Engaging Vocation in Community: Strategies and Best Practices

1. Creative strategies on calling Communities of calling initiative webinar February 26, 2019

2. Exploring vocation in community (evc) • Born out of Collegeville Institute Seminars • Part of grounded research & mission • “It is not our goal to develop resources for churches, but rather to learn from and with churches as part of our research.  We believe that congregational leaders and members are best positioned to create resources on vocation that speak to their particular contexts in terms of size, history, mission, demographics, and geographic location.”

3. Exploring vocation in community (evc) • 2 cohorts of 5 congregations • Met in Collegeville • Learned about theology of vocation • Created a project on calling for their context • $1,000 over 1 year

4. Makeup of 2 cohorts  • 2 Episcopal • 2 Lutheran • 2 United Church of Christ • 2 Catholic • 1 retreat center & 1 monastery outreach ministry

5. Congregations’ projects on calling

6. Findings from congregations “Parishioners became more aware of their own stories and the stories of others so that they were able to understand ‘call’ as something multiple and changing throughout life. They found meaning in what they thought were failed callings of the past, and discerned how sufferings led to new lives.” “What has surprised me the most about doing this work has been the number of women and men of different ages and cultural backgrounds and faith traditions that are deeply drawn to these questions of call.”

7. Findings from congregations Best practices for engaging vocation: • Engaging multiple strategies • Adapting existing resources • Connecting around the idea of multiple callings • Following church year

8. Findings from congregations Best practices for engaging vocation: • Working with established groups or ministries • Inviting people to share their stories • Offering profession-specific groups 

9. Findings from congregations Suggested strategies: • Connect gifts discernment with calling • Include justice • Invite proactively • Create resources for worship

10. Findings from congregations Suggested strategies: • Convene ecumenical gatherings • Launch with a “kick-off” event • Use technology to start vocational conversations

11. Wellesley Village ChurchWellesley, Massachusetts • GIFT – Growing in Faith Together • An effort to jump start a small group ministry in a significant way • A response to the request from parents of our 9th grade confirmands to provide an adult version of the intentional faith exploration kids were experiencing

12. Year 1 (2009-2010) • planning the program and developing the curriculum • recruiting and equipping small group facilitators • promoting the program and recruiting participants • making room in the church calendar

13. Year 2 (2010 –2011) • October to Easter Vigil: 22 weeks • Christian Practices, Christian Beliefs, Christian Vocation • 60 adults in small groups of 8 or 9 with 2 facilitators.  • 6 weeks adults and 9th grade confirmation class met together for community building, conversations about faith, and prayer.

14. Christian Practices: • What does it mean to live a Christian life? • What do Christians do? • Particular attention to practices of Community, Prayer, Testimony, Discernment, Worship, Forgiveness

15. Christian Beliefs • What do we believe as Christians that makes these practicesimportant? • Creation and Covenant, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and the Church, the United Church of Christ, and the particular gifts and calling of Wellesley Congregational Church

16. Christian Vocation • What are my gifts? • How can I use them? • Who does God want me to be in the church, and in the world?

17. Year 3 (2011-2012)  • GIFTs and cALL – 20 weeks – a focus on vocation • What does God’s voice sound like to you? • When do you feel most alive? • What are the core commitments of your life? Of your faith? • What unique gifts do you bring? • Who is God calling you to be and to become?

18. Topics • Baptism: Our Common Calling • The Bible and Vocation  • Martin Luther and Vocation  • Vocation Through the Lifespan  • Vocation and Professions  • Following your Passion/Purpose • Discernment of Gifts Gallup Strengths Finder Survey • RETREAT with Kathleen Cahalan • Vocation and Struggle • Ways of Discernment • Naming and Claiming our Call

19. Resources: • Materials from Collegeville Institute: Called to Life and Called to Work • Gallup Strength Finder Survey • Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation by Parker Palmer • Practicing Discernment Together: Finding God’s Way Forward in Decision Making by Lon Fendall, Jan Wood, and Bruce Bishop • A Hidden Wholeness by Parker Palmer

20. Discernment Circles Ministry • 8 adults and 6 youth formed the leadership team • 11 members of our congregation have been part of discernment circles, as they faced a significant question or decision in their lives.

21. Year 4 (2012-2013) • GIFT and Prayer – January to April     (15 weeks) • Topics Included • The Prayer of Paying Attention • Biblical Traditions of Prayer • Psalms • Prayers of Praise and Adoration • Lamentations • Prayers of Intercession, Healing, Petition • Praying for our Enemies • Blessings

22. Year 5 (2013-2014)  • Gift and Discernment – 15 weeks  • How do we listen for and discover God’s guidance for personal and congregational decisions?  • Biblical, theological, and practical framework for understanding the practice of discernment • Resource: The Way of Discernment by Stephen Doughty and Marjorie Thompson, Companions in Christ curriculum

23. Year 6 (2014-2015) • January – April (15 weeks) • GIFT In Testimony  • What is the story God has given you to tell?  • Where do you see God at work in the world?  • What might we learn about ourselves by sharing our faith with another?  • How might our faith deepen if we learned to tell each other our stories?  • "Christians believe that we cannot tell the truth, not the whole truth, without talking about God, and if we cannot tell the whole truth, we cannot be fully alive."  (Thomas Long)

24. I felt a deep, inner urge to tell my story to others... out of an awareness that my deepest vocation is to be a witness to the glimpses of God I have been allowed to catch. -Henri Nouwen

25. Topics included: • Testimony and Hospitality • When was a time when you experienced a deep sense of welcome and belonging? • Testimony and Church Membership • Why did you join the church? What does being a member of the church mean to you? • Testimony and Worship • When have you experienced God's presence or the movement of the Holy Spirit in worship? • Testimony and Grief • Where was God for you in a time of loss or struggle? • Testimony and Mentors • Who in your life has helped you become the person you are and helped you grow in faith?

26. Topics included: • Testimony and Money • How does your faith influence the decisions you make about how you earn, spend, and give money? • Testimony and Discernment Circles • Drawing on the practices of our Discernment Circles Ministry, how do we talk about the transitions or major decisions in our lives? • Testimony at Work/Community/Family • How do you talk about your faith with colleagues, neighbors, and family members who are not part of the church? • Testimony and Public Witness • How do we witness to our faith in the public square?

27. Conclusions • Unfolded over time in unexpected ways • Good practices of feedback & evaluation honed the program and brought clarity regarding next steps • Recruiting, equipping, and supporting group facilitators = key • Sessions were strengthened by participants' advance preparation + more time in small groups • Each year, half the participants were the same and half were new – by year 6, a majority of the most active membership participated in at least one series