[caption id="attachment_8448" align="alignleft" width="300"] Photo of the Wall, with protest art. Just outside of Wi’am in Bethlehem.[/caption] How can pastors work to heal the tattered social fabric of their communities? I’ve been thinking a lot about this question since recently returning from a trip to Israel-Palestine with...
The Ministry Collaborative program staff (Ryan Bonfiglio, Jennifer Watley Maxell, Mark Ramsey, Adam Borneman, and Adam Mixon) talk about developing the muscles for depth, the danger of familiarity, and why formation needs community....
The end of Luke’s Gospel can teach us a lot about where spiritual formation happens. It’s Easter afternoon. Two individuals, likely a man and a woman, are traveling the road to Emmaus after having been in Jerusalem for Passover. The recently resurrected Jesus appears to them....
The Ministry Collaborative program staff (Jennifer Watley Maxell, Ryan Bonfiglio, Mark Ramsey, Adam Borneman, and Adam Mixon) talk about remaining curious, the recurring nature of call, and the false dichotomy of "stay or go"....
What is the goal of vocational discernment? For many, it’s arriving at a clearer sense of what job they should pursue. Should I be a pastor, lawyer, accountant, teacher, electrician, coach, or counselor? Should I go for a solo pastor position at a small church or...
In mid-December, the outdoor clothing company Patagonia announced that it would be closing all its stores, warehouses, and offices from Christmas through New Year’s Day. For a company that does over $220 million in annual sales, a week off is no small thing. So, why do...
Pilgrimage Formation Curator Ryan Bonfiglio shares his reflections on Philippians, Howard Thurman, and resilience. This writing originally appeared on our blog in December....
What does it take to be resilient? Popular opinion has it that resilience is the result of mental toughness, tenacity, grit, discipline, strength, and/or thick skin. There’s some truth to this, but each of these answers assumes that resilience is primarily about enduring through a difficult...
Last week, I had the chance to spend some time with a large group of ELCA pastors from the Midwest. Despite being from the heart of Lutheran country they, like the rest of us, are facing the full litany of declining things: members, attendance, budgets,...
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I was the Facilitator for the first New York City cohort, and at the time, I was working in theological education on Christian leadership formation, so it seemed like a natural fit. What I discovered, though, was something quite different from my “day job.” While the content and topics of the curriculum was a crucial part of our gatherings, it was the community of mutual care and support that made the content relevant, not the other way around. And second, having three years of strong bonding created an extraordinarily resilient community that, in turn, was able to build up resilience in our leaders. I think every member of my cohort went through significant seasons of both joy and heartache, professionally and vocationally, during our time. And the cohort, in turn, lived out the exhortation of Romans 12:15, “rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep,” with a depth and integrity that I have rarely experienced, and often doing both in the same gathering. It was a privilege and a blessing to me and my own faith and ministry to be their facilitator, and I am eternally grateful to the Ministry Collaborative for calling me to that work!”
“It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was unique to my particular situation. It was needed, appreciated and healing. It was affirming. Most valuable was the unspoken understanding of what we all were facing in our ministry context. There was a sense that we could finish each other’s sentences. Solidarity and empathy.”
Graduation Date:
May 23, 2021
“It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It was unique to my particular situation. It was needed, appreciated and healing. It was affirming. Most valuable was the unspoken understanding of what we all were facing in our ministry context. There was a sense that we could finish each other’s sentences. Solidarity and empathy.”
Graduation Date:
May 23, 2021
“I truly looked forward to this every week. The discussion topics, activities, and small group conversations were all very rich and meaningful. This experience gave me space to reflect on what’s happening right now in my congregation and community. It helped me to think about what might be next in my own ministry. It offered some very concrete ways I might work on equipping leaders in my congregation. I really enjoyed meeting colleagues from different places, denominations, and contexts–and learning from their experiences and reflections. I also appreciated hearing further conversation and reinforcement in the podcasts.”
Graduation Date:
July 14, 2021
“The experience was, in one word, enriching. It was timely as well. I was at a critical point in my own ministry and this literally breathed life back into me. The time went by so fast that I didn’t even realize two months had passed. To be able to share that type of camaraderie with other preachers, and realize that my struggles are not isolated, was liberating.”
Graduation Date:
March 18, 2021
“It was great to find confirmation and affirmation of my ministry through the voices of other pastors. I particularly enjoyed the focused time on talking about each of us as individuals and pastors, and not so much on what our churches look like.”
Graduation Date:
January 31st, 2020