We’re excited to open registration for the School for Formation’s courses in Fall 2022! As our congregations emerge from the pandemic, we want to see how the School for Formation can better serve lay leaders in their discipleship and innovation. This year, the Rev. Canon Blair Pogue will teach a new course, Practicing the Way … More A peek into the School for Formation’s fall lineup
Here you’ll find some tools and approaches to dive more deeply into the priority of congregational vitality. These key touchpoints can be used by congregations large and small, congregations with full-time clergy and congregations that are lay-led, and everything in between. … More Unpacking ECMN’s Priority of Vital Congregations
Looking to the Holy Spirit’s leadership, trusting in God’s promises, and taking steps to do new things requires us to set aside some fear in favor of excitement. We believe that learning key skills and grounding ourselves in wise practices lets us see better, and respond more hopefully, to where the Holy Spirit is leading our congregations. … More What do you need to face the future with a sense of adventure?
What we hope to offer in this set of sixteen commitments is a vision of what it looks like for a congregation to thrive by being committed to discipleship, justice, innovation, and their own vital practice of love. None of it requires a congregation to have a big building, a big budget, or a paid staff. All of it is more about process than product: how we be together, rather than what we accomplish. We hope this vision gives you a good dose of clarity: what it means to be church is pretty simple. Not easy, but simple. … More A Church that Looks, Acts, and Loves like Jesus
Practices, pacing, purpose – all of these are at the heart of what we seek to offer in the courses and workshops of the School for Formation. And perhaps in community in your congregation or in one of our courses you might find some new courage to say hello to darkness. As you look at the months ahead, these resources are available to you. If feeding your mind and learning in community with other Episcopalians feels like Good News to you, register now for one of our courses that begin in the new year. … More Pacing through winter
Christian tradition holds that the story we tell about his life, death, and resurrection is a promise for all of us — not just for life after death, but for life in the midst of change, loss, and grief. … More Registration open for fall courses
Rather than letting fear drive our ways of gathering, we can choose to bring our faith, our critical thinking and our values of hospitality to our life together, with best practices and tools that can shape our shared life in the way of Jesus. … More Safety, fear, and love
These courses start as soon as February 3, 2020, so don’t delay! … More We’ve got a gift for you.
Last week when I met a friend for coffee, she showed up wearing a t-shirt she had gotten at an Ani DiFranco concert. It said, “The world owes me nothing. We owe each other the world.” This is true for us who follow the way of Jesus, my friends. It’s language from one of our … More In for the Long Haul
True, inspired, healthy, effective, successful leadership requires a tremendous amount of inner work on the part of the leader. … More Courage and Renewal for Leaders
The mission opportunity (read: ECMN learning goal) for the year might look so tidy, and some of it so familiar, that you could think to yourself, “Oh, this looks on brand.” But it’s a massive theological statement boiled into one line. … More Unpacking ‘the way of love’
Looking for resources to train acolytes, lectors, lay eucharistic ministers, lay eucharistic visitors, and altar guild folks? These short video courses offer worship leader training in short videos you can access when it suits your group. The School for Formation’s partnership with ChurchNext means your faith community can access these resources at no additional cost. … More Worship leaders: This is for you
Get a refresher on some of the hardest work of ministry! ECMN Clergy: We’re offering five free spots in our Pastoral Care: Advanced Skills course, taught by the pros at Leaderwise. Use the code LABCOAT — and register soon before the spots fill up. The course starts August 5!
We continue our annual tradition of collecting notes at ECMN’s Clergy Conference on media, continuing education, and other soul-feeding resources. … More Take up and read
Our hearts and minds have been molded not to see the sin of racism when it is standing right in front of us. When it is speaking inside of us. … More Three Ways to Worship When You’re Snowed In This Sunday
Consider this phrase: willing to be changed.This attitude is at the heart of any faith journey: the conscious consent to being transformed by that which we encounter. Perhaps, sometimes, that means the conscious discernment about how we wish to be changed, and the pursuit of experiences that will shape us — though that pursuit can … More Willing to Be Changed
Faith formation means experiencing beloved community, and practicing building it with others. … More Formed by and for Beloved Community
Join your fellow deacons and priests in a day of immersion in practices for a Jesus-centered life. … More Clergy Retreat: The Way of Love
Whether you are an everyday Christian wondering what to do with our Presiding Bishop’s call to evangelism, or a preacher or pastor seeking the ground of your most tender and impactful work, you are welcome. … More What is truth?
Looking for inspiration for your continuing education for this year? Check out this guest post from Katherine Lewis and Tom Sinning. Did you take part in an exceptional formation event? Write it up and share it with us! The Rev. Katherine Lewis (St. David’s, Minnetonka) and the Rev. Tom Sinning (Emmanuel, Alexandria) immersed themselves in … More The Path of Descent is the Path of Transformation
