Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

Worship in the Diocese of Chicago last Saturday was fantastic. Why worship on Saturday? The opening of the annual diocesan Leadership and Ministry Fair.

Bishop Jeffrey Lee, Vicki Garvey (canon for Christian Formation), and Dent Davidson (Missioner for Arts and Liturgy), along with lay readers and cantors, offered not only soul-stirring reflections and spirit-filled music, but modeled shared leadership in a way I hadn’t quite seen before. Instead of the usual sermon or address by a Bishop, Vicki began with a short reflection, followed by silence and a brief meditation from Dent, then again silence and a reflection by Jeff (who they call by first name). Each offered words of substance, pushing us to engage our faith in the Risen Lord. The flow between them during the entire liturgy was seamless. I can only image they’ve worked hard to develop this intentionality in team leadership. It showed. As a participant unfamiliar with the people and culture of this place, I felt welcomed, engaged, and deeply moved. The morning liturgy concluded with all of us gathered around the baptismal font (including a fountain of flowing water!). Bishop Lee and Vicki told stories that rekindled our senses, reminding us that Christ is alive. Then Dent rocked the piano and led us in soulful singing of Wade in the Water as we processed out to our workshops for the day.

If you haven’t been to your diocesan ministry fair, I encourage you to go. You never know what you might experience. Most dioceses offer a wide range of workshops particularly geared for the laity on almost any topic you can imagine – digital media to oversees mission, centering prayer to financial planning. Now I more clearly see how the liturgy offered at diocesan events is not only a way to gather everyone in worship of God, but in itself can be a workshop – experimenting and demonstrating new ways to do things.

One of the best reasons to attend a diocesan ministry fair is to share new ideas, challenges, or best practices with leaders of other congregations. It’s one of the few times in the year when lay folks get to mingle with one another across congregations. On Saturday I heard from a junior warden named David about how they created a “narrative budget” last year to document all the time, resources, and impacts of their ministries. It really helped undergird their stewardship campaign. Now I’ve got David’s contact info to follow up and learn more. In the workshop I led about transformational lay leadership, I heard great stories of lay people who started parish-based thrift stores and children’s ministries. There is an abundance of good news, ideas, and skills throughout our church, we just need more ways to tap into and share them.

In a way ECF Vital Practices aims to be an online ministry fair. We do our best to offer sound wisdom and guidance from leaders on important topics through Vestry Papers and VP Talks, to share Tools that have been tested elsewhere, and now, because online technology keeps getting easier to navigate, to encourage you to use Your Turn to share and swap resources with others throughout the Episcopal Church.