The Complete Library of Christian Worship (7 vols.)

by Robert Webber

Publisher:

Star Song

, 1993–1994

Overview

If you are looking for more knowledge and tools for teaching and leading worship in a converging spiritual world, then you will find what you are looking for here. The Complete Library of Christian Worship edited by Robert E. Webber is the most comprehensive worship resource available. These books present all aspects of Christian worship in their biblical origins, historical development, and contemporary use.

Dr. Robert E. Webber, the General Editor, states: "As a college professor, Christian educator, and lay person I have been challenged by the new dimensions being experienced in Christian worship. As a student of worship, I am deeply interested in its biblical origins, how it has changed with the times, and how it can achieve its greatest impact on the church and the world.

More than ten years of exhaustive research have gone into the development of a comprehensive resource for the worshiping church, The Complete Library of Christian Worship. It features materials from thousands of books and other resources on the subject of worship and original articles from over 600 scholars and church leaders, including representatives from every Christian denomination as well as many seminaries and institutions of higher learning.

The result is a beautiful collection that covers every aspect of Christian worship. It has been an exciting journey for me as I'm sure it will be for you."

Key Features

• Most comprehensive worship reference ever
• Every major Christian group represented
  (Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical, Charismatic)
• More than 600 contributors
• Complete biblical, historical, theological, and cultural analysis
• Complete examples of services from every tradition
• Helpful adaptations of ancient and historical services for contemporary use
• Exhaustive annotated bibliographies

Praise for the Print Edition

Robert Webber’s creative oeuvre of collected worship resources, The Library of Christian Worship is now available on disc. And the thing is bursting with information on worship—spanning from things you know you need to know, all the way to those smallest details that you never imagined you needed to know about worship...The idea is so good and the application meets so many requirements, this is definitely a resource that every pastor and worship leader should add to their software library.

—Worship Leader

Product Details

• Title: The Complete Library of Christian Worship (7 vols.)
• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Volumes: 7
• Pages: 3,438

Vol. I: The Biblical Foundations of Christian Worship

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1993
• Pages: 365

Table of Contents

A comprehensive guide to a biblical theology of worship and much, much more. Relates every aspect of worship to its biblical pattern. Theological themes of sacrifice, covenant, numinous; Institutions such as Tabernacle, Temple, synagogue, early Christian. Biblical foundations of festivals, music, arts, sacred actions.

In an extraordinary way, The Biblical Foundations of Christian Worship is a massive and comprehensive undertaking designed to provide the biblical context out of which worship is celebrated and enacted. It establishes the working definition for worship through the specific vocabularies of the Old and New Testaments and highlights the use of symbolism, sacrifice, a sense of the numinous, and the myriad of responses to salvation history. It culminates with the history of Israelite/Jewish and New Testament worship, the biblical institutions of worship and those who lead in its celebration, and then reaches its zenith with the depiction of the use of music and art in its varied forms and other sacred acts which are integral parts of the worship tradition.

—Richard A. Rollins, Liaison Officer, National Baptist Convention of America, Inc.

Vol. II: Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1994
• Pages: 413

Table of Contents

Have you ever wanted to know how Christians in other periods of history worshiped? This book puts every major liturgy at your fingertips: Early Church, Orthodox, Catholic, Lutheran, Reformed, Anabaptist, Post-Reformation, Contemporary. It also presents the theology of each liturgy and guidelines for renewal of worship.

Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship is a valuable resource for exploring the richly textured worship heritage of the Christian church. It is at once broad and specific, with a clarity of focus that challenges readers to understand the present by looking at the past and to think critically but sensitively about why and how Christians worship.

—Edith Blumhofer, Executive Director, Institute for the Study of American Evangelicals

Vol. III: The Renewal of Sunday Worship

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1993
• Pages: 435

Table of Contents

This book is your guide to implementing worship renewal in your local church. Models, styles and resources for entrance, Word, Lord's Supper, dismissal, preaching, planning and leading worship.

Teachers and students of worship have long needed a composite resource for planning and leading participatory worship, one which respects tradition and, at the same time, focuses on worship renewal in the contemporary church. Robert Webber combines his years of scholarly research and personal experiences with contributions from over 60 denominations and 600 writers. The result is The Renewal of Sunday Worship, a storehouse of resources that bring theory and practice together for the worshiping community.

—Nancy Rosenberger Faus, Brighthill Professor of Ministry Studies, Bethany Theological Seminary

Vol. IV: Music & the Arts in Worship (Book A and B)

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1994
• Pages: 866

Table of Contents

Learn how to use an eclectic sampling of music in your worship: theology of music, history of congregational song, jubilation, singing, instruments, planning, and leading.  Resources and interpretation of every aspect of the arts in worship: visual arts, environment, drama, dance, mime, language, poetry.

