A Course for Worship Leaders and Musicians

This exciting training course will be running for the second time from September 2008 to July 2009.

‘Worship 4 Today’ runs on Sunday afternoons alongside the existing Lay Training courses as part of the School of Ministry at Wilson Carlile College of Evangelism.

‘Worship 4 Today’ combines theology, history and practice in a dynamic programme.

The term ‘Worship Leader’ has come into use in recent years, but who are they?

• Can they be clergy or laity, musicians or non-musicians?
• Do they receive any formal training for the task, or are they left to muddle through alone?
• What skills should they have?
• And what do we expect from them?

This course seeks to address some of these issues.

In its first year, ‘Worship 4 Today’ has attracted 22 enthusiastic students, an interesting mix of Readers, non-musicians and musicians.

This is what they say about the course :

“Busy, intense and fruitful…
…We all have lots to learn and lots of opportunities to learn them.”

“The course has been far more intense than I expected with a lot more homework than I expected, but I have learned that it can be great fun working with people I had never met before.”

“The course so far is brilliant!    Love it!
            What a range of people and different situations.”

The aims of the course are

• to nurture the growth of personal worship as foundational
• to leading others effectively in worship
• to provide a biblical and historical background to worship
• to provide a broad understanding of current worship styles across the church traditions
• to develop new expertise and practical skills
• to explore authentic worship for a mission-shaped Church

It is particularly suitable for clergy or laity who might

• already be involved in leading worship in their local church
• sense a call to a ministry of leading others in worship
• wish to develop their musical understanding further
• wish to improve their level of musical competency
• wish to deepen their understanding of worship

The Course

The course consists of eleven Sunday afternoon sessions from 1.45 – 5.15 pm (including a tea break) and one Saturday from 9.00 am – 4.00 pm (in May 2009). Each session will include teaching, discussion, group work and experiential learning.

There are four key areas to the programme

• Theology and History
  Theology of worship and music in worship
  Worship in the Bible and through church history
  Liturgical formation and good practice
  Choosing appropriate material for worship

• Leadership Skills
  Developing a servant heart
  Developing skills for leading worship
  Pastoral skills for building a worship team
  Enabling a congregation to worship

• Musical Skills
  General musical skills for the musician and non-musician
  Developing specific skills (tailored to needs of the group)
  Introducing and teaching new material to a congregation
  Running effective rehearsals

• Exploration
  Understanding different church traditions
  Understanding different worship styles
  Fresh Expressions and emerging worship
  Worship in a mission context

Course Requirements

There are no academic, educational or musical requirements. The most important requirement for participants is to come as worshippers themselves, to seek to engage with God in different forms of worship, and to learn to lead others in inspiring worship which is both converting and transforming.

But I’m not a musician…

“I’m not as bad or as unknowledgeable or as unable to lead worship as I thought. The course is a real confidence booster, but I still have a lot to learn.”

“I’ve learnt that I have a lot of potential that ‘s not being used.”

This course is not just for musicians, but for all those involved in being part of a parish worship team. It is suitable for any one who wants to understand more about worship and how to do it well. This course might be seen as a useful development for Clergy and Readers as well as those who are already involved in Church Choirs or Music Groups.

Course Team

The course will be run by a team, led by Revd Helen Bent, Bishop’s Adviser in Music and Worship, together with others with particular expertise in various areas.

Worship 4 Today Course Dates
2008-9

Sunday Afternoons:

• Sept. 14th
• Oct. 12th
• Nov. 2nd
• Dec. 14th
• Jan. 11th
• Feb 8th
• Mar 8th
• Apr 19th
• May 10th
• June 14th
• July 12th

Saturday:

• May 9th 2009.

Course Fees

The course fee will be £100 per person. This will cover the provision of all resources and refreshments.

Please do not let the cost prevent you from applying. Participants are encouraged to ask their Church to contribute to their fees.

Taster Evenings

Taster evenings for the new course are being held for those who are thinking about participating. These will be held at Diocesan Church House, Rotherham from 7.00 – 9.00 pm

• Tuesday 15th April 
• Thursday 8th May

Please let Helen Bent know that you are coming to one of these by phone : 01709 – 363850 or by email : helen@thebents.co.uk.

Before you join the course, you will need to:

• Have the support of your Incumbent and PCC
• Fill in an application form
• Have a brief interview

The Taster Evenings give you an ideal opportunity to explore the course in more detail. However, a high level of commitment is expected with attendance at all sessions unless very good reasons prevent this.

Attending the course will also involve:

• Preparatory reading for each session
• Practical involvement and ministry during the course
• Keeping a personal journal and portfolio
• Making a visit to at least one church where the worship (and music) is of a different style to your own church
• Completing a personal project, designed to affirm each candidate’s development.

Assignments will not be graded, and there is no formal qualification at the end of the course. However, there will be an opportunity to review with Course Tutors what you have learnt, and an opportunity to discern with the help of your Incumbent and PCC how this ministry might be developed further within the local church setting.

Applications

If you are interested in the course, please complete an application form (which can be downloaded by clicking here) and send it to Helen Bent by Monday 2nd June 2008. Please apply early, as places will be limited.

Application Forms will be available at the Taster Evenings, downloadable from the Diocesan website, or from Helen Bent.

All applicants will have an interview with members of the Course Team to explore participation in the course. These will be held during late June and early July.

Successful applicants will receive their course syllabus and information prior to the commencement of the course on Sunday 14th September 2008.