Music in Christian Worship Course
June 22 - July 3, 2026
8:45am-noon Central Daylight Time
Zoom Meeting Info:
Topic: Music in Christian Worship Class
Time: Jun 21, 2026 07:00 PM Central Time (US and Canada)
Every day, 365 occurrence(s)
Please download and import the following iCalendar (.ics) files to your calendar system.
Daily Here
Join Zoom Meeting Here
Meeting Chat Link Here
Meeting ID: 827 2885 4779
Passcode: 425503
Other Course Materials:
Readings
- Westermeyer, Paul. Te Deum: The Church and Music. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1998. ISBN 0-8006-3146-3.
- Westermeyer, Paul. The Church Musician. Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress, 1997. ISBN 0-8066-3399-9.
Required Assignments (everyone):
- Assignment 1: Personal reflection on early experiences that shaped a personal theology of music. Due Sunday, June 28. [assignment directions]
- Assignment 2: Oral presentation based on written reflection on Thursday, July 2 during class that traces your denominational theology of music. [assignment directions]
- Assignment 3: Prepare and share a liturgy on Friday, July 3 for one of the given feast/other days using outlines provided or your own denominational liturgical format. [assignment directions]
- Abstracts of course readings
- June 21, Te Deum, pp. 1-198;
- June 28, Te Deum, pp. 201-320.
- June 30, The Church Musician.
- Other daily, briefer readings to be abstracted throughout the course are due 10:00 p.m. the evening before the class where they will be discussed. (see calendar below)
- Note: All abstracts should be sent to ckroeker@churchmusicinstitute.org. Guidelines for Writing Abstracts
- All students will attend all morning and noonday prayer services and all class meetings via Zoom.
Students taking the class through Brite Seminary for credit must complete the following assignments: abstracts, assignments 1-3 listed above, an individual project, and a book review (the final 2 must be chosen in consultation with Dr. Kroeker).
Calendar with Hyperlinked Materials
Sunday, June 21 7:30 p.m. Get-Acquainted Meeting and Course Requirements Discussion on Zoom
Abstract for pages 1-198 of Te Deum & "Christian Worship" due via email to Dr. Kroeker (ckroeker@churchmusicinstitute.org). Guidelines for Writing Abstracts
Monday, June 22
8:45 Morning Prayer
9:00 Te Deum Chapter 1; Study of Church Music Overview; Development of Liturgy from earliest times to present – Dr. Gail Ramshaw
- Read & Abstract "Christian Worship" pp. 201-214
- Read & Prepare Ramshaw Assignment
11: 50 Noon Prayer
10:00 pm abstract of Witvliet, Biblical Psalms HERE due to Dr. Kroeker via email.
Tuesday, June 23
Readings: Chapter 2, 3 & 4 of Te Deum; John Witvliet, The Biblical Songs in Christian Worship
8: 45 Morning Prayer
9:00 Biblical Sources & Psalms - Dr. Zebulon Highben
11:50 Noon Prayer
Wednesday, June 24
Readings: Chapters 5-9 of Te Deum
8:45 Morning Prayer
9:00 Early Church including introduction of theological understanding of music through the eyes of Ambrose, Pambo, Augustine, Aquinas - Dr. Don Horisberger
- Read in advance (abstract if desired) & prepare for class discussion (readings here)
11:50 Noon Prayer
Thursday, June 25
Readings: Chapters 10, 11, & 12 of Te Deum
8:45 Morning Prayer
9:00 The Reformation including the introduction of theological understanding of music through the eyes of Zwingli, Calvin, Luther - Dr. Zebulon Highben
- Read and Abstract: Zebulon M. Highben. "Reviving Sacred Song: 500 Years of the Lutheren Chorale in its Congregational and Choral Contexts." Choral Journal 58, no. 1 (August 2017): 36–46.
11:50 Noon Prayer
Friday, June 26
Readings: Glick, Robert P. "18th Century Worship Wars: Bach, Orthodoxy and Pietism." The American Organist, July, 2025.
8:45 Morning Prayer
9:00 The Timelessness of J.S. Bach: Study of Cantata No. 80, Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott – Dr. Charlotte Kroeker
- Additional Resources to have available in class:
- Score to Cantata, BWV80
- Text/Translation/Notes of Cantata 80
- Brief Chronological Timeline for J.S. Bach
11:50 Noon Prayer
Monday, June 29
Reading: Te Deum, chapters 13-14
Articles: (Look over but no need to abstract Wesley and Watts articles below.)
John Wesley, Select Hymns: with Tunes Annext: Designed chiefly for the Use of the People Called Methodists (1761), 265. (This is the so-called Directions for Singing of Wesley).
Watt's "Short Essay Toward the Improvement of Psalmody," pp. 233-76 in the 1707 Hymns and Spiritual Songs
8:45 Morning Prayer
11:50 Noon Prayer
Tuesday, June 30
Section VI Sacrosanctum Concilium
8:45 Morning Prayer
11:50 Noon Prayer
Wednesday, July 1
Reading: Westermeyer, Paul. The Church Musician.
8:45 Morning Prayer
11:50 Noon Prayer
Thursday, July 2
Reading: Introduction to Slave Songs of the United States
"Jacob's Ladder" from Deep River & The Negro Spiritual Speaks of Life and Death by Howard Thurman
8:45 Morning Prayer
11:00 - Short presentations on your denominational theology of music, showing how it builds on one or more of the theological streams of thought from the first week.
11:50 Noon Prayer
Friday, July 3
Reading: "Choosing Music for Worship" (attached)
Liturgy for Ash Wednesday
Liturgy for Christmas Eve
Liturgy for Easter
Liturgy for Epiphany
Liturgy for Maundy Thursday
Liturgy for Pentecost
8:45 Morning Prayer
11:50 Noon Prayer
Students taking the course for credit from Brite Seminary should consult with Dr. Kroeker about due dates and assignment requirements for their individual project and book review.