Recent events have reminded us that as we proclaim the gospel, we continually encounter the unexpected and are called into places of vulnerability. At our best, we meet these challenges with fortitude, steadfastness, and resilience. What practical strategies can we share to form communities in those virtues? How do we teach and shape Christians to proclaim Christ’s good news amid the challenges of the unexpected and the pain of the world’s brokenness? As we engage the present and look to the future, how do we form communities of courage and hope?
2021 Themes & Gatherings
2021 Themes
Formation for the Missionary Church in a Changing World
(Gatherings: Seattle, Arizona)
Racial Reconciliation and Discipleship in the Missionary Church
(Gatherings: Virtual September)
Our Presiding Bishop has called us into a deeper understanding of the relationship between evangelism and racial reconciliation. It has been said that Sunday morning is the most segregated time in America, because our worshipping communities often reflect the dividing lines of race rather than the unity of Christ’s Body or the glorious diversity of God’s creation. We wish to explore the connection between discipleship, mission, and racial reconciliation. Continuing events in our nation make this work all the more urgent. We understand ourselves, as Christians, to be called to reconciliation. How does making disciples facilitate and celebrate racial reconciliation in our particular contexts? How are the church’s legacies of racial division and racial healing affecting your work of evangelism and mission? What signs of hope do you see? Within the context of the Great Commission, what roles do confession, repentance, forgiveness and reparation play in the work of racial reconciliation within ourselves, our congregations and the Episcopal Church?
2021 Gatherings
Seattle Gathering
Date:Monday, August 23 – Wednesday, August 25, 2021
Location: Dumas Bay Center
Theme: Formation for the Missionary Church
Register here for Seattle.
Virtual September Gathering
Date: Tuesday, September 21 – Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Location: Zoom
Theme: Racial Reconciliation and Discipleship
Register here for the Virtual September Gathering.
Arizona Gathering
Date: Monday, October 25 – Wednesday, October 27, 2021
Location: Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale, AZ
Theme: Formation for the Missionary Church
Register here Arizona