The focus scripture comes from the theme (Acts 1:8) that the Princeton Forums on Youth Ministry is using this year.
Acts 1: 6-11
So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’
He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’
When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Sabbath Team Gathering April 2008: What we learned!
Sabbath Discernment Gathering
April 7-10, 2008
Sabbath is…
Sabbath is a gift from God!
Sabbath is about making space for God to move, to work, and to be in our lives.
Sabbath is about taking time to rest, to cease, to embrace, and to feast.
Sabbath is about establishing a rhythm in our life.
Sabbath is not…
Sabbath is not expressed in the same way for everyone.
Sabbath is not something that you can contain or box up.
Sabbath is not something that can be deeply experienced without preparation.
Sabbath invites us…
Sabbath invites us to engage our faith.
Sabbath invites us to be in community.
Sabbath invites us to listen deeply to ourselves, one another, to creation, and to God.
Sabbath calls us…
Sabbath calls us to be vulnerable.
Sabbath calls us to be honest.
Sabbath calls us to be in relationship.
Sabbath calls us to live out our faith in all parts of our life.
Sabbath calls us home.
Sabbath is a gift! A gift from God!
As we began to share our stories of Sabbath with one another in the beautiful and comforting setting of Tatamagouche Centre in Nova Scotia, it was clear that our experiences and our perceived success in the Sabbath ritual varied greatly. The ritual that we had set out for ourselves back in September worked for some and not for others. Feelings of guilt, fear of letting down the team, feelings of isolation were shared by many of the team. Others found Sabbath to be grounding, peaceful, and life giving. As a group we found it hard to stay connected across the country, and many of us expressed a longing to hear more about what was going on for everyone on the team. In the end I think it would be safe to say that we each could name moments where we experienced Sabbath and as a result we all have a better understanding about what Sabbath is and isn’t, and it is slowly seeping into our lives and affecting our work and our faith.
Our purpose for gathering was to begin intentionally practicing Sabbath as a way to examine and truly recognize the breadth of work that has been done in youth and young adult ministry and discern the work that must continue or be a priority. David White in his book “Practicing Discernment with youth; A Transformative Youth Ministry Approach,” points out that:
“The Sabbath includes the sense that work and rest are not to be distinguished too discretely but are to be considered as integral to creative action. Work that does not include Sabbath risks alienating our bodies from our hearts, minds, and souls. By failing to remember God’s presence in the suffering and bliss around us, we risk the possibility that our work may serve purposes other than God’s which may fragment the beauty and integrity that God intends for creation.” (p.182)
With this in mind, we began to discern what the unique role of the National Church is in this ministry. We also explored what it might look like if we were a “Youth Shaped Church.” As we entered this time of discernment we thought about what we might need to cease doing or being about. We pondered the questions where do we find rest in this work, and what do we need to take a rest from. We feasted and celebrated the breadth and depth of work that has been done in this ministry over the past 12 – 15 years. We celebrated how Youth and Young Adult ministry has grown and changed over the years. Finally, we began to discern what needs to be embraced in order to live out the call to youth and young adult ministry.
During our time of discernment what became clear is that we feel called to share our practice and experience of Sabbath with the wider church. The Moderator, David Giuliano, wrote the team a letter saying, “Friends, thank you for keeping the Sabbath on behalf of our larger community that has great difficulty with this discipline. I know that some of you are struggling with it too. None-the-less it is a prophetic call to the wider body to live less out of the “works-righteousness” that comes so easily to us. Through Sabbath we continue to find our place in creation and live more profoundly out of grace in our lives. We come to know who we are supposed to be.” The team left Nova Scotia with deeper understanding of each other and our faith, and renewed passion for this ministry. We named patterns that we have been living in and the need to end these.
We recognize the challenge of allowing ourselves to be vulnerable, but that it is a prophetic call to be honest and open with each other in our fears, our pain, our joy, and our love. We wish to invite others to find the space to enter into deep conversations with us and each other, to acknowledge the brokenness and pain and fear that you carry, and to trust that you are loved and that we truly are the body of Christ called to speak for justice, with compassion so that we can bring healing to all levels of our church.
Written on behalf of the Sabbath Team by Karen
April 7-10, 2008
Sabbath is…
Sabbath is a gift from God!
