Report on

 Calvin Symposium on Worship

January 29 – 31, 2009, Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

By Louisa Bruinsma

First of all, I would like to express my deep appreciation for the invitation to attend the Worship Symposium.   It was truly one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had.  I came home with a renewed awareness of the breadth of the grace of God and enriched by the music, the teaching, the preaching, the Word, the art exhibit. The worship was all so very well done, so humbly executed and excellently orchestrated (literally).  In truth, the schedule was a bit overwhelming and very intense (Calvinists aren’t sure how grace relates to working your buns off).   I attended mostly music related workshops and Evelyn attended those with a visual focus.  I joined a choir that performed at the final worship.  It was amazing.

The 1,400 registrants represented a rich diversity: 38 countries representing 35 denominations.

Copies of the Nairobi Statement on Worship and Culture (included with worship liturgies) might be worth distributing to the Worship Renewal Committee, Liturgy Committee, music leaders and Pastoral Committee.  (Sections on Worship as Transcultural, Worship as Contextual, Worship as Counter-Cultural, and Worship as Cross-Cultural.)

The theme of the six worship services (morning and afternoon) was the parables of Jesus.  An art gallery display focused on interpretations of the Prodigal Son (including an original Rembrandt etching!), including the work of four artists commissioned (by Larry Gerbens, inspired by Henry Nouwen’s book) to paint just for the conference and were present to explain their work.  (I have a booklet of some of the paintings but they can also be viewed on http://www.calvin.edu/centerartgallery/prodigalson/). 

Evelyn and I were invited to attend a dinner one evening for all Worship Renewal Grant recipients, hosted by Betty Grit.  One of the workshops (which I did not attend) included reports from grant recipients as to how they had used the grant.  (Hilda Fernhout was at this session and reported that it was very interesting.)

Liturgies and music for all the worship services were compiled in one folder and all the workshops in another.  The worship folder has a wealth of wonderful songs.  I’ll place one with the other resources.

Resources

Each registrant was given some free resources:

·         Contemporary Songs for Worship

·         The Father and the Son: The Art of Forgiveness

·         Images of Faith CD

·         Touching the Altar: The Old Testament for Christian Worship (2 copies)

·         Worship Words (Debra Rienstra and Ron Rienstra) (2 copies)

·         The Pastor as Minor Poet (M. Craig Barnes)

·         Sheet music (which we could select)

o        2 SATB versions of “What Wondrous Love is This

o        Christus Paradox

o        Hallelujah! All Hail The Mighty King

o        Here from All Nations

o        O God, Why are you Silent

o        Hymn of Exhortation (I’m sure Evelyn must have picked this one!)

o        O God, Beyond al Praising

o        Two Communion Chants

o        Awake, My Heart, with Gladness

o        As the Sun with Longer Journey

o        Rejoice in the Lord

o        Come, let us Eat (Children Song for Communion)

We purchased:

·         Emerging Worship – Dan Kimball

·         Singing the New Testament

·         Two more copies of Sing a New Creation (as per musicians’ request)

·         Tell Me a Story (for children’s story and worship) (Phyllis Vos Wezeman, Anna L Liechty)

·         Rings, Kings, and Butterflies (Lessons on Christian Symbols for Children with CD-ROM)

·         Show Me a Picture – 30 Children’s Sermons Using Visual Arts (Phyllis Vos Wezeman, Anna L Liechty)

Recommendation

I attached Fellowship CRC labels to these items, and hope we can soon find a permanent place at the college to set up a bit of a resource library so liturgists and musicians can easily find and use these resources.  I am certain that many members of Fellowship would love to take these items home to look them over.  I am wondering whether there is any chance of our having a small room at the college where we can put a bookcase with sign out sheets (I can make these) so that musicians, children’s story tellers, liturgy committee members, etc., can take them home.  (As an added note, I think it would be great to have such a space also for meetings of the pastoral committee who often have to meet in a public space, not really suitable for discussion of confidential matters.  It may also be a place where a guest preacher can meet someone to pray with prior to the service.)  If that is not possible, perhaps the Psalter Hymnals could be taken from the mobile storage bin and the resources placed there.

It would be good at an announcement time before our service to show these resources to the congregation.

Messages at the Symposium were given by:

·         Craig Barnes (on  The Sower)

·         Frank Thomas (The Great Banquet)

·         Luke Powery (The Persistent Widow)

·         Marva Dawn (The Laborers in the Vineyard)

·         Mary Hulst (The Prodigal)

·         Setri Nyomi, of WARC (The Pharisee and the Tax Collector)

In the rest of this report, I will just highlight what I learned at the sessions of direct benefit to Fellowship.

