Online Courses

A course providing an overview of Christian worship including biblical and historical perspectives. The major emphasis is on the pastor's role of formulating and leading worship services.

The following learning objectives will be achieved by this course:

1. Express an understanding of and an appreciation for worship as portrayed in Scripture, Including:
   • The Biblical Foundations for Worship
   • The Biblical Essence of Worship
   • A Biblical Theology of Worship
   • A Biblical look at the worship practices of the Jewish people and early Christians
2. Articulate the important developments in worship, and their rationale throughout the history of the Christian Church, and the implications of tradition and heritage in worship practices common to your local context.
3. Recognize the call we have to worship defending the point of view that worship is a primary integrating component of the entire mission and ministry of a local congregation.
4. Discuss the Christian Calendar, and plan worship services with identifiable themes and structure so that form and function coordinate with an understanding of the elements of worship.
5. Analyze and incorporate pastoral care components in worship through the use of various elements, specifically the sacraments and other sacred acts of worship.
6. Appraise the importance of a variety of aspects involved in the preparation of worship liturgies, and creatively structure liturgies to maximize the participation of people in worship through effective and meaningful ways.

The following are Competencies for Ministry as outlined in the Sourcebook on Ordination USA that will be addressed in this course:

1. CN11 Ability to describe the mission and practice of the Church throughout its history.
2. CP11 Ability to envision, order, and participate in contextualized, theologically grounded worship and to develop and lead appropriate services for special occasions (i.e. wedding, funeral, baptism, and Lord's Supper).
3. CP19 Ability to prepare and lead a music ministry that is biblically sound, utilizing appropriate techniques and skills demonstrating cultural sensitivity.
4. CP20 Ability to assess contemporary approaches to church music in light of enduring theological and contextual perspectives.

MUS1013 Introduction to Music Ministries