Thoughts On My Time Away ...
This year’s Christian Formation Conference was a stimulating mix of plenary
sessions, workshops, worship, networking and conversation all revolving
around the theme of “Living Our Baptismal Promises: A Call to Wholeness.”
Attended by over 110 ordained and lay persons from across the church, all of
whom had interests in Christian education and formation, the Conference
energized and inspired me to put into practice the numerous new resources
and ideas I encountered. It also didn’t hurt that the Conference was held at
Kanuga in the beautiful mountains of western North Carolina and that Martha
was able to travel with me!
Kate Gillooly, Minister for Christian Formation and Programming at St.
Paul’s Episcopal Church in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was the keynote speaker.
Focusing on living, loving, caring and sharing, over four days she shared
her thoughts on living into our baptismal covenant as teachers and
educators. The Rev. Mark Bozzuti-Jones, Priest for Pastoral Care and Nurture
at Trinity Wall Street, New York, served as chaplain and led Conference
worship. Canadians Linnea Good and David Jonnson were Conference musicians
of extraordinary talent. Bud Holland, who before his recent retirement was a
member of the Presiding Bishop’s staff, led a plenary session on the power
of stories in our common faith journey. These talented leaders were
supported by Conference coordinators and staff; all contributed to making
the Conference an outstanding event.
Several talented and experienced Christian Educators led numerous workshops
during the week. I attended workshops which focused on specific challenges
facing Christian educators in today’s church and which I felt relevant to
our life at All Saints’: “Intergenerational Faith” (how Sunday morning
worship can become the most effective tool for faith formation for people of
all ages); “Faith in the Home” (how to build bridges between the parish and
its households); “Adolescent Faith Formation” (a fascinating look at how the
Church can nourish adolescent faith and be nourished in return) and “Faith &
Sexuality” (how to talk with parents and kids about sex while making the
connection between faith and sexuality—the presenter suggested that that
conversation should begin in preschool). Every workshop presenter offered
“best practices” and other resources, many of which we can put to use at All
Saints’ almost immediately. I also attended a workshop on “Marketing Your
Church” (how to invite people to understand and care about the programs
offered by your church) which was very informative. We have much to do on
that front!
During the week multiple workshops I wanted to attend were scheduled at the
same time. Martha stepped in and helped out on two such occasions by
attending workshops I could not. The first was “Children with Special Needs”
(how to adapt curricula, presentations and activities for individuals with a
variety of disabilities). Although trained to teach children with
disabilities, Martha was introduced to and inspired by a recently published
book written by the Rev. Dr. Brett Webb-Mitchell titled Beyond
Accessibility: Toward Full Inclusion of People with Disabilities in Faith
Communities. As we together renew our efforts to fully incorporate all
people into our common life, Martha will assist in putting into practice
certain ideas and strategies suggested in that book. The second workshop was
titled “Love Makes a Family” (consideration of the implications of a
congregation becoming fully inclusive of all varieties of households) led by
Heidi Clark, a consultant I hired to work with parents and teachers while
serving as Interim Rector at Church of the Holy Apostles in Collierville,
Tennessee. Martha reported that Heidi did a wonderful job sharing her story
and work. Thank you Martha for helping out!
Fortunately, the Conference was not all work and no play. Martha treated
herself to two sessions of Christian Yoga during the week. You can expect
her to start a yoga group at church later in the year. Martha and I also
enjoyed lots of porch time and together attended the entertaining workshop
“Cool Wine for a Summer Eve” taught by the Rev. Paul Bailey of Hammond,
Louisiana. Paul spent his sabbatical studying wine making and tasting—what a
grand idea!!—and was a fabulous teacher. He is also the Rector at the church
Martha’s twin sister and her husband attend—it was very good to make that
connection. We also had a chance to visit with former seminary classmates,
long-time friends (the Reverend Annwn Myers, Associate Chaplain for the
University of the South who did field work at All Saints’ while in seminary,
said to tell everyone hello) and to begin new friendships.
Thank you All Saints’ for the opportunity to be away and participate in this
Conference.
Paul+
