New Emphasis on Worship with All God’s Children!
Nashville, TN – The United Methodist Publishing House (UMPH) has received a $1.250M grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to help establish a new emphasis on Worship with All God’s Children.The project is funded through Lilly Endowment’s Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative, a national effort designed to help Christian congregations more fully and intentionally engage children in intergenerational corporate worship and prayer practices.
Forming habits of participation in corporate worship is essential to the Christian life and for children’s experiences as lifelong disciples of Jesus Christ. Helping churches adopt intentional and sustainable methods requires fresh approaches. The need is great as there has been a significant reduction in the frequency of church attendance, especially during and following the COVID-19 pandemic.
UMPH will research and document best practices for engaging children in communal worship in churches of various sizes and settings. These findings will guide how we assemble, promote, and deliver adaptable materials, establish an interactive online network for leaders, and produce webinar training events.
“Churches will be encouraged to affirm anew God’s call to worship for all God’s people and intentionally increase opportunities for children,” said Rev. Brian K. Milford, UMPH president and publisher. He added, “United Methodist congregations regularly pledge to surround children with love and forgiveness so they will grow in their trust of God and be faithful in their service to others. Our congregations promise to pray for and help them be true disciples who walk in the way that leads to life. This project aims to assist local churches in living up to those promises.”
This is the second of two projects undertaken by UMPH and funded by Lilly Endowment Inc. to address faith formation with children. The first project is titled Everyday Faith and is testing ways to foster faith-forming practices with children and their adult caregivers at home.
The United Methodist Publishing House is one of 91 organizations receiving approval for the latest round of funding. The groups involved represent and serve congregations in a broad spectrum of Christian traditions, including Catholic, mainline Protestant, evangelical, Orthodox, Anabaptist, and Pentecostal faith communities. Several organizations are rooted in Black Church and Hispanic and Asian American Christian traditions.
“Congregational worship and prayer play a critical role in the spiritual growth of children and offer settings for children to acquire the language of faith, learn their faith traditions, and experience the love of God as part of a supportive community,” said Christopher L. Coble, Lilly Endowment’s vice president for religion. “These programs will help congregations give greater attention to children and how they can more intentionally nurture the faith of children, as well as adults, through worship and prayer.”
About Lilly Endowment Inc.
Lilly Endowment Inc. is a private philanthropic foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff, and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education, and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana. The principal aim of the Endowment’s religion grantmaking is to deepen and enrich the lives of Christians in the United States, primarily by seeking out and supporting efforts that enhance the vitality of congregations and strengthen the pastoral and lay leadership of Christian communities. The Endowment also seeks to improve public understanding of diverse religious traditions by supporting fair and accurate portrayals of the role religion plays in the United States and across the globe.
About The United Methodist Publishing House
Founded in 1789 as the Methodist Book Concern, The United Methodist Publishing House (UMPH) is a publisher and distributor of Christian resources for congregations, clergy, and lay leaders, with primary attention given to the needs of The United Methodist Church. UMPH is a fully self-supporting general agency of The United Methodist Church and receives no general church funds. Its primary publishing imprint is Abingdon Press (abingdonpress.com), and the retail and distribution operations are known as Cokesbury (cokesbury.com).
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