In this installment of “Working in the Vineyard,” Pray Tell presents the Institute of Liturgical Studies at Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Indiana, in a conversation with Rev. James Wetzstein, University Pastor and Executive Director of the Institute of Liturgical Studies.
What is the mission of the Institute of Liturgical Studies?
The Institute of Liturgical Studies (ILS) at Valparaiso University hosts an annual meeting the second week of Easter. ILS meets under an annual theme, the purpose of which is to focus the liturgies, plenaries, and workshops offered on a common and timely topic. In 2023, ILS will be gathering under the theme Creation, not Commodity: the Church’s Liturgy in a Consumer Culture.
Consumer or market culture’s role in our lives is so ubiquitous that we frequently fail to recognize its presence and influence over us. Even committed church folk will talk about “church shopping” when they move to a new location.
We live in a consumer culture in which our collective and personal economic well-being depends on our shared habits of material consumption. Those in ministry know that the market economy driving this consumption – with its emphasis on personal choice – impacts how the local congregation positions itself within its ministry context or fails to do so. At the 2023 annual meeting, ILS will seek to better understand the ways in which consumer culture impacts liturgical life. How might that impact be countered through careful curating of the church’s liturgical theology? We will also be seeking practical guidance for what we, as church practitioners, might learn positively from those who work to drive consumer desires in the marketplace.
An overwhelming majority of ILS participants tell us that the excellent practice of the liturgy is at the center of their experience at the Institute. This is one of the reasons why we schedule ILS when we do – to refresh those who serve in liturgical leadership after they’ve so selflessly served their communities through the Three Great Days.
What is the history of the institute?
The Institute of Liturgical Studies will be marking its 75th anniversary in 2024. Founded in 1947 at Valparaiso University, the Institute grew out of the earlier work of the St. James Society of Lutheran clergy and others who were committed to liturgical renewal in the Church. Valparaiso University President O.P. Kretzmann was a supporter of liturgical renewal among Lutherans and believed that University sponsorship would help sustain the movement as it helped the University fulfill its mission to serve the church. Herbert Lindemann, the second director of the Institute, chaired the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship, the body whose work produced the Lutheran Book of Worship, a major milestone in liturgical renewal among North American Lutherans in the 20th century. Lindemann’s successor, Hans Boehringer, was among the founders of Societas Liturgica.
In the wake of these significant developments, the Institute has sought to form and nurture the liturgical leadership of the Church even as it continues to be a proving ground for robust liturgical theology. In this anniversary year, ILS is initiating a track of training workshops for less experienced leaders. This year, three workshops will cover the work of presiding, chanting, and processions.
Increasing ecumenical leadership and other diversities are also among the near-term goals of ILS.
Who is your main audience?
The ILS audience is a mix of worship practitioners – clergy and musicians. ILS offers free registration to full-time students enrolled in programs that are preparing them to serve worshiping communities.
The occasional papers of the Institute are published by the Valparaiso University Archive and enjoy international readership.
What contribution do you seek to bring to the Church?
The Institute of Liturgical Studies – based at a Lutheran University – seeks to foster continued ecumenical liturgical renewal. As such, we seek to gather scholars and practitioners from across the Church for fruitful dialogue, mutual encouragement, and practical learning. We are seeing an increasing opportunity to provide liturgical training to those in the early years of ministry. All of the worship services and plenary addresses are available on the ILS YouTube channel.
May God Prosper your Work!
This interview with Jim Wetzstein was conducted by email.