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Videos & Resources from the New England Gathering

Videos & Resources from the New England Gathering

October 2, 2018 From the Director, New England 2018

The Gathering in New England brought together the most regionally, ethnically, and racially diverse group of gifted, hope-filled clergy that we have ever had, and in this year where are theme brings us together to discuss and share mission and evangelism in the church through Racial Reconciliation and Discipleship, we could not be more humbled.

The peer-led presentations, deep table conversations, and personal reflections encouraged us all to share, listen, hold sacred the tension, and at times both laugh and cry. The honesty and deep personal stories, as with the Gathering at San Francisco, allowed for our attendees to gain new perspectives and insights in the issues at hand, and allowed for them to share real methods for engaging with their congregations and calls back home surrounding this tough topic.

Here are just a few comments directly from those in attendance:

“The theme, participants, and facilitation helped me to grow, listen, and learn. The diversity of the group also gives me hope for the church.”

“I have been involved in interracial work for 30 years. The vigor, depth, and candor of these discussions was a gift.”

“I was a little anxious about how the theme would be handled, but everything far exceeded my expectations. As already mentioned all the presentations and conversations, while difficult, were incredibly helpful and inspiring.”

We have one Gathering left this year to discuss and connect over this year’s theme of Racial Reconciliation and Discipleship.  It is currently sold out, but a wait list became available yesterday.  Due to the nature of clergy schedules, we always have a few cancellations leading up to a Gathering, so I encourage you to join the wait list if you would like to engage in this year’s theme.

On our blog, you can read three reflections from attendees at the New England Gathering, and for our Participants (clergy who have attended at least one Gathering), videos and resources from New England are available on our website.

Lastly, I would like to sincerely thank our Chair Bishop Duncan Gray and our New England Facilitators Bob Schorr and Jamie Martin-Currie for all their hard work and dedication toward making the Gathering such a success. Also, I offer my sincerest thank you to all those attendees who said ‘yes’ to offer a presentation, reflection, or otherwise share in the peer-learning that defines the Gathering of Leaders!


Sincerely,
Haley Bankey
Executive Director, Gathering of Leaders

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What I am saying is that we do not yet have a strategy or definition for who we need to be right now and into the future. When seeking relevance in a modern world, how do we, the Episcopal Church, be the thing that bends and yet does not break? Do we need to break in order to find our undiscovered future? I repeat: We have all been called into ministry at this time, in this world, and to our specific roles for a reason. It is here where the Gathering of Leaders (GOL) network is called to play a key role, as are so many leaders in our church, both ordained and lay. GOL and its participants have always had a hope-filled vision for the future – but we have never defined what that future looks like. Instead we are building that future as we go. WE are the boots on the ground. WE are defining the future. WE are leading that future right now. This critical point where we find ourselves does not have to be an inflection point. We do not have to die faster than our numbers show; instead, we are reimagining our ministry, re-envisioning our methods, and reclaiming the Great Commission in as yet undiscovered ways! The pandemic is forcing us to be the church in ways we never imagined. We are being forced to evolve while maintaining the core of who we are, and it was for this that we were called. Finally, and most importantly, you can share your thoughts, methods, and strategies for addressing this critical point in the history of the church with others. Through GOL’s partnership with the Episcopal Church Foundation, we have a broad audience with whom we can share the creative, life-giving, and Christ-centered ways that you are impacting people daily in the name of Christ, and through which you are discovering the future we are being called to define. From my own liminal space, Haley Bankey Executive Director, Gathering of Leaders haley@thegatheringofleaders.org Notes/Ideas: Critical Point: A critical point of a continuous function f is a point at which the derivative is zero or undefined. The ‘ache’ we feel as a church is that we are undefined. We are in limbo. We are all seeking the ‘answer’ but by definition of a critical point, that answer is undefined. Inflection point in business: [A] strategic inflection point is a time in the life of a business when its fundamentals are about to change. That change can mean an opportunity to rise to new heights. But it may just as likely signal the beginning of the end .” Andrew Grove, ex-CEO of Intel from Only the Paranoid Survive The pandemic is forcing us to be the church when we can’t come together for Eucharist the way we always want to. We are being forced to evolve. GOL is built on a hope-filled future – but we have never defined what that future looks like. 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Gathering of leaders is committed to connecting young, creative, proven clergy-leaders in the Episcopal church. Through our focus on peer learning we are dedicated to church growth in both numbers and spiritual growth. Our clergy participants are both local and national leaders who connect and collaborate through our Gatherings and tools.

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