Learning through Story and Art
UIW students engaged kindergarten children at St. Anthony Catholic School in biblical storytelling and creative activities, including tissue paper flowers and paper stained glass windows.
Artful Worship: Inspiring Children’s Faith Through the Catholic Imagination
Artful Worship is a University of the Incarnate Word program connecting faculty, students and community partners to nurture children’s faith and participation in prayer and worship. Through literature, storytelling, music, theatre and visual arts, children explore and express their faith. Rooted in the Catholic imagination, the program invites participants to recognize God’s presence through beauty, creativity and ordinary life.
Program Activities
- Graduate and undergraduate coursework integrating academic inquiry, creative practice and community service.
- Educational activities with children in local parishes and schools exploring faith through storytelling, music and visual arts.
- Children’s summer arts programming centered on faith, creativity and the Catholic imagination.
- Guest lectures and presentations featuring invited scholars and visiting professors from other Catholic universities.
- Community presentations, performances, and collaborative arts events connecting scholarship, faith and cultural expression.
Little Lights Arts Camp
UIW partnered with St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School for Little Lights Arts Camp, June 8–12, 2026. Part of Artful Worship, the camp invited children entering kindergarten through sixth grade to explore faith, creativity and God’s presence through storytelling, music, art, movement and prayer.
Artful Worship Celebration
In April 2026, UIW brought university and community members together for presentations, musical performances and creative activities exploring faith and the Catholic imagination.
Contact and Participation
We welcome families, students, educators, parishes, and schools to connect with Artful Worship. To learn about participation or explore opportunities for collaboration and partnership, please contact Dr. LuElla D’Amico.
Funding Acknowledgment
Supported by a $1.25 million grant awarded to UIW in 2024 by Lilly Endowment Inc. through its Nurturing Children Through Worship and Prayer Initiative.
UIW Receives $1.25 Million Grant to Promote Children’s Faith Through Innovative Creative Arts Program
The University of the Incarnate Word (UIW) is proud to announce that it has received a $1.25 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. The grant will be used over the next five years to fund the new, innovative creative arts program Artful Worship: Inspiring Children’s Faith Through the Catholic Imagination. The program aims to create enlivening and contemplative programming that engages children in prayer and worship through the arts.
Embracing God’s Creative Gifts: UIW Hosts Inaugural Artful Worship Celebration
On Wednesday, April 15, UIW hosted the inaugural Artful Worship Celebration on the Broadway campus to showcase the program’s developments over just one year. Additionally, members of the community were invited to ignite their inner creativity by hearing from guest speakers on the Catholic imagination, viewing artistic and musical performances, engage in a book signing and more.
Inspiring a New Generation in Faith | A Message from President Evans
Dr. Evans announces that UIW has received a $1.25 million grant from Lilly Endowment, Inc. to support a new, innovative program called Artful Worship: Inspiring Children’s Faith Through the Catholic Imagination.