51 days until the New Year. What?!?

My youngest daughter is obsessed with countdowns. How many days until Halloween? How many days until Thanksgiving? How many days until we get chickens? (Yes... chickens.) Even when you live your life constantly 'counting down' you would be surprised how often a milestone can creep up on you.

51 days until the New Year. 

Today I pause and reflect on the past two years. This time around, approaching the New Year is feeling so much more like an ending. But an ending in the best of ways. So much has changed in two years. The pandemic has shown so many cultural norms that are no longer needed, and that are in fact holding us back. Us as a country and us as a denomination.

The past two in person Gatherings have shown me how the clergy in Gathering of Leaders are using the learnings from this time to approach faith and formation in new ways, challenging our assumed norms, and yet retaining the Jesus- and discipleship-centered mission at our very core.

I celebrate the ending that is coming near because I see it as a spring board for the new beginning that is ahead of us. We don't yet know what that new beginning will be, or how it will look, but we do know that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are at the very center. 

Below you can access many of the resources shared by GOL Participants during the Ariziona Gathering, read some of the joy and gratitude being felt during this time, register for any of the 2022 Gatherings, and connect with addtional resources and people available to you through GOL.

As the New Year approaches, how are you viewing it? What new beginning do you see? What hope is on the horizon?

Blessings,

Haley Bankey
Executive Director, Gathering of Leaders
haley@thegatheringofleaders.org

The Missionary Church After Christendom

(Gatherings: Alabama, Oregon)

The era when “everyone” knew the Christian story, the church held a position of public respect, and Sunday mornings were reserved for worship is ending. The church is losing influence, power, and the social expectations that maintained our institutions and budgets. How will we, as leaders, respond to this transition out of hope and courage rather than fear? What can we learn for this new reality from voices in the church who have modeled perseverance, maturity, faithfulness, and innovation from a place of cultural marginalization? What do we need to retain at our core; what do we need to cast off; and what do we need to adapt in order to proclaim the gospel and form disciples in this new reality?

Racial Reconcilation and Discipleship in the Missionary Church

(Gatherings: Philadelphia, Virtual September)

Our Presiding Bishop has called us into a deeper understanding of the relationship between evangelism and racial reconciliation. It has been said that Sunday morning is the most segregated time in America, because our worshipping communities often reflect the dividing lines of race rather than the unity of Christ’s Body or the glorious diversity of God’s creation. We wish to explore the connection between discipleship, mission, and racial reconciliation. Continuing events in our nation make this work all the more urgent. We understand ourselves, as Christians, to be called to reconciliation. How does making disciples facilitate and celebrate racial reconciliation in our particular contexts? How are the church’s legacies of racial division and racial healing affecting your work of evangelism and mission? What signs of hope do you see? Within the context of the Great Commission, what roles do confession, repentance, forgiveness and reparation play in the work of racial reconciliation within ourselves, our congregations and the Episcopal Church?

PARTICIPANT DIRECTORY: Those who have attended at least one Gathering have access to search our directory for other Participants by name, church affiliation, city, or state. Travelling somewhere and want to meet up with some GOLers? Give it a search! Try out the Directory here.

PARTICIPANT ONLY FACEBOOK GROUP: One of the main ways our participants connect and collaborate with one another is through our private Facebook group. If you have attended at least one Gathering, and are not yet part of the group, please email haley@thegatheringofleaders.org to get setup.

SUGGESTED READING LISTS: At each Gathering we collected suggested readings from our participants that deal directly with our annual theme. Click the themes for access to the most current suggested reading list: Racial Reconciliation and for Unity & Division. 

SHARED RESOURCES: During each Gathering we record the peer-learning presentation (with permission) and upload them to our participant portal.  For all presentations from our Racial Reconciliation year and Unity & Division, log into our website and search.

SEMINARY DEBT REDUCTION GRANTS: Through GOL's partnership with the Episcopal Church Foundation, grant funds have been made available to participants in the Gathering of Leaders network to reduce individual seminary debt. The grants must be used to make loan payments above and beyond the normal repayment/amortization schedule (i.e., principal) and will be awarded on the basis of financial need and the demonstrated capacity to manage debt, handle day-to-day finances, and plan for the future. Grants will range from $3,000-$5,000 and will be paid in one lump sum. Learn more and apply.