Mediation Skills Training Institute
for Church Leaders
Sponsored by the Southwest California Synod of the ELCA and led by Staff of the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center, Lombard, Illinois
August 26 - 30, 2019
Lutheran Center
1300 East Colorado Street, Glendale
Conflict is normal and inevitable whether in the home, school, community, church or workplace. Leaders in all walks of life often have a responsibility to help others work through their conflicts.

The Mediation Skills Training Institute presented by the Lombard Mennonite Peace Center (LMPC) is designed to equip church leaders with the skills necessary to deal effectively with interpersonal, congregational, and other forms of group conflict. The five-day institute also includes a component on congregational mediation and consultation, placed within the context of family systems theory.

Although focused primarily on the church setting, the skills learned are directly transferable to other settings. Thus managers in business, attorneys, experienced mediators and others in leadership will be enriched by the training as well.


LMPC began in 1983 as a congregationally-based ministry with a local and regional focus to its outreach ministries.  LMPC was conceived as a peace resource center – sharing speakers, audio-visual resources, and literature with churches and the broader public throughout the Chicago metropolitan area and beyond. 

Their  Mediation Skills Training Institute for Church Leader s has been utilized as a resource by multiple denominations for equipping pastors and other leaders with the skills necessary to address conflict in transforming ways.
Schedule
The Mediation Skills Training Institute runs daily from  8:30  a.m. to  
5:00 p.m, with the exception of Monday, which starts at 9:00 a.m., and Friday, which concludes at 4:00 p.m.

Monday, 8/26/19
  • Introduction:  The Nature and Role of Conflict
  • Conflict in the Bible:  Finding Renewal in Conflict
  • Understanding Your Own Style of Response to Conflict
  • Your Personal Style Profile for Communication at Work
  • Affirming Your Strengths and Managing Your Excesses

Tuesday, 8/27/19
  • Interpersonal Peacemaking Skills:  How to Be Effective
  • When People Are Angry
  • Interpersonal Peacemaking Skills:  Negotiating Win-
  • Win Solutions
  • Mediating Conflict Between Individuals:  An Overview of 
  • the Process
  • Mediation Skills:  Getting People to the Table
  • Mediation Skills:  The Introduction Stage

Wednesday, 8/28/19
  • Mediation Skills:  The Story-Telling Stage
  • Mediation Skills:  The Problem-Solving Stage
  • Mediation Skills:  The Agreement Stage

Thursday, 8/29/19
  • Mediating Multi-Party Disputes
  • Congregational Conflict:  Understanding Conflict in Groups
  • Family Systems Theory and Church Conflict
  • Designing Effective Group Decision-Making Procedures
  • Congregational Conflict:  Structuring Dialogue When 
  • Anxiety Is High

Friday, 8/30/19
  • Mediating Congregational Disputes:  An Overview of the 
  • Mediation Process
  • Mediation Skills:  Contracting, Information Gathering, and 
  • Education Phases
  • Mediation Skills:  Healing and Problem-Solving Phases
  • Mediation Skills:  Bringing Closure to the Mediation

Register by July 26 for the Early Bird rate!

Southwest California Synod of the ELCA| (818) 507-9591| [email protected]| www.socalsynod.org