Congregational development consultants gathered April 14-15  at Immaculate Heart Retreat Center in Spokane to begin the development and training for a diocesan  congregational development program. Facilitated by Betsy Greenman, retired Canon to the Ordinary in the Diocese of Olympia, the group learned about various needs, methods and resources for working with congregations and participated in several guided case studies.

The consulting team grew from a mandate from Diocesan Council and Bishop Waggoner to build a congregational development program in the Diocese. At  its September  meeting, the Council adopted a report from the Mission Strategy Committee which highlighted the need  to assist congregations with articulating and implementing  their mission and vision.

Bishop Waggoner told the consulting group that a strong healthy diocese requires strong healthy congregations and reaffirmed the diocesan mandate of building “growing, dynamic communities of faith”.

In the next few months the consults with gather again for further training.  A survey has also  been prepared for clergy and wardens to assess their  congregations’ current strengths and priorities  for consulting or assistance. The survey will be made available  later this month.

Consultants will begin active work with in congregations later this year.

The team includes Bob Reilly, Wenatchee;  Bob Alexander,  Yakima;  Jan McCall, Pasco;  Lisa Stagaman, Spokane;  Bev Coram, Spokane;  Bryan Krislock, Spokane; the Rev. Paul Lebens-Englund, Spokane;  the Rev. Elizabeth Hasen, Spokane;  the Rev. Canon Holladay Sanderson, Moses Lake and Cheney, and the Rev. Canon Kristi Philip, Spokane.

For more information about this program please contact  Canon  Philip at kristip@spokanediocese.org or 509.624.3191.

Spiritus will present a one-day event, “Fighting With the Bible,” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at St. John’s Cathedral in Spokane. Leader will be Dr. Donn Morgan, president and dean of the Church Divinity School of the Pacific and Professor of Old Testament. He is the author of the new book, “Fighting With the Bible: Why Scripture Divides UIs and How It Can Bring Us Together,” which can be purchased at the workshop. Registration fee for the day is $20 which includes lunch. Registration materials will be sent to all congregations, published in the Inland Episcopalian and posted on the diocesan website. In addition to “Fighting With the Bible,” Morgan has written three other books on scripture. For information on this event, contact Kristi Philip at kristip@spokanediocese.org.

Permission to copy hymns

OneLicense.net, a service that secures permission to photocopy hymns, has added many publishers to its roster and has simplified the process for using it. Licenses are issued in three forms: annual license, event license and single-use license. The price range for an annual license for churches of the size typical of this diocese (based on Sunday attendance) is $50 for 25 or fewer attendees to $225 for 400-700. To learn more, call (800) 663-1501 or e-mail timredmon@onelicense.net.

Another Look at Discernment

St. Joseph’s Family Center and the Religious Studies Department of Gonzaga University will present a one-day workshop on discernment from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Feb. 23 at Gonzaga University. Presenter is Sister Kitty Hanley, dean and director of the Albany, NY, campus of St. Bernard’s School of Theology and Ministry. She has been a professor, spiritual director, poet, facilitator and presenter in a variety of gatherings in North America, Europe and Asia. Registration fee is $35, which includes lunch in the University Dining Room. For information or registration, please contact Sister Celestine Crine at (509) 483-6495 or ccrine@stjosephfamilycenter.org.

Anti Racism Training for Our Diocese

Anti-racism training that is tailored to the needs of our diocese will be offered on two consecutive Saturdays, April 19 and 26 at St. Andrew’s Church in Spokane. The training is open to all interested persons 16 and older who are willing to commit to both sessions. The group will be limited to 20-25 people. For information contact Darcy James at djames@camasnet.com.

Lenten Quiet Days

The Associates of the Community of the Holy Spirit will offer Lenten quiet days Feb. 17 in Spokane and Richland. The Spokane quiet day will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at St. Andrew’s Church. The theme will be “Renew a Right Spirit Within Me,” and the leader is the Rev. Canon Kristi Philip. Participants should bring a sack lunch. The Richland quiet day will be from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at All Saints Church and will be led by the Rev. Dutch Carlisle. The theme is “Our Spiritual Journeys.” For information on quiet days or the Community of the Holy Spirit, contact Carolyn Terry at (509) 448-3037 or cfkterry@earthlink.net.