Sabbath is about making space for God to move, to work, and to be in our lives.
Sabbath is about taking time to rest, to cease, to embrace, and to feast.
Sabbath is about establishing a rhythm in our life.
Sabbath is not…
Sabbath is not expressed in the same way for everyone.
Sabbath is not something that you can contain or box up.
Sabbath is not something that can be deeply experienced without preparation.
Sabbath invites us…
Sabbath invites us to engage our faith.
Sabbath invites us to be in community.
Sabbath invites us to listen deeply to ourselves, one another, to creation, and to God.
Sabbath calls us…
Sabbath calls us to be vulnerable.
Sabbath calls us to be honest.
Sabbath calls us to be in relationship.
Sabbath calls us to live out our faith in all parts of our life.
Sabbath calls us home.
Sabbath is a gift! A gift from God!
As we began to share our stories of Sabbath with one another in the beautiful and comforting setting of Tatamagouche Centre in Nova Scotia, it was clear that our experiences and our perceived success in the Sabbath ritual varied greatly. The ritual that we had set out for ourselves back in September worked for some and not for others. Feelings of guilt, fear of letting down the team, feelings of isolation were shared by many of the team. Others found Sabbath to be grounding, peaceful, and life giving. As a group we found it hard to stay connected across the country, and many of us expressed a longing to hear more about what was going on for everyone on the team. In the end I think it would be safe to say that we each could name moments where we experienced Sabbath and as a result we all have a better understanding about what Sabbath is and isn’t, and it is slowly seeping into our lives and affecting our work and our faith.
Our purpose for gathering was to begin intentionally practicing Sabbath as a way to examine and truly recognize the breadth of work that has been done in youth and young adult ministry and discern the work that must continue or be a priority. David White in his book “Practicing Discernment with youth; A Transformative Youth Ministry Approach,” points out that:
“The Sabbath includes the sense that work and rest are not to be distinguished too discretely but are to be considered as integral to creative action. Work that does not include Sabbath risks alienating our bodies from our hearts, minds, and souls. By failing to remember God’s presence in the suffering and bliss around us, we risk the possibility that our work may serve purposes other than God’s which may fragment the beauty and integrity that God intends for creation.” (p.182)
With this in mind, we began to discern what the unique role of the National Church is in this ministry. We also explored what it might look like if we were a “Youth Shaped Church.” As we entered this time of discernment we thought about what we might need to cease doing or being about. We pondered the questions where do we find rest in this work, and what do we need to take a rest from. We feasted and celebrated the breadth and depth of work that has been done in this ministry over the past 12 – 15 years. We celebrated how Youth and Young Adult ministry has grown and changed over the years. Finally, we began to discern what needs to be embraced in order to live out the call to youth and young adult ministry.
During our time of discernment what became clear is that we feel called to share our practice and experience of Sabbath with the wider church. The Moderator, David Giuliano, wrote the team a letter saying, “Friends, thank you for keeping the Sabbath on behalf of our larger community that has great difficulty with this discipline. I know that some of you are struggling with it too. None-the-less it is a prophetic call to the wider body to live less out of the “works-righteousness” that comes so easily to us. Through Sabbath we continue to find our place in creation and live more profoundly out of grace in our lives. We come to know who we are supposed to be.” The team left Nova Scotia with deeper understanding of each other and our faith, and renewed passion for this ministry. We named patterns that we have been living in and the need to end these.
We recognize the challenge of allowing ourselves to be vulnerable, but that it is a prophetic call to be honest and open with each other in our fears, our pain, our joy, and our love. We wish to invite others to find the space to enter into deep conversations with us and each other, to acknowledge the brokenness and pain and fear that you carry, and to trust that you are loved and that we truly are the body of Christ called to speak for justice, with compassion so that we can bring healing to all levels of our church.
Written on behalf of the Sabbath Team by Karen
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Watch this space!
Some updates to the blog layout, reflections on the discernment team's Sabbath journeys thus far and a recap of the recent meeting in Tatamagouche, NS will all be forthcoming.
In the meantime, we've committed to letting go of guilt and embracing competitive karaoke.
Blessings & peace,
Kenji
In the meantime, we've committed to letting go of guilt and embracing competitive karaoke.
Blessings & peace,
Kenji
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
