of Abraham as the "father of the faithful," through divine covenants with Abraham, with the divinely constituted nation of Israel, and with the governing house of David. Such grace abounds when God's covenanted people fail to keep their covenant, yet God, after disciplining the covenant people …

From Silence To Golden: The Slow Integration Of Instruments Into Christian Worship, Jonathan Lyons

The Research and Scholarship Symposium (2013-2019)

The Christian church’s stance on the use of instruments in sacred music shifted through influences of church leaders, composers, and secular culture. Synthesizing the writings of early church leaders and church historians reveals a clear progression. The early musical practices of the church were connected to the Jewish synagogues. As recorded in the Old Testament, Jewish worship included instruments as assigned by one’s priestly tribe. Eventually, early church leaders rejected that inclusion and developed a rather robust argument against instruments in liturgical worship. The totalitarian stance on musical instruments in sacred worship began to loosen as the organ increased in …

The Relationship Between Music Preference, Moral Competence, And Spiritual Well-Being In Christian College Students, Elizabeth Stokes, Gabrielle Metzler, Chi-En Hwang, Di Wu

The Research and Scholarship Symposium (2013-2019)

In this survey study, we examined the effect of Christian music with lyrics versus secular music with lyrics (written as “Christian music” and “secular music”) on the moral competence and spiritual well-being of college students. These students were taken from the population of Cedarville University and were aged 18-25. We hypothesized that Christians who listen to mostly Christian music have higher moral competence and spiritual well-being than those who listen to primarily secular music. Tested through an online survey using the Moral Competence Test (MCT) and the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWB), this study found no gender differences, therefore the subsequent …

Wesleyanism, Fundamentalism, And The Dones, Mature Christians Who Are Done With The Institutional Church: Two Book Reviews, Craighton Hippenhammer

Scholar Week 2016 - present

Book #1: "Square Peg: Why Wesleyans Aren't Fundamentalists," written by Nazarene and published by the Nazarene Publishing House. Book #2: "Church Refugees: Sociologists Reveal Why People Are DONE with Church but Not Their Faith," by Josh Packard and Ashleigh Hope, which tells why there are mature, highly educated Christians leaving the institutional church. The reasons why they are leaving are for the same four unexpected reasons. While these folks may not be large in numbers, they may be large in impact because they are doers and leaders at all levels of the church, so they may be leading the church …

Daughters Of The Sun: "The Birth" (An Excerpt), Megan Lynn

Scholarly and Creative Works Conference (2015 - 2021)

“You have never heard of me before. You have never heard of me, but my name has come out of your mouth thousands of times.”

So begins my novel, Daughters of the Sun, the story of Jesus’s twin sister, Alleluia. Using the narrative framework seen in Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, Alleluia tells her story over one night—Saturday into Sunday morning—in an appropriated apartment facing a church. She weaves into her story another tale of women who have lived in shadows cast by the men around them, women whom history chose to vilify—Lilith, Adam’s first wife who was written out of …

Embracing Life Listening Guide, Heidi Goehmann

Miscellaneous Seminars/Lectures

All of the slides from the presentation.

Embracing Life In Ministry, Heidi Goehmann

Miscellaneous Seminars/Lectures

A worksheet that goes with the presentation.

Understanding Your Congregation's Unique Worship Culture, Monique M. Ingalls

Symposium on Worship Archive

Each local congregation has its own unique history, geographical and social location, demographic makeup, and mission. As worship leaders, we need to understand each of these aspects of our local church’s “worship culture” in order to choose and adapt worship resources that engage the mind, heart, and spirit of our congregation members. This workshop introduces models and methods from the social sciences, including ethnography, interviewing, and structured observation, that we can use to explore these dynamics within our congregations. It then highlights practical ways how we can use the insights we glean from these methods to more deeply understand and …

Revitalized Worship Spaces, Michael J. Crosbie Phd

Symposium on Worship Archive

Renovated, restored, and reborn sacred spaces are the wave of the future, as congregations revitalize their aging facilities, move into spaces once occupied by other denominations and faith traditions, and retrofit religious buildings to serve new uses. This presentation will focus on religious buildings and facilities that have been given a new lease on life thanks to creative and inventive designs that make them vital to changing demands as congregations change and evolve.

