The CDC Board of Directors and staff invite your congregation to participate in a Sacred Listening conversation during the year 2022.
The CDC leadership has recognized that our conference is different than it was just six years ago and continues to change. Nine congregations have joined CDC in the last six years. Several emerging communities of faith are exploring affiliation with CDC. Many of our congregations have become more fully welcoming and affirming of individuals who identify as LGBTQ+. We have experienced a pandemic. Our nation continues to wrestle with issues of justice, privilege, culture, power, environment, race, and more. We are curious about how our congregations are tending to the ongoing transformation that God calls us to. We want to hear your stories.
Our goal is to visit with every Central District Conference congregation. We know that all ages of people have stories to tell about their church experience so we hope there is good representation across ages. This isn’t only for leadership. It is for anyone who is able to participate.
We are asking you to choose a Sunday in 2022 when two or three people representing CDC can join you for worship and spend some time with you, listening to your stories. Perhaps this could happen during or after a meal. Maybe the best time for you is prior to worship. We want it to be convenient for you. Please email Emma at office@mcusacdc.org or call 574 536 3540 with your preferred date.
What can we expect?
A group of three people representing the conference will join you to hear your stories. There will be a Facilitator, a Recorder, and a Listener.
We are using an Appreciative Inquiry approach to the questions we are asking. This approach is designed to highlight the positive and life-giving experiences of the congregation. The questions that will be asked are below. It is ok to share these questions with your congregation prior to our conversation together.
- Tell a story about a time when you were especially excited or grateful to be a part of your church.
- The mission of Central District Conference is summarized as “Knowing Christ’s love…Answering God’s call.” Share a story or two that you feel
demonstrates God’s love within your congregation. - We “support missional partnerships that make God’s reign visible.” How are you living out your congregation’s vision in the community around you?
Can you share a story that demonstrates this? - We want to “call and nurture wise, dynamic and compassionate Anabaptist leadership.” How does your congregation nurture your gifts and the gifts of
others? - We want to be communities in which “grace-filled relationships flourish.” Can you share an experience when your congregation was blessed by its
relationships with other CDC churches, or other communities such as camps or colleges? - Our Mennonite Church USA vision calls us to be communities of God’s “healing and hope.” As you envision your future as such a Spirit-led
community, what would that look like in your context?
Recorder Template (includes repsonsibilities of the Recorder)
