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Embracing the Spirit with the Moderator
On November 18 we gathered for the Embracing the Spirit Fellowship time on a Zoom call with people across the country. We connected with the Moderator and the EDGE team to share ideas about the experience of "embracing the spirit." What are people seeing happening in their communities of faith? What is still needed?
Watch the conversation here.
Have ideas to contribute? Join the conversation by reaching out to Richard Bott at moderator@united-church.ca with your thoughts and ideas.
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EDGE-y Events Calendar
There is a lot happening across Canada and online! EDGE has created a new online calendar of EDGE-y events for you to stay in touch with.
Find sustainability cohorts, impact measurement workshops, the fellowship gatherings on Mondays, and much more.
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Telephone 2.0
Communities of faith are always communicating; from bulletins to fellowship time to e-newsletters to the sermon itself. We've been seeing communities of faith take communication technology seriously!
One of the most overlooked communication technologies is the telephone, but there have been a lot of changes that might inspire new ways of thinking. Cloud-based phone systems use the Internet as their phone system which enables many useful features while costing less than traditional phone lines. This is great for multi-point charges, clusters that are sharing administration, or simply to freshen up how you are communicating.
Find out more about this new program on Buying United.
[Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash]
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You Belong Here
Contributed by Shelburne and Primrose United Churches
The Shelburne Primrose Pastoral Charge, about an hour and a half north of Toronto, is in the active stage of morphing from a traditional Sunday morning focused church to an interactive hub offering sanctuary and compassionate care to the community. This is both an exciting and a daunting enterprise.
A main challenge is one of imagination – it is difficult for some to see the church as it looks to the younger people – tired, worn out, closed off and out of step with current realities. Additionally, this is how it is seen by those in the community, and this makes it difficult when encouraging new partnerships and usage of the building.
But it is a daunting proposition to pull apart an entire building and reconstruct it from the ground up embracing environmental, cultural, and socially current sensibilities. And, too, there is the fear of the cost, which can be paralyzing. So, the Trinity Visioning group decided to test out their vision in one single room on behalf of both the churches.
The outside wall was completely insulated, new environmentally responsible windows replaced the leaky ones, the tile ceiling was removed to reveal an elevated space and the florescent lights were replaced by LED pot lights and two large ceiling fans. The hydronic baseboard heaters were upgraded, the old closets refitted with fresh open shelving and sliding barn board doors. The linoleum floors were stripped, cleaned and polished. Working with several artistic souls in the congregation, a warm, elegant colour was chosen for the newly painted walls and ceiling. The result is a cozy, bright, fresh-looking space that can be configured for many uses.
We are now beginning to furbish the room, making every effort to use local craftsmen and materials. The hospitality table was made from locally grown and harvested walnut trees and finished by a local carpenter and blacksmith. We have commissioned several local artists to create original paintings and signage for the room. We are in the process of sourcing chairs, tables, window treatments and linens that can be gathered from local artisans. We are interested in having the room technologically up to date and will be installing a projector or flat screen so that movies can be viewed, and power point presentations used for workshops. We have recently updated our internet connection so that the Bluetooth signal is stronger in this space.
The visioning team and many members of the church are very pleased with the room. But not all people understand ‘what is different.’ That is to be expected, and we just try to engage people in conversation around the changing role of the church. But as one new partnership said to us who is renewing their use for the new year, “I am so glad I got in here early before the room is all booked up!” Well, let’s hope by the end of 2020 we have more participants in this lovely room. In the meantime, we are planning afternoon tea for those who are still not too sure ‘what it’s all about.’ Because tea parties engender conversation, and conversation leads to further understanding about the future of the church in the community. And as we march towards world peace, friendly conversations are always welcome.
The test has been a good one in terms of actually seeing in the real what we could only previously imagine. It has given us knowledge of the time, effort, finances and order of operations that will be needed to reconfigure other areas of both church buildings. We are deeply grateful for the support from Embracing the Spirit for partnering with us and hope that our ‘test’ may encourage other congregations with similar experiments. We are re-imagining and creating a new financial framework that reaches beyond the traditional focus of Sunday morning tithes and offerings. There is much discernment needed around money matters as we forge new partnerships in the community and develop the balance of participants, initiatives, and stakeholders while meeting the rising costs of our hospitality. Embracing the Spirit and EDGE, creative enterprises within the United Church of Canada, have been wonderful allies in our adventure.
Learn more about this initiative here.
[Photos courtesy of Shelburne & Primrose United Churches]
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Embracing the Spirit is a learning network and innovation fund. It offers funding and support for innovation ideas hatched out of faith communities and communities in ministry. Some of the stories and best practices that are happening throughout The United Church of Canada are shared in this newsletter.
If you have an idea that you want to launch, reach out and tell us about it! Proposal deadlines are quarterly, and due on the 15th of the month: January, April, July and October. Find out more.
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Sign up for the Embracing the Spirit newsletter here!
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Donate to The United Church of Canada and help fund life changing work around the world!
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