I am currently on the vestry (that's "board" for non-Episcopalians) of my
local parish. We too are a small, somewhat elderly group. We recently
began a parish "discernment" process to see what our direction will be for
the next few years, and we are gett ing some buy-in although it's a slow
relational process. I was reminded by Winfried's message below of a
couple of points that seem to have helped this along. 1) the priest who
got this going operated I think from the position that God was doing
exactly what he wanted to do with the parish all along; it wasn't his job
to _direct_ the parish but just to see where the energy was and aid its
movement; folks felt safe when approached in this way and I think were
willing to begin to look at where God _might_ be leading us; 2) as part of
the retreat that focused on this, we began with reflection and discussion
on the question "When was the last time you experienced God in a
significant way in the life of the parish?" What's my point? I too think
that when you begin with the group, its perceptions and stories, seek to
find out what God is already doing there, and honor the Presence and
strengths that are already there, you stand a much better chance of
getting true su pport. If in their eyes you are bringing in your agenda
from the outside, you'll always remain "on the outside."
Rob Benson, MA Voice: 601/ 661-0065
Crossroads Experiential Learning, LLC Fax: 601/ 661-0416
417 Groome Drive Home: 601/ 636-3033
Vicksburg, MS 39180 E-mail: xroads@vicksburg.com
Grace Happens!
--"Rob Benson" <xroads@vicksburg.com>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>