Upcoming Events
Pastoring Across Political Divides. Common Table Webinar with Dr. David Eagle from the Duke Clergy Health Collaborative.
October 15, 1:30 p.m. ET on Zoom
As political polarization continues to shape congregational life across the United States, many clergy are navigating growing tensions between their own convictions and the political realities of the communities they serve. In this virtual gathering, Duke Clergy Health Collaborative researcher David Eagle will explore new findings from a study of 648 clergy examining the relationship between political mismatch, congregational conflict, and occupational distress. Together, we will reflect on how political conflict impacts clergy well-being, why some ministry leaders experience greater feelings of mismatch than others, and what these dynamics reveal about the future of ministry in an increasingly polarized culture. The conversation will also explore how churches and denominational leaders might cultivate healthier practices of dialogue, care, and formation in divided times.
Loving Across Differences: Practices for Curiosity and Connection. Center for Leadership Excellence Day of Learning with Jess Shults from The Colossian Forum.
November 5, 9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. ET in Person
When politics comes up, what happens in your church and community? During this Day of Learning, we will both experience and explore two resources from The Colossian Forum that you and your church can use to develop healthier relationships across political and personal differences: One Anothering: Choosing Each Other in a Politically Divided World and Finding Hope in Your Hardest Relationships: The Beholding Workbook.
Re-setting a Body of Broken Bones”: Leading “The Elect” in the Shadow of Elections. Center for Leadership Excellence Workshop with Jeremy Troxler.
November 10, 10-11:30 a.m. ET on Zoom
Thomas Merton once described love and leadership in the church as the “re-setting” of “a body of broken bones.” Nowhere is the body of Christ more fractured today than by its political divisions. How do we lead our churches through a time when congregation members define themselves and others based on whom they voted for – or against? What guiding thoughts can help us bring people together in Christ, and to find holy common ground, without sacrificing our own deeply-held convictions, and without compromising truth? How can we lead our people with gracious integrity during a time of political idolatry? In this webinar we will draw upon one pastor’s experiences in leading politically diverse congregations, as well as upon the writings of Thomas Merton, to help us discuss together how we might faithfully lead “the Elect” through the valley of the shadow of elections.
Additional Resources
The Purple Church Initiative
To help build communities of shalom where all people are of sacred worth, safe, and growing toward spiritual, physical, and emotional wholeness, the Peace Building Ministries of the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church offers the Purple Church Initiative. Resources include:
The United Methodist Social Principles
The Social Principles are not church law. Instead, they represent the prayerful and earnest efforts of the General Conference to speak to issues in the contemporary world from a sound biblical and theological foundation that is in keeping with the best of our United Methodist traditions. The Social Principles are thus a call to faithfulness and to social engagement and intended to be instructive and persuasive in the best of the prophetic spirit. Moreover, they challenge all members of The United Methodist Church to engage in deliberative reflection and encourage intentional dialogue between faith and practice. (See ¶ 509.)
North Carolina Council of Churches Faith & Democracy
Voting may be the most important place for us to live into God’s call for a flourishing world. When we vote, we have the power to address various issues directly mentioned in scripture. The issues facing our communities and our country matter. We can elect representatives and leaders who will pursue a just society through honest channels. With our partners, the North Carolina Council of Churches is focused on voter registration and voter turnout. We’re asking our denominational leaders to remind their congregational members of the rights and responsibilities of having the privilege to vote in the democracy that is the United States of America.