E-Ministry Update

The following teleclasses will be offered this winter and spring by E-Ministry: “Good Works: Getting Church Members Active in Outreach Ministry;” “One Size Doesn’t Fit All: How to Select Curriculum for Your Congregation;” “Making It Real and Relevant: Christian Education in the 21st Century;” “An Introduction to Icons and Visual Meditation;” “The Spirituality of the Labyrinth” (with Lauren Artress); “Forgiveness: What It Is and What It Isn’t” (with Barbara Crafton); “Writing the ‘Almost Daily eMos’: The Craft of Devotional Prose (with Barbara Crafton); “Designing a Confirmation Program that Speaks to Youth and Invites Ministry.” For schedules and registration information, please visit www.eministrynetwork.org.

Appreciative Inquiry Training

The Clergy Leadership Institute will present several courses in the West in 2008 that apply Appreciative Inquiry to ministry. Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry Coaching will be offered May 7-9 in San Francisco. Introduction to Appreciative Inquiry is scheduled May 5-7 and Oct. 27-29 in San Francisco. Appreciative Inquiry Interim Ministry Training is scheduled Oct. 27-31, also in San Francisco. For information, registration and a list of courses in other locations, call (503) 647-2382 or visit www.clergyleadership.com.

Immersed in the RCL?
H. King Oehmig, founder and editor-in-chief of Synthesis Publications, a lectionary resource, has written a book, “Understanding the Sunday Scriptures: A Companion to the Revised Common Lectionary, Year A.” It is published by Read Mark Press in Chattanooga and costs $21.95 (discounts available for group orders). Visit www.readmarkpress.com or call (800) 722-4124.

Conference on Economic Justice
A Province VIII conference on economic justice is scheduled Feb. 12-13 at the Hilton in Oakland, CA. Keynote speaker will be the Rev. Canon Carmen Guerrero on “A Vision for a Just America.” Workshops include Immigration; Community Investing; Globalization and Worker Justice; and Organizing for Economic Justice in Province VIII. For information, contact Mike Maloney at meamon@aol.com or (513) 531-8799.

Church Growth Conferences in British Columbia
The Diocese of British Columbia in Victoria, B.C. is sponsoring three conferences on church growth in March. “Church Growth for the 21st Century” is described as a practical and results-oriented approach to numerical growth that will focus on ministering effectively to Pacific Northwest culture both in Canada and the US. If you’re yearning for a trip to Vancouver Island, conferences are scheduled in St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Nanaimo, March 1; The Church of St. Mary of the Incarnation in Victoria March 8, and St. Peter’s Anglican Church in Campbell River March 15. All are from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. There is no registration fee, but there is a $25 charge for materials for those from outside the Diocese of British Columbia. Please register through the Synod Office (250) 386-7781.

Come to the Water
The Ministry Institute of Spokane will present four Saturday programs in the coming months – three in Spokane and one in the Tri-Cities. The Spokane programs include: “How do we dialogue with other faiths?” Jan. 26 with Dr. John Sheveland of the Gonzaga University Religious Studies Program; “Lenten Song and Silence” Feb. 23 with Shonna Bartlett of the Institute; and “God’s Presence in our Life Journey” March 1 with Sr. Mary Garvin of the Gonzaga University Religious Studies Department. The Tri-Cities event is “Holiness and Wholeness” with Sr. Celeste Crine of St. Joseph’s Family Center, on April 19. Fee for each day is $20 which includes lunch. For information or to register, call Shonna Bartlett at (509) 323-6012 or (800) 986-9585, extension 6012.

Festival of Homiletics
Tony Green shares this information about this preaching event May 19-23 in Minneapolis. It will feature Barbara Brown Taylor, Walter Bruggeman, Fred Craddock and Garrison Keillor. Registration fee is $235. For information and registration, please visit http://www.goodpreacher.com/festival/ .

Bible Map
If you want to zoom in on a map that corresponds to a particular chapter of the Bible, visit www.biblemap.org. Select a book and a chapter and the appropriate map will appear. It seems to work with most chapters.

