(re)Imagining Worship Together: Presbyterian Gathering Explores Creative Rituals and Community Engagement

At the 1001 New Worshiping Communities gathering in Estes Park, Colorado, participants explored new ways of worship that emphasized creativity, community, and shared experience. The event, themed “(re)considering Jesus,” aimed to reimagine the future of the church through rituals that resonate with younger generations.

Rev. Katrina Zezza, serving as the “vibe coordinator” for the sanctuary space, played a key role in shaping the worship environment. She described the 1001 movement as an invitation to dream about the church’s future together. Zezza transformed the chapel into a space that encouraged participation and imagination, using elements like serapes on pews, cloud-shaped stickers, and areas for writing and sharing ideas.

Participants were encouraged to engage in creative activities, such as writing on butcher paper about what they were building, deconstructing, or reconstructing in their communities. Zezza also invited attendees to wear cloud-shaped “thought bubble” stickers to foster conversations throughout the event.

Tuesday morning worship featured a communal art practice where participants used watercolor pencils and paint to create collaborative artwork. The exercise, framed as an invitation to “try this and see what happens,” emphasized shared creation and freedom from the pressure to be original or perfect.

Rev. Ruth Lin Nakai, leader of The Weaving Table in Chicago, facilitated the morning worship under the title “An Invitation to a Creative Faith.” She connected the gathering’s theme to the First Nations translation of Jesus’ name, “Creator Sets Free,” and described creativity as a force that calls out to each person’s life. Nakai reimagined the central Biblical text, Hebrews 12, as an invitation to “dance with zeal,” sing, paint, and create as expressions of faith.

Nakai emphasized that the liturgical exercise was a model of ritual that welcomed experimentation and shared creation. She stated, “The invitation is not to be as original as possible. It’s simply to make marks and to see what happens.”

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