WRSP 502 A History of Worship Music

This is a study of the history of worship music from the early church through the modern period. Emphasis is given to changes in worship practices resulting from the Reformation, the Great Awakenings, revival moments, large evangelistic crusades of the 1940s and 1950s, Jesus Movement, Praise and Worship Movement and Modern Worship.

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

At the heart of successful worship leadership is the preparation and presentation of worship. The course seeks to help the worship leader accomplish these tasks on a regular basis by raising awareness of the historical development of worship and how it has and is influencing worshipers within the evangelical tradition.

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

No details available.

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist in the Course Overview.

Discussions (2)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, throughout the course, the student will participate in class discussions. The student will post a thread between 250–300 words discussing various assigned topics related to worship history and then post replies to the threads of at least 2 classmates between 150–200 words each.

Paper: Summary of Old Testament, New Testament and Early Church Worship Practices Assignment

The student will write one (1) paper addressing a specific aspect of Worship History. This paper has a specific focus and is based upon course content. The purpose of this paper is to challenge the student to synthesize the content of the course and articulate it in a compelling manner.

Worksheet Assignments (2)

These worksheets will challenge the student to synthesize and articulate what he/she has learned about music in different eras of church history and are also designed to give the student practice properly citing different types of sources using Turabian.

For this assignment, the student will create a properly formatted (according to the university Turabian guidelines) annotated bibliography containing at least 12 resources (not including the Bible) which he/she plans on using in his/her Capstone Research Project.

Interview: Reformation Worship Contributor Assignment

The student will research an individual who made a significance contribution in changes to worship practices during the Reformation. Then, the student will utilize AI to critically engage with a generated version of the individual and reflect on and evaluate that interaction.

Capstone Research Paper Assignment

The student will complete a capstone project which will include a final paper of 12–16 pages, utilizing at least 10 sources. The paper will present an overview of Worship History. It will be written in Turabian format (notes-bibliography) and must include a title page, footnotes, and a bibliography.

Lim and Ruth Book Critique Assignment

The student must complete a critique of Lovin’ on Jesus by Swee Hong Lim and Lester Ruth. For each of the eight chapters, the student must use the template provided and write a summary, an analysis, and a 1-sentence statement of what was learned. Each chapter report must be no more than 1-page long. (Outcomes: A, C, and D).