Lay people in Manitoba and Northern Ontario are benefitting for a $12,000 Cdn grant to Presbyterian College, Montreal. The American grant, handed out last May, has already enabled 19 congregations to participate in a lay leadership program devoted to improving worship. "It's exciting to work with committed and gifted lay people who have a passion for the church of Jesus Christ and want to use their gifts to fulfill our highest calling as human beings — the worship and praise of God," said Peter Bush, minister at Knox, Mitchell, Ont., and co-director of the project along with Christine O'Reilly, minister of a two-point charge in southwestern Ont. "We're honoured and humbled to work with such amazing people."
The Worship renewal grant was awarded by the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship at Calvin College in Michigan. Funds are from the Lilly Endowment Inc., a U.S. based trust fund concerned with community development, education and religion. The project is also supported by Canada Ministries.
As the college is already committed to educating the laity — it offers a diploma in lay leadership — the goal of the project is to encourage lay people to use their gifts to preach, plan and lead worship services, and equip them with the skills to do so. The results are exciting. "Lay leaders start to find their voice and role in worship, discovering spiritual gifts they never knew they had," said Bush.
O'Reilly and Bush have travelled north to work with teams of lay people from Presbyterian congregations. They were in Timmins working with the Temiskaming regional ministry team in June 2004 and completed a second trip north in February. The duo worked with the Presbytery of Brandon last October and will return in May.
Congregations also receive resources to start building a worship and sermon preparation library. "There's wonder and amazement expressed that an American college would care so much about small Canadian congregations to give them $300-worth of worship resources," said Bush.
Presbyterian College is one of two Canadian projects to receive last year's grant from a total of 200 proposals. Grant recipients represent congregations and schools from 16 denominations in the U.S. and Canada.
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