Do You Know Where You're Going To? A Glimpse Of The Next Generation Of Congregational Song, Swee Hong Lim

Symposium on Worship Archive

This workshop will explore the next generation of congregational song. This emerging genre occupies a soundscape of music-making where its character is postmodern in the West and postcolonial in the Global South. It seeks to revitalize local, cultural traditions in a myriad of communities’ efforts of meaning-making in the 21st century. This is a guided conversation time where participants are encouraged to share their perspectives and observations. Musical examples will be shared.

The Formative Power Of Art And Architecture In Worship, Michael J. Crosbie Phd, Lisa Deboer

Symposium on Worship Archive

Hear from two experts whose work puts them in touch with a wide variety of worshiping communities across North America. First, art historian Lisa DeBoer will share insights from her forthcoming book, The Visual Arts in the Worshiping Church (Eerdmans), about how Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant worshipers relate to the meaning of art in such different ways. Then, Michael Crosbie, editor of Faith and Form, will take us on a memorable tour of recently built or renovated award-wining worship spaces, taking note of the underlying motivation and artistic vision of master architects and the congregations they work with. This is …

Imagining Liturgical Art For Your Worship Space, Jeanne Logan

Symposium on Worship Archive

This seminar will explore the possibilities of liturgical art for the participants’ own worship spaces. Participants will send in images of a space for which they are interested in creating a meaningful artistic liturgical environment. After seeing examples of Jeanne’s commissioned work and that of others, the group will discuss various options for utilizing their own spaces and what media might be used. Consideration will be given to both the liturgical season and the character and needs of the congregation.

Worship And Public Engagement, Richard J. Mouw

Symposium on Worship Archive

That corporate worship must equip us for serving God’s purposes in the world, certainly means that we must attend to the social-political-economic dimensions of our lives as citizens. How do we structure our congregational patterns with this in mind without making our worship “too political”? What are the proper ways of preaching, praying, singing, and catechizing about the obligations of citizenship? We will focus in this workshop on preaching during times of political controversy, on the use of “patriotic hymns,” and other practical—but challenging—concerns that emerge in our efforts to be biblical faithful in planning worship.

Singing With Martin Luther And The Lutherans, Worship Symposium 2016, Mark Noll

Symposium on Worship Archive

This workshop is designed to explore the riches of Lutheran hymnody for those, like Professor Noll, who are not themselves Lutherans. We will take a quick historical journey to note important landmarks. The rest of the session will take advantage of one of the recently published American Lutheran hymnals to explore the contours of contemporary Lutheran song. The hope is to help those outside the Lutheran tradition appreciate its historical richness and think about exploiting those riches to enliven worship in all traditions.

Wording The Sunday Sermon, Cornelius Plantinga Jr.

Symposium on Worship Archive

One of the preacher’s big challenges is finding language for the Sunday sermon that will engage the most of her or his listeners. But what kind of language is that? What are some of its features? Using multiple examples from published sermons, this workshop will identify, discuss, and recommend certain excellent features of well-worded Sunday sermons.

Bad Worship In The Bible, Cornelius Plantinga Jr.

Symposium on Worship Archive

Dirkie Smits, eminent South African theologian, has observed that virtually every book of the Bible condemns bad worship—which is likely to be some odious combination of idolatrous, hypocritical, or careless. Concretely, what does the Bible have to say about bad worship? And how might we strive to learn from what it says and adjust our own worship practices accordingly?

Marking Time: Dressing The Church For The Liturgical Year, Deborah Sokolove

Symposium on Worship Archive

The seasons and special days of the church year are often marked visually by artworks that come and go. In this session we will examine art as a congregational practice in which both adults and children produce banners, paraments, installations, and other occasional artworks that take their place in the worship space alongside those elements that are permanent. Participants are encouraged to send images of what their own congregations do to dress their churches as a way of marking liturgical time.

Sing The Peaceful Kingdom, Adam M. L. Tice

Symposium on Worship Archive

No abstract provided.

The Doorway To A New World: The Gracious Power Of Baptism In The Christian Life, Lisa Weaver

Symposium on Worship Archive

What a remarkable event baptism is: at once a sign of our being washed clean, a sign of rebirth, and a sign of our dying and rising with Jesus. How can we celebrate baptisms in ways that convey this grace, this depth, and this mystery? How can we best mentor, teach, and encourage those who are baptized, whether as adults or children? Come to learn from a student of worship who has learned from Baptists, Presbyterians, and Roman Catholic communities, and whose research is unpacking the power of early church baptismal practices.

