27 February 2018
To the Beloved People of MCC,
The halfway point of the Interim time is here! My focus in 2017 was listening.
Thank you to everyone who attended Network Gatherings, Virtual Gatherings, town hall style meetings, and/or responded to the survey during the 2017 Listening Tour.
Hundreds of people participated which means there were thousands of responses from around the world.
It was such a blessing to experience so many personal testimo
nies,
descriptions of worship and ministries, along with points of pain, concern, and requests for going forward. Care-filled and faithful handling of your words occurred in a four-step process to
Listen, Analyze, Discern,
and lay a
Path Forward
.
The culmination of this work is the
Listening Tour Report
,
which is based on the responses, primary themes, topics, and concerns that emerged as members of MCC responded to the initial four questions.
Through the Listening Tour and a review of the responses, the Listening Tour Report is intended to help realize the benefits and overcome the challenges experienced by many within MCC during this time of transition. To ensure we can all engage the Listening Tour Report, it is divided into three (3) parts.
Part 1
of the Listening Tour Report highlights the “Listen” and “Analyze” portions of the responses.
Part 2
begins to “Discern” the broader needs to be addressed.
Part 3
is a focus on the “Path Forward.” Each part will be released over the next few weeks, allowing individuals and churches to review each part and journey together through the materials. Following the release of Part 3, there will be a webinar after Easter to continue the “Path Forward” together.
Today, Part 1 is available in English. Part 2 will be released on 12 March 2018, and Part 3 on 26 March 2018. Translations into Spanish, Portuguese, and German of each Part will be released when completed.
Save the date for the Listening Tour Report webinar: 19 April 2018 at 4:30 pm EST / 8:00 pm UTC/GMT
.
More details, including the link to the webinar, will be provided in April.
It is my prayer, as you carefully engage each part of the Listening Tour Report, that we may all hear what the Spirit is speaking to the churches.
Many blessings to you and all of MCC,
Rev. Elder Rachelle Brown
Interim Moderator, Metropolitan Community Churches
