By Joan C. McKinney, director of university communications
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. — Michael Card, a contemporary Christian recording artist and author, and John Mark McMillan, worship leader and Christian recording artist, will hold concerts on the campus of Campbellsville University Thursday, March 29 and Friday, March 30. McMillan will also be on campus Wednesday, March 28, as Convo speaker.
Their appearances are in conjunction with Campbellsville University’s worship arts conference, titled “The Power of Lament: Passion & Praise in a Minor Key,” Thursday, March 29 to Friday, March 30, 2007.
Lament, or bringing hurt out before God and everyone, is the main focus of the conference, according to Dr. John Hurtgen, dean of the School of Theology.
Participants will be encouraged to focus on the lamenting style of the Psalms and explore lament in music, theology and arts in the service of worship.
“We live in a hurt culture,” Hurtgen said. “Unfortunately, the church is often not the place where lament – bringing our hurt out before God and everybody – is encouraged.
“We are too quick to put an end to the process, if it ever gets started.”
He said 1/3 to almost ½ of the 150 Psalms takes the form of lament, we would do well to relearn and experience ‘the power of lament,’” Hurtgen said.
“Join us for our first annual Worship Arts Conference where we will explore lament in theology, music and the arts in the service of worship,” Hurtgen said.
Registration for the conference is $35 for the general public. Registration fee includes conference materials and tickets to both concerts.
For those interested in the evening concert only with Michael Card March 29, tickets are $8, $12 and $15. The John Mark McMillan workshop concert March 30 is free.
Registration can be done online at www.iTickets.com or by phone at 1-800-965-9324. In a career that spans 25 years, Michael Card has recorded over 20 In a career that spans 25 years, Card has recorded over 20 albums and authored or co-authored over 14 books. While he has penned such favorites as “El Shaddai,” “Love Crucified Arose,” and “Emmanuel, the popularity of his work seems a stark contrast to his goal in life, to simply and quietly teach the Bible, Hurtgen said.
For more information on Michael Card, visit www.michaelcard.com.
“A patriotic sound that incorporates bold stripped down blues with a voice reminiscent of Pete Yorn” is how The Hard Music Magazine describes McMillan.
A 26-year-old songwriter from Charlotte, N.C., McMillan is a growing presence in the U.S. and in the U.K., according to his web site. “His combination of honest lyricism and raw musicality has won him fans from all parts of the globe,” Hurtgen said.
For more information on John Mark McMillan, visit www.thejohnmark.com.
The conference is sponsored by Campbellsville University’ School of Theology and the Office of Church and External Relations.
The conference coincides with the creation of a new field of study at CU, a bachelor’s degree in worship arts. This degree with be under the School of Theology and include classes in theology, music, arts, communication and theater.
For more information on the conference or the new worship arts area degree, contact Betty Hatfield, secretary of the School of Theology, at (270) 789-5029.
Campbellsville University, now celebrating her Centennial year, is a private, comprehensive institution located in South Central Kentucky. Founded in 1906, Campbellsville University is affiliated with the Kentucky Baptist Convention and has an enrollment of 2,310 students who represent 100 Kentucky counties, 32 states and 28 foreign nations. Listed in U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” 14 consecutive years as one of the leading Southern master’s colleges and universities, Campbellsville University is located 82 miles southwest of Lexington, Ky., and 80 miles southeast of Louisville, Ky. Dr. Michael V. Carter is in his eighth year as president.