The opening section of Music and the Arts in Christian Worship offers an overview of the current worship practices of most of the major denominations in this country, each prepared by a person active in that particular church. Read individually, they furnish a wealth of fresh ideas; collectively, they give evidence that, while each denomination remains theologically focused on its tradition and centers its worship on the familiar, there is hardly one which is not actively re-examining its worship philosophy and experimenting with new forms, music, and visual art. Style is becoming more and more eclectic, and there is a healthy regard for the special contribution that every individual may make. Worship, once almost the property of the officiating clergyman rigorously hewing to a prescribed pattern, has rightly become the responsibility of every person.

—Philip Beggrov Peters, Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan

Vol. V: The Services of the Christian Year

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1994
• Pages: 497

Table of Contents

Includes every conceivable service from Advent to Pentecost in a ready-to-use form. History and theology of the Christian year, use of the arts in each season. Explanation and resources for Advent Christmas, Epiphany, Lent, Holy Week, Easter, Pentecost. Lectionary readings and music suggestions for each season.

Services of the Christian Year is unrivaled in the breadth of the resources it makes available, both for understanding the celebrations of the Christian church and for the actual worship services which surround Christmas and Easter. It is enlightening and inspiring.

—Arlo D. Duba, Professor of Worship, University of Dubuque Theological Seminary

Filled to the brim and running over, Services of the Christian Year offers a wealth of guidance, resources, and wisdom for the doing, leading, and understanding of worship. Busy and thoughtful pastors and others should find themselves turning to these pages again and again.

—John E. Burkhart, Cyrus H. McCormick Professor of Systematic Theology, McCormick Theological Seminary

Vol. VI: The Sacred Actions of Worship

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1994
• Pages: 367

Table of Contents

Here you will find a renewed understanding and practical application for all sacred actions of the church: baptism, confirmation, Lord's Supper, child dedication, marriage, funerals, ordination, anointing, and foot-washing.

In this comprehensive volume, an ecumenical group of evangelical scholars, denominational leaders, and ministers provide insight into the traditions and practices of the sacred actions of worship in the ancient, Medieval, Eastern Orthodox, Reformation, and modern churches. Other sections highlight the historical origins and development of ritual in worship. Numerous historical and contemporary liturgical and special worship services are provided throughout the volume.

The combination of historical and theological surveys with sample outlines for liturgies and worship services is unique, as is the range of coverage: from baptism and the Lord's Supper to child dedication, foot washing, and renewal of baptismal pledges as practiced by a wide variety of Christian groups. The Sacred Actions of Christian Worship is a rich storehouse of information and guidance for those who plan and participate in Christian worship.

—Dennis D. Martin, Assistant Professor of Theology, Loyola University

Vol. VII: The Ministries of Christian Worship

• Editor: Robert E. Webber
• Publisher: Star Song Publishing Group
• Publication Date: 1994
• Pages: 495

Table of Contents

Worship is the context for ministry. This volume will show you how worship and pastoral ministries work hand in hand: children, women, multicultural, pastoral care, home worship, education, Catholic RCIA, hospitality, evangelism, justice.

This remarkable volume contains a rich storehouse of worship resources for use on cooperative ministries among people of diverse Christian persuasion. It is a valuable ecumenical resource for Christian educators, pastors, and all who engage in the practice of worship as it relates to education, evangelism, pastoral care, and personal spiritual formation.

—Sonja Stewart, Professor of Christian Education, Western Theological Seminary

A. W. Tozer once commented that worship was the missing jewel of the church. Robert Webber, through The Complete Library of Christian Worship, is providing a much needed resource for churches of every denomination to rediscover that jewel. The Complete Library of Christian Worship has the necessary height, depth, and breadth of appeal to instruct all of God's diverse family in the celebration of praise. It is a resource that can equip the twenty-first-century church to enter the timeless presence of God.

—Terry Wardle, Senior Pastor Risen King Community Church

About Robert E. Webber

Robert E. Webber was, at the time of his death, Myers Professor of Ministry at Northern Seminary in Lombard, Illinois, and served as the president of the Institute for Worship Studies in Orange Park, Florida. Over 30,000 people have attended his workshops, and he has authored over forty books on worship and the church, including the Ancient-Future Collection, available from Logos. He has also written Renew Your Worship and developed a complete audio and video series based on the book and its related workshops. Prior to his appointment at Northern Seminary, Webber taught at Wheaton College for thirty-two years as professor of theology. He has taught courses on the history, theology, and practice of worship and spirituality.