Christian Worship Subject Guide
Christian worship, simply put, is the praise and adoration of God, both on an individual basis, as well as in the context of a body of Christians. The focus is on God, rather than the Church. This subject guide provides resources for the study of Christian worship from the first century to the present.
| Introductory Resources |
| Subject Introduction |
"The Purpose and Meaning of Worship"
Ralph P. Martin
Chapter 10 (pp 139-155) in Leadership Handbooks of Practical Theology, vol. 1
James D. Berkley, ed.
Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1992
BV3 .L33 1992
| Reference Books |
Baker's Dictionary of Practical Theology
Ralph G. Turnbull, ed.
Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1967
BV3 .B3
The section on worship in this volume includes the biblical bases for worship, the history of worship, the sacraments, aspects of worship services, aids to worship, and the Christian year.
Complete Library of Christian Worship
Robert E. Webber, ed.
Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1993
BV10.2 .C65 1993 (vs.1-7)
This 7-volume series includes articles written by over 600 contributors and covers areas such as Old and New Testament worship, the history of worship, Sunday worship, music and the arts in worship, and services of the Christian year.
Leadership Handbooks of Practical Theology: Word & Worship
James D. Berkley, ed.
Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1992
BV3 .L33 1992 (v.1)
As the title implies, this volume focuses on both preaching and worship. It attempts to provide a historical and theological understanding of worship, as well as practical application material, such as how to administer the Lord's Supper and performing baptisms.
New Dictionary of Sacramental Worship
Peter E. Fink, ed.
Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1990
BV173 .N485 1990
The purpose of this volume according to the editorial preface is to "celebrate and to serve the ongoing task of liturgical reform and renewal" within the Roman Catholic church. It contains articles from almost 200 Catholic scholars with topics that range from the Jewish roots of Christian worship and sacramental theology to liturgical dance and technology.
New Westminster Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship
J.G. Davies, ed.
Philadelphia, PA: Westminster Press, 1986
BV173 .N49 1986
This volume is a revision of the Westminster Dictionary of Worship, and adds material from more than 100 contributors that includes trends in worship over the last few decades. New articles include such topics as the feminist liturgical movement, ecumenical worship, cremation, and house churches.
Oxford History of Christian Worship
Geoffrey Wainwright and Karen B. Westerfield Tucker, eds.
Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 2006
BV15 .O95 2006
Written by an international and ecumenical group of 40 contributors, the Oxford History of Christian Worship uses text, pictures and boxed inserts to cover Christian worship over the last two thousand years. It is basically arranged chronologically, but also by geography and confessional identity. Additional chapters feature music, spatial setting, and the visual arts.
| Find Books & Media |
Books and media in the APU University Libraries can be found by using the APOLIS2 online catalog.
| Subject Headings & Call Number Ranges |
| Books |
Engaging with God: A Biblical Theology of Worship
David Peterson
Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1993
BS680 .W78 P47 1993
Introduction to Christian Worship
James F. White
Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 2000
BV176 .W48 2000
Worship, Community & the Triune God of Grace
James B. Torrance
Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996
BV15 .T67 1997
Worship, Old & New: A Biblical, Historical, and Practical Introduction
Robert E. Webber
Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994
BV15 .W4 1994
| Media By Subject |
| Subject Bibliographies |
A Bibliography of Christian Worship
Bard Thompson
Philadelphia, PA: American Theological Library Association/Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1989
Z7813 .B5 1989
Theological and Religious Reference Materials, Practical Theology
G.E. Gorman and Lyn Gorman
New York, NY: Greenwood Press, 1986
Z7825.4 .G67 1986
| Resources in Non-APU Libraries |
| LINK+ | LINK+ is a single catalog for 40+ California libraries that have a cooperative borrowing and lending arrangement for books only. This service is for APU faculty, staff and students, and is free. Items usually come within 2-3 work days. |
| WorldCat | WorldCat is a single catalog for hundreds of North American and international libraries. Books and other library resources may be requested from this catalog through the interlibrary loan service. This service is for APU faculty, staff and students, and costs $2.00 per item requested. Items usually come within 7-10 work days. |
| Find Journal Articles |
Print journals in the APU University Libraries can be found by using the APOLIS2 online catalog.
| Journals |
| Journal Title | Available Formats |
| Call to Worship: Liturgy, Music, Preaching & the Arts | |
| Liturgy | |
| Modern Liturgy | |
| Reformed Liturgy & Music | |
| Worship |
| Print Periodical Indexes |
Guide to Social Science and Religion in Periodical Literature
Flint, MI: National Periodical Library
Z7753 .G83 (vs.5-42)
Search for articles under the “Christian Worship” heading.
| Databases |
For a description of each database, go to the online resources page and look up the database by title.
Academic Search Premier
ATLA Religion Database with ATLAS
Christian Periodical Index
OmniFile Full Text Mega
ProQuest Religion
| Getting Journal Articles |
| Periodical Finder | Sometimes while using a database, article records are found without any corresponding full-text article. Use Periodical Finder to see whether or not the article can be found in full-text in a different database. It can also be used to look up the full-text availability of items found in bibliographies. |
| Articles not at APU | If a journal article is unavailable in either the print journal collection or one of the online databases, it can be requested through the interlibrary loan service. |
| Find Internet Resources |
| Professional Organizations/Government Agency Websites |
American Academy of Religion
Council of Societies for the Study of Religion
| Other Websites |
Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL)
CCEL is an excellent online repository of hundreds of classic Christian works from the first century all the way through to modern times. To find items relevant to worship, enter "liturgy OR worship" and look for these terms in the full text.
Internet Theology Resources: Liturgical Studies and Liturgical Music
This site contains dozens of links to several primary sources, as well as to various lectionaries and liturgical texts.
Frank Henderson's Page on Liturgy and Medieval Women
This site attempts to address the question "In what ways were medieval women ‘visible’ in worship?," and includes hundreds of links and bibliographic resources on this topic.
Renaissance Liturgical Imprints
Renaissance Liturgical Imprints is a "database of information about worship books printed before 1601," and focuses on Renaissance Europe.
Wabash Center: Liturgics
This list of over 50 links relevant to Christian worship is part of the Wabash Center site, which "supports teachers of religion and theology in higher education."
| Free Online Journals |
Christian Century
Christianity Today
McMaster Journal of Theology and Ministry
Word & World: Theology for Christian Ministry (only the editorials are free)
| Blogs/RSS Feeds |
Christianity Today:
Page: http://www.christianitytoday.com/
Feed: http://www.christianitytoday.com/lyris/rss/ctmag.xml
ATLA Religion Database Search - Liturgy and Theology:
This feed will give you article citations from the ATLA Religion Database for the subject search "liturgy and theology." Please click here for more information.
Feed: Click here to access the feed for Liturgy & Theology
Don’t have a feed reader? Try Google Reader (https://www.google.com/reader/) or Bloglines (http://www.bloglines.com/).
Written by Subject Specialist Michelle Spomer, September 3, 2007
