Rector – Reflections on the College for Congregational Development
The first week of June, Vestry member Heather Albertson and I traveled to Seattle to attend the Diocese of Olympia’s College for Congregational Development. Below are some observations and thoughts I’d like to share about the work we did. Heather will be offering her reflections at a later date, so stay tuned for more.
I’ll begin by saying I do continuing education of some sort every year, focusing on different ways I hope to grow as a priest and leader. Since graduating from seminary this is the most intensive and valuable learning I have done in one program. We arrived on a Sunday afternoon and immediately got to work. Our daily schedule was 12-13 hours of large group plenary sessions, small group work sessions, meals, and small breaks. Plus we had reading and homework in the evenings! We began every day with Morning Prayer and ended most nights with Compline. A highlight of the week was the afternoon that Presiding Bishop Michael Curry spent with us as a part of his Diocesan visit. Heather and I had front row seats to a lively and humorous Q&A session with him and Diocesan Bishop Greg Rickel.
The heart of the week, however, was the learning. So what, you might wonder, is Congregational Development (CD)? At its most basic, CD is the development of congregations of all size, locations, and conditions into more faithful, healthy, and effective communities. The focus of our learning, then was the how of CD. How do we develop congregations into more faithful, healthy, and effective communities?
Here’s a list of most of what we learned:
- Seven models and change processes that can be used for assessment & diagnosis, teaching & formation, data collection, intervention planning, development of common language, leadership & strategy, and direction, vision, and goals.
- Some basics of Facilitation and skills for leading meetings.
- What groups need in order to form and work productively.
- How to assess the culture of, and environmental influences on, organizations.
- Appreciative Inquiry and how to give and receive feedback.
- How to market our congregations
- How to identify the core identity of a congregation
- Effective websites
- Self-differentiated leadership
- Leadership of a congregational system (system’s thinking)
- Power, organizational politics, and empowerment, including Block’s Political Analysis
- Leader/Team working style model
- Decision making rules, models, and tools
- Options for how Vestry, Rector (and others) function in the congregation
- Planning for intervention and change, including organizational roles and their effect on the system and creating critical mass
If you’re invigorated – or exhausted – by reading that list, that is exactly how we felt! We came away with so many ideas of ways we can use what we’ve learned to grow St. James’ into a more faithful, healthy, and effective community. What will that look like? Well, to begin with, a part of our continuing work – our literal homework – is to do two projects using what we’ve learned here in our community. We have the first project planned, and it will focus on the Vestry. Our second project will grow from there, and may again be focused on the Vestry and other parish leaders, or may be more broadly planned for the whole parish. We’ll share more when we know more. In the meantime, I know I am beginning to fold learnings into my own leadership work. This may or may not be noticeable, but I am thankful for the opportunity to have gone to The College and to grow as a leader. Thank you all for the generous support of my time away to attend.
Yours in God’s peace,
Kristin+
Thrift Shop
Can you believe it is almost July?
The Thrift Shop is busier than ever. Our sales change daily so be sure to check out our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/StJamesThriftShop). News and sales are posted often.
Our next big sale is June 29th. This will be our Family and Friends savings Event. Everything in the store will be 25% off. (Excluding new and tagged clothing and fine jewelry).
We had a big donation of Maison Blanche furniture paint. There are arrays of colors in quart sizes to pick from. This will be on sale next week, perfect for your next DIY project.
Please come on in, you never know what treasure you will find at St. James Thrift Shop.
Thrift with purpose
Sandy baker: St James Thrift Shop Manager
Meal Ministry
Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer! The Meal Ministry invites you to try this super easy crock-pot dinner. You can assemble and freeze ahead of time, and then toss in the crock-pot when you don’t feel like heating up the house! P.S. Don’t forget to let us know if you, or anyone else in the Parish needs some meals! Just let Rev. Kristin know or email Betsy Davis at jbeezd@aol.com
Slow Cooker BBQ Cranberry Chicken
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup dried minced onion
- 1 (16 oz) can whole cranberry sauce
- 1 cup barbecue sauce
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a re-sealable gallon-sized freezer bag and zip closed. When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours or LOW for 6-7 hours.
Side dish idea:
Potato salad and green beans
WEEKLY ANNOUNCEMENTS
Kristin+ away for vacation
Kristin+ will be away from July 1 through July 7. If you are in need of pastoral care during that time please contact our Senior Warden, Cheri McClanahan.
Our College Volunteer
Intern, Maria Pellicier, joins Youth Missioner, Kate Riley, and our youth ministry team for the Summer of 2018. She is a junior at New York University studying social work and Spanish and plans to pursue a career in child welfare. While at home in Maryland, she is a member of St. James, Mt. Airy, while at school she attends Grace Church in New York City. Maria is so excited to be working with our youth this summer and is looking forward to volunteering at Claggett Summer Camp.
Where in the Church is Flat St. James?
Last Sunday everyone had great fun searching for Flat St. James an collecting a stamp for their passport. If you want to join in the fun, pick up your very own passport in the narthex. This week, see our guest clergy, Ann Boyd to receive your stamp.
Take Flat St. James with you wherever you go this summer!
Pick up supplies to make your own Flat St. James, and instruction sheets for taking and sharing summer pictures with him. We can’t wait to see what our St. James’ community is up to over the summer! Don’t forget to send in your pictures to office@stjamesmtairy.org.
A is for Africa Thanks You!
You can read their lovely letter here.
Prayer Rotation
Please join the Daughters of the King in praying for each parishioner in rotation during 2018 by taking this notice home and by posting it where it will remind you to pray on a daily basis for the needs and blessings of:
Robert and Sarah Brown (James)
Robert and Carol Buckley
Brian and Lauren Bukszar (Henry)
A member of the Daughters of the King will be contacting you this week for special prayer requests.