Scripture Reading

A storyteller by the name of Dennis Dewey did an amazing job of reciting Scripture, verbatim, without embellishment.  Very simply, and very powerfully, he recited many sections of the book of Mark, just as it is written, and it was so moving.  It made me realize that the reading (or reciting) or Scripture is very important to understanding the Bible and to the preaching of the message.  Someone asked Dennis if he memorized Scripture.  His response was, “I don’t memorize; I learn by heart.”    Another presenter gave an account of how a young man in his church was asked to read the Scriptures in church.  Then he was phoned to ask WHEN they could practise.  After practising, he was again asked when he could practise behind the pulpit, and then asked what he was going to wear (to ensure that his dress would not get in the way of the message).  Kirk McNeill and Marian Piekema have done dramatic readings of the Scripture in church, but perhaps we can find more readers who have a gift for public reading.  Even though they may not be able to do it  “by heart”, we can work towards making the readings more effective.

Worship Guidelines

1.       Simplicity: Keep it simple.

2.       Focus on the message: The person, the instrument should never stand in the way of the message.

3.       Story: Value the narrative, story (which is what parables were and which everyone can relate to) and don’t always make the application.  Too much dissection can kill the message.    Art communicates without narration.  If it requires narration, it has failed. Flip side: too much story can detract from message.

4.       We need to pay more attention to contextual attentiveness of the Scripture.

5.       Prayer: Keep needs of the world in prayer. (Some churches actually place headlines on the overhead screen.)

6.       Respect the kaleidoscope-character of the church (all ages, all gifts). Worship involves (safe) socialization.  It is mandatory to involve children: if one generation “does not know the Lord”, generations will follow who do not know. Worship gives us a glimpse of the new heaven and earth, the new family of God.  Purpose of the Old Testament ceremonies was in children asking, “Why is this being done?”  Adults model and mentor the children.   At the same time, worship is more than teaching.

7.       Suggestions to enhance intergeneration worship:

·         Since children are most comfortable with familiarity, and appreciate repetition and simplicity, use markers that can be anticipated e.g. same language, same responses, familiar songs, expressions so that children anticipate and feel a comfort level with liturgy.  Use actions, vocal repetition,  sign language.

·         Use simple stories that draw in participants.

·         Don’t pressure parents to take a crying or disruptive child/baby out of church.  Offer to solve the situation e.g. by offering to hold the baby so parents can worship.

·         Young people can read Scripture, but need to practise, and ask them again so it is not just one time tokenism.

·         Children can collect and count $ of offering (and may appreciate being trusted to keep confidential amount on cheques).

 

8.       Music and Singing

·         Always let the text determine the mood. Always be sensitive to text. Get out of the way: let the message be in front.

·         Worship should never create discomfort.  Don’t introduce too many new songs, ones that are difficult to sing.  The congregation must feel secure in their singing and worship.

·         Giving a reason a hymn is a favourite can change a person’s dislike of a hymn into appreciation (e.g. a hymn that comforted someone in a crisis).

·         Softer accompaniment allows for better singing.

·         Use a variety of instruments (Scriptural injunction in the Psalms!)

·         Never sing four stanzas of one hymn the same way. Suggestions for variation:

                                                               i.      Have someone sing a solo for a verse (Or cantor)

                                                             ii.      Have someone read a verse

                                                           iii.      Have an instrumental verse

                                                            iv.      Have a choir sing a verse

                                                              v.      Increase complexity progressively by adding instrumentation

                                                            vi.      Have women sing a verse, men sing a verse.  If the verse is a dialogue, have one side of the congregation answer the question the other side asks

                                                          vii.      Use accoapella singing for particularly confessional verses (so the focus is on the words, and keeps the message uncluttered).

                                                        viii.      Canons allow people who can’t read music and never sing harmony to have the opportunity to do so.

                                                            ix.      Make sure the range is appropriate for children’s voices (not too low).

                                                              x.      Make sure the range is suitable for the instruments (e.g. no low notes for flute) and in correct key.

                                                            xi.      Repeat last line of song, fading out.

                                                          xii.      Give small bells for children to join in on special occasion e.g. refrain on “Angels we have Heard on High”

9.       Train Scripture readers.  Effectively reading the scripture can make a difference to the whole service and the message.