CICW has awarded Vital 91ÁÔÆæ, Vital Preaching Grants for over 20 years to teacher-scholars and worshiping communities in 45+ states and provinces and across 40+ denominations and traditions—including Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, non-denominational, and other Protestant communities.
While worship styles and practices vary greatly across these traditions, the grant projects typically explore at least one of CICW’s ten core convictions related to worship. Explore the hundreds of projects we’ve funded across both streams of the program.
Not So Churchy (2021)
To deepen the community's experience of the presence of God and of connection with one another across geographic boundaries by exploring how the community and its understanding of worship has changed through the practice of online worship.
South Meridian Church of God
To study, develop, and implement liturgical practices that equip worshipers for mission, and to discover gifts in the community that can be assets to the church's worship.
The Bellbrook Presbyterian Church
To cultivate a common worship language and shared understanding of worship that facilitates a sense of community across generation and technology, and to use that language to connect worship with all of life.
Trinity Church
To pilgrimage together through the Christian Year as spiritual formation in order to more deeply experience Christ, the church, spiritual practices, and the community.
College of St. Scholastica
Elizabeth Anderson
Elizabeth Anderson
To survey the process of revising the calendar of commemorations in the Episcopal Church since 2003 and to offer a proposal for how calendar reform might proceed amidst a diversity of theological understandings and liturgical practices.
Ekklesia (United Ministries in Higher Education)
To deepen worshipers' awareness of the beauty and character of God by engaging various art forms in an intergenerational and ecumenical context on campus and in partner churches.
First Congregational Church of Webster Groves
To enliven worship through the arts, especially jazz, and environmental awareness to discover the wonder and joy of being stewards of God's creation.
First Congregational Church, New London
To deeply engage scripture in worship through prayer stations that explore the history, theology, spirituality, and justice elements of the weekly scripture text.
Grace Baptist Church
To collaboratively create original liturgy, hymnody, and art for worship that facilitates connection with God in all of life.
Light of Hope Presbyterian Church (2020)
To explore contextual methods of proclamation in a dinner and spirituality service that facilitates deeper participation of the community in worship.
New Hope Presbyterian Church
To nurture community within the congregation and the neighborhood by promoting active participation in worship through the arts and the preached Word.
Seabury Resources for Aging (2020)
To create and pilot participatory intergenerational worship resources that facilitate collaborative worship in a variety of contexts.