Reformed Worship Celebrates 30 Years

The idea for Reformed Worship, which is kicking off its 30th anniversary celebration with its September issue, sprang to life somewhere along the New York Thruway (Interstate 90).

Emily Brink, the founding editor of the Christian Reformed Church’s quarterly journal for worship, recalls how she and two colleagues were riding from Toronto, Ont., to Midland Park, N.J., on May 10, 1985 when they came up with the idea.

They were on a 15-stop tour across North America to introduce congregations to a draft of the forthcoming 1987 Psalter Hymnal.

At each stop along the way, people showed great appreciation for the new hymnal but said they needed more material for worship.

“This was a time of a sea change in churches—from when the pastor and the organist decided [everything about worship] to a new world in which laypeople started forming worship committees,” said Brink, who left RW after several years to work for the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

“We were responding to a need. People were hungry for something like this, and they were asking us for more sustained help,” said Brink.

Wrapped in a red bow, 4,000 complimentary copies of RW went out in the mail in September 1986. That inaugural issue featured resources to help churches celebrate Advent.

These ideas included suggestions on hymns to sing as well as Scripture readings to use.

The magazine’s first theological editor, Harry Boonstra, also wrote in that first edition: “We encourage readers to respond indicating whether they would like to see this feature presented on a regular basis for the other church seasons.”

Readers picked right up on that idea, and since then RW has provided a range of resources for the seasons of the church year.

For instance, the current issue offers 10 modern arrangements for Advent music. In addition, there is an article titled “The Senses of Christmas: Meeting Jesus through Taste, Touch, Smell, Sound, and Sight.”

“For 30 years, Reformed Worship has been supporting the work of worship leaders and pastors in the CRC and in many other denominations as well,” said Joyce Borger, the current editor.

While RW has continued to focus on the church calendar, the approach and materials provided have evolved as the needs of churches themselves have changed.

Borger said one early RW article was on whether pastors ought to use computers to write their sermons, while these days there are articles and resources for preachers who want to use PowerPoint and social media to share the message.

Also early on, there was a big debate on whether churches should use popular praise music or stick to hymns, she said.
Today, the magazine features both types of music.

“It’s been a journey that the church has been on, and it is reflected in the journal,” said Borger.

Borger says many churches have been influenced by RW and have used its resources.

“Travel around during Advent and Lent, and you will be surprised at how many churches are doing the same series or have visuals similar to those offered by Reformed Worship,” she said.

Kayla Jory, worship planner and leader at Covenant CRC in Winnipeg, Man., said she relies on the resources that come her way in RW.

“Reformed Worship has been a valuable resource that assists all those involved in liturgical and musical planning with readings, song suggestions, and articles that make the task of planning itself more worshipful. In the planning process, we find we draw closer to God,” said Jory.

Peter Schuurman, who serves on the preaching team at New Life Christian Fellowship in Guelph, Ont., said his church turns regularly to RW for worship resources.

Supported by CRC ministry shares, RW always includes material that comes in unsolicited from local churches. Perhaps 85 percent of the content is from these sources.

At the same time, RW provides many examples of cross-agency/ministry collaboration. For instance, it ran a joint issue with the Office of Social Justice on justice, it collaborated with World Missions on Pentecost litanies, and it has featured many Faith Formation articles.

As the periodical marks three decades, it has launched a new subscription system and online presence that will allow it to expand its reach to churches and members of congregations both inside and outside the CRC.

In addition, now that Reformed Worship is published by the CRC’s new Worship Ministries, there will be even greater collaboration opportunities between churches and the denomination, said Borger.

Looking ahead, the journal will continue to respond to churches’ needs for worship materials that are timely and rooted in the Reformed faith.

“Our challenge as we go forward will be to keep providing the tools and resources churches need to create worship services that are God glorifying and go deep,” said Borger.

Click here to check out the RW website.