Congregational Support Monthly Newsletter

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October 29, 2019

Welcome to the new Congregational Support Monthly Newsletter. The newsletter will include updates on clergy events, transitions, and idea-sharing to spread the good news of God’s love in your congregation and will greatly reduce the emails coming from my office! You’ll also see occasional surveys to help me to gather information in order to provide learning and services you need. Enjoy!

Blessings for the work!

Canon Claire Woodley

Visit the Congregational Support Website

UPCOMING EVENTS

First Tuesday: November 5th, 2019

Ana Hernandez: Pop up singing events for Advent and Christmas!

Ana Hernandez is a composer/arranger, workshop facilitator, author, and mischief maker. She works with people to create beautiful liturgies in many different styles; from early music to contemplative, including drumming or paperless singing. She facilitates meaningful conversations using the "Art of Hosting" modalities. Lately she’s been working with groups to practice listening at deeper levels, to dismantle racism, and remind people they are beloved of God.

Ana will lead us through the basics of how to get a group of friends, or strangers, singing together in a pop-up, one-time choir. A great tool for public events where people would like to sing…but just don’t know how, or how to start a group singing. Using familiar songs and new tunes, pop up singing events can introduce new people to the joy of singing together and the joy of singing with members of your congregation. Your musicians and choir directors are welcome to this event .

Places to introduce a pop-up choir include: congregations, coffee hour, malls and town centers, community coffee shops, community tree lighting events, holiday light parades. Before and after holiday plays/Nutcracker performances and last but not least, at St. Nicholas events.

Join us at 10:00 AM at the Mercer School on November 5 to bring some good old fashioned human joy into your community through singing with friends and strangers...who may soon be friends! Next First Tuesday TBA!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THE NOV 5th FIRST TUESDAY EVENT

HOLDING A ST. NICHOLAS EVENT AT YOUR PARISH

Parents of many styles and flavors are looking for ways to dial back the commercialism and build up the spiritual in their Christmas celebrations. Many are two and three generations away from a meaningful church connection and don’t like the whole Santa of commercialism that makes super-consumers of their children, but aren’t sure what to do. Good for them that we have the best news around!

We can lend a hand by holding a St. Nicholas event on the weekend closest to the Feast of St. Nicholas, December 6th. This is a low threshold event that makes it easy for people to come into your space. Start with a Giving Tree festooned with paper decorations each with an idea of how they can do a service project as a family for people outside their home to love their neighbors, and to love God through loving them. Add in a visit from St. Nicholas telling his stories, Nicholas cookie decoration, mitre making, music and you have an event that families will appreciate. Find these ideas and more at: https://www.stnicholascenter.org/

PATH SURVEY

If you are reading The Path with your congregation, I would love to know and would appreciate you taking a quick survey on what you are doing at your parish, how many are participating, and invite those interested in future planning.

Click here to take the survey!

CLERGY COACHING AND SEARCH CONSULTANTS AVAILABLE

The diocese has been building support for clergy and parishes throughout the last year. We have a cadre of 11 trained clergy coaches available for up to 16 sessions.

A coach is a support and ally in the hard work of being a parish priest. Coaches are there to help you figure out everything from thorny Vestry problems to building the case statement for a new parish project. Coaches use Appreciative Inquiry based creative questions to help you think through issues and support you in addressing them, provide feedback to identify ways forward, and offer a safe place to practice new ideas and strategies. The cost is free and available to any clergy in the diocese.

To find out more go here .

We have trained six new Search Consultants who are also available for Mutual Ministry Reviews. This a great resource for annual Vestry Retreats to build fellowship, understanding. and group commitment to goals and strategies for the coming year. There is a consultation fee of $500 for our seasoned consultants and $300 for our first year folks.

Our Consultant Trainers: The Rev. Joanne Izzo & Dr. Lena Mullings

Our new consultants are: The Rev. Denis Brunelle, The Rev. Steve Foster, Ms. Diane Gaidon, The Rev. Isaias Ginson, The Rev. Paul Lai, The Rev. Lindsay Lunnum, The Rev. Christina van Liew, The Rev. Paul Xie