Monday, September 21 – Wednesday, September 23, 2020
ONLINE!
Pastors, deacons and those recognized as available for synodically authorized ministry in the Central/Southern Illinois Synod come together annually for a time of renewal and rest. Typically we gather at Lake Williamson Christian Center in Carlinville, but the pandemic has intruded on this event as well.
We will not gather in Carlinville this year. We will gather via Zoom. The conference will take place over the previously scheduled three days, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, September 21-23, 9:00 a.m. through 11:45 a.m. daily. This year’s registration fee is $95 per attendee. The fee covers an honorarium for the speaker and will be used to offset the cancellation fee due to Lake Williamson Christian Center.
Becoming a 3rd Way Church: Ministry in an Ever-changing Mission Field
Our featured presenter will be Pastor Richard Webb, Executive Pastor: Discipleship for Lutheran Church of Hope in West Des Moines, Iowa. He will lead us in conversations about helping local communities of faith to be “good news people.” He will challenge us to think about identifying context and then strategically responding. He promotes the language of being a “3rd way church” as confessionally Lutheran and a helpful construct when striving to be a confessional church/movement addressing the current landscape.
Women ministers are also invited to attend a one hour workshop with Barbara Keller, ELCA Consultant for Prevention of Clergy Sexual Misconduct, on Monday, 12:00 p.m. through 1:00 p.m. Barbara will help us name the many ways women leaders are harassed in the church, providing insights on the abusers, who they are and why they abuse. Barbara will provide tools to help women know how to address the harassment and where to turn for help. Barbara Keller has been the consultant for the prevention of sexual misconduct to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America since 2006. Her responsibilities include: Professional Boundary training, Safe church seminars and workshops for pastors who follow a misconduct. Barbara is also available by phone and email to victims, bishops, pastors and church leaders who are communicating with victims and those who are dealing with other issues of sexual abuse. Prior to working for the church, Barbara supervised a treatment program in suburban Philadelphia for sex offenders, domestic violence offenders, adult and child victims.
There will be a time for breakout groups on Wednesday. Here are the proposed topics for the breakout groups; if you have a topic that you would like to spearhead for a breakout group, talk with any synod staff person about it.
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- Anti-racism approaches in the church – what will make a positive difference?
- Navigating in-person worship AND online worship
- Confirmation and Youth Ministry in the pandemic
- Discussion of Growing Young: Six Strategies to Help Young People Discover and Love Your Church
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Register Here:
Please note, registration for this event is limited to pastors, deacons, and those recognized as available for synodically authorized ministry in the Central/Southern Illinois Synod.
Here is the full schedule for the conference:
Monday, September 21
- 9:00 a.m. Dwelling in the Word
- 9:30 a.m. Pastor Richard Webb
- 11:40 a.m. Responsive Prayer
- 12:00 p.m. Women in Ministry: Understanding and Addressing Harassment
Tuesday, September 22
- 9:00 a.m. Dwelling in the Word
- 9:30 a.m. Pastor Richard Webb
- 10:40 a.m. An hour with the bishop
- 11:40 a.m. Responsive Prayer
Wednesday, September 23
- 9:00 a.m. Dwelling in the Word
- 9:30 a.m. Pastor Richard Webb
- 10:40 a.m. Breakout Groups
- 11:40 a.m. Closing Devotions