21 Spirituals For The 21st Century, Raymond Wise Phd

Symposium on Worship Archive

The Negro Spiritual has been hailed as American’s first authentic folk music. Spirituals have served as a primary musical source from which many sacred and secular musical genres have stemmed. The “Spiritual” itself has evolved into many forms. There are oral, concert, art song, congregational, and gospel spirituals, and each has its own unique musical characteristics that have helped to preserve the Spiritual as a musical form. Come learn more about Spirituals, hear and sing some traditional spirituals and experience contemporary spiritual arrangements from Raymond Wise’s collection of 21 Spirituals for the 21st Century.

Preparing To Remember The Reformation, Robert J. Batastini, Peter Choi, Karin Maag, David Mcnutt, Mark Noll, Lisa Weaver, John D. Witvliet, Joyce Ann Zimmerman Phd

Symposium on Worship Archive

In 2017, churches around the world, both Protestant and Catholic, will mark the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. How we mark this milestone will say as much about us, and our own sense of identity, as it does about the events of five centuries ago. Indeed, the history of past milestone anniversaries (100, 200, 300, and 400 years ago) reveals stunningly different ways of remembering this history—and some crucial lessons about what to avoid this time around. Come for a fast-paced tour of histories of the Reformation and vigorous discussion by both Protestant and Catholic leaders about how we …

My Soul Finds Rest In God: Psalms Of Praise, Lament, And Hope, Sandra Mccracken

Symposium on Worship Archive

Join with singer-songwriter Sandra McCracken for contemplative songs and liturgical prayers, while making space within this worship service for both lament and joy.

Learning To Worship For The Life Of The World, Steven Guthrie

Symposium on Worship Archive

For the Life of the World is one of the most influential books ever written on the sacraments. But this classic text by the Orthodox theologian Alexander Schmemann encompasses all of the Christian experience, inviting the reader into a pattern of “sacramental living.” This seminar will provide an accessible introduction to For the Life of the World and will think about how its vision might shape our worship and our lives.

A New Song. A Skillful Song., Sandra Mccracken, Greg Scheer, Adam M. L. Tice

Symposium on Worship Archive

Those of us who feel Psalm 33’s call to write new songs must remember that the Psalm also tells us to play skillfully. In this seminar we will focus on the skills of songwriting for congregations, digging into what it means to balance inspiration and perspiration. Join critically-acclaimed singer-songwriter Sandra McCracken and widely-published hymn writer Adam Tice as they speak with Greg Scheer about their approaches to creating new texts, new tunes, and the combining of texts and tunes. The afternoon will be spent discussing participants’ song submissions. Attendees of all levels and musical styles will benefit from this seminar.

The Good News For The Hurting: A Service Of Scripture And Song, Michael Burkhardt, Zebulon M. Highben, Adam M.L. Tice

Symposium on Worship Archive

Led by the choir and organ, this service of scripture and song surrounds a few Isaiah texts, bring good news for a hurting world.

"Through It All:" Our Story, Our Song, Emmett G. Price Iii

Symposium on Worship Archive

This service will feature the inspiring prayers, songs, and readings from the African American worship tradition, past and present.

Singing The Great Fifty Days, Zebulon M. Highben

Symposium on Worship Archive

Easter Sunday is the beginning of the church’s longest festival: the Great Fifty Days of Easter. Yet it can be a musical challenge to connect the exuberance of Easter Sunday with the season’s culmination at Pentecost. This workshop presents ideas for musically and liturgically unifying the Easter season while highlighting each Sunday’s individual lessons and themes. Hymns, canticles, and choral repertoire from several publishers will be featured.

Compare And Contrast: Learning From The Visual Arts Across Christian Traditions, Lisa J. Deboer

Symposium on Worship Archive

Many Protestant congregations are eagerly and actively working to recover the riches of the visual realm to deepen their worship and communal life. And while much good work and learning is occurring within these congregations, what might we learn from a close examination of the how the visual arts function in Orthodox and Catholic settings? This session highlights three theological questions regarding worship and congregational life, raised by a cross-confessional comparison of the role of the visual arts.

Worship 101: Principles And Practices For Song & Discipleship, Eric Mathis, Paul Ryan

Symposium on Worship Archive

Learning to lead worship encompasses what you do and who you are. It entails spirituality as much as it requires skill. In this seminar, we will explore two vital practices of worship leadership: choosing songs and presenting scripture. Along the way we will discuss how we engage these practices as a matter of discipleship, identify cultural trends that resist our efforts, and recommend habits for faithful and healthy leadership.