Diploma in Lay Pastoral Ministry
Whitworth University in Spokane is offering a diploma in Lay Pastoral Ministry for those serving in non-ordained positions of pastoral leadership. Classes are scheduled June 2-6 and June 9-13. For information contact Michelle Seefried at the Weyerhaeuser Center for Christian Faith and Learning at (509) 777-3275 or mseefried@whitworth.edu. You may also visit www.whitworth.edu/faithcenter.

Worth taking a look…
A number of Denise Levertov’s poems on religions themes have been collected into a single volume, “The Stream & the Sapphire.” This small, but exquisite volume is published by New Directions and costs $9.95.

Just for fun…
Here are a couple of fun websites that are here just because they’re fun. Nothing at all to do with church. Free access to a large range of music is available at www.pandora.com . This connects you with a variety of radio stations and other music sources. La Pulcina Piccola is Chicken Little in Italian. A cutting edge opera company that uses puppets on popsicle sticks has created fine opera in which La Pulcina Piccola plays a prominent role. To learn more about this amazing and amusing opera company and their productions (“Love’s Fowl” and “Small Fish), visit www.pulcina.org.

“A Widow Bit”
Many of us appreciated Mary Koch’s syndicated column “Journal of Healing” that looked at issues around being caregivers. After the death of her husband, John Andrist, Mary has begun a new web-based column that addresses some of the issues that arise at the loss of a spouse. The column is posted on her website each Sunday. Mary, who lives in Omak and is a member of St. Anne’s, is a former editor of the Inland Episcopalian.

January Reminder
Dr. Samuel Torvend, a Roman Catholic priest and professor at Pacific Lutheran University, will present a one-day workshop Jan. 12 at St.; John’s Cathedral on the meaning of Eucharist. Registration fee, which includes lunch, is only $10. You can register by calling the Cathedral at (509) 838-4277 by Jan. 6. For information on the conference, contact Kerry Kirking at frkerry@comcast.net.

Visual Art and the Episcopal Church
Check out this online course available from the CALL program at CDSP. The course runs seven weeks – from March 3- April 23. Registration deadline is Feb. 29.

Facing Jerusalem
“Facing Jerusalem: The Role of the Episcopal Church in the Middle East” is the theme of a training conference Feb. 20-22 in Los Angeles. The event is presented by reconcilers.net in conjunction with the Hands in Healing Reconciliation Team of the Diocese of Los Angeles. Eight speakers will present principles of faith-based reconciliation as a moral vision: pluralism, inclusion, peacemaking, social justice, forgiveness, God’s sovereignty, atonement and healing historical wounds. For information or registration visit www.reconcilers.net.

Certificate in Teaching the Bible
The Weyerhaeuser Center for Christian Faith and Learning at Whitworth University will offer a certificate program in teaching the Bible this winter and spring. It is open to pastors, church school teachers and other leaders who are called upon to teach the Bible. The group will meet two Thursdays a month from Jan. 31 to May 8. Participants also will participate in a small cohort learning community, do reading assignments and group discussion and complete a final project. For information contact Tim Dolan at (509) 777-4676, tdolan@whitworth.edu, or Michelle Seefried (509) 777-3235 mseefried@whitworth.edu.

National Pastors Convention
Zondervan publishers is among the sponsors of a National Pastors Convention Feb. 26-29 in San Diego, CA. N.T. Wright, Bishop of Durham is among the general session speakers and Phyllis Tickle is among the other presenters. For information, visit www.nationalpastorsconvention.com.

Interim Ministries Conference
The 28th Annual Interim Ministries Network Conference is schedule May 20-22 at the Pheasant Run Conference Center in St. Charles, IL. Dr. Peter Steinke is among featured speakers. For information visit www.imnedu.org.

Lenten Possibility
If you are still looking for a Lenten study program consider Yes!3., a five week education program designed to help people create a purpose centered life in which they can say Yes! to God, Neighbor and Self. The program also teaches the core elements of the appreciative way to help grow an appreciative congregational culture. For more details please go to: http://www.clergyleadership.com/yes/yes.html