Our Workshops
Friday Night Keynote Address
Joining Jesus at the Feast
Indigenous people opened the door of friendship in Mi’kmaki with the Peace and Friendship Wampum Belts. This beginning gesture of hospitality has faded from Canadian consciousness but the belts have never been rescinded. What would our present day relationship between Mi’kmaq and Canadians look like if we had the courage to follow after the breadcrumbs of reconciliation dropped by Jesus and our Creator? Adrian Jacobs, the Senior Leader for Indigenous Justice and Reconciliation for the CRCNA working out of the Burlington Office, ON, will shine a light on the path of possibility for reconciliation. Justice Murray Sinclair, Commissioner of the Survivors Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Canada, said, ““Achieving reconciliation is like climbing a mountain — we must proceed a step at a time. It will not always be easy. There will be storms, there will be obstacles, but we cannot allow ourselves to be daunted by the task because our goal is just and it is also necessary.” Let’s take some valuable steps in this journey together!
Saturday Workshop Streams
Stream #1: Pathways to Reconciliation - Adrian Jacobs
Morning: There are many ways people get on the path to reconciliation. Our workshop will feature a look at the big map of journey and give participants a chance through conversation with others an opportunity to locate themselves on the map. A multitude of pathways forward in this reconciliation journey will be identified.
Afternoon: In the CRCNA in Canada the Hearts Exchanged Indigenous education program has been our church’s response to the Call to Action #59. Communities of Practice are ways for a church to follow-up collaboratively with two other churches to pursue Indigenous community relationship building. The Indigenous Ministries of the CRCNA in Canada will meet with Communities of Practice groups to coach best practices to continue the reconciliation journey.
Stream #2: Sidewalks, Curbs and Other Overlooked Places - Beth Fellinger
Morning: Where is God calling you to connect in your community? During this workshop, let’s discover the places we haven’t thought of yet or wondered if there was room for mission to happen. We will look at the practical side of exploring and experimenting with how we might connect with our neighbours and communities. Bring your 3D glasses and imagination.
Afternoon: Let’s go outside weather permitting and find a sidewalk or parking lot or garden not yet in bloom and wonder together and process the thoughts from the morning session.
Stream #3: Justice: An Everyday Spiritual Journey - Cindy Stover
Morning: We all know justice is important, but how do we make it a part of our everyday lives? And with so many injustices in the world, where can we and our churches start to respond?
This workshop unpacks how the bible talks about peace, justice and mercy, identifies how exploitive structures cause injustice, and explores how advocacy and reconciliation can bring change and healing.
Afternoon: After learning the basics of biblical justice, we’ll complete a simple group exercise to identify what areas of justice may be relevant to our personal lives, and congregations. We don’t have to solve every injustice, but by the end of this workshop, we should have some ideas of where we might already be equipped to get started!
Stream #4: Biblical Stewardship: Living as Stewards of God’s Goodness
- Mark Vanderwees and Karla Winham
Morning: Stewardship is NOT…. just about money or being generous. Money is only one of the things that God has entrusted to us! Stewardship involves understanding that all we have belongs to God, and has been entrusted to our care. It means faithfully managing what we have(stewarding it) for the advancement of His kingdom and to bring Him glory. This includes the 4 T's of Stewardship: Time, Talents, Treasures and Trees. As followers of Jesus, stewardship is how we can be Christ's presence in our homes, our neighbourhoods and in communities around the world. This session will closely follow the Biblical Stewardship course that Diaconal Ministries is just beginning to ramp up to help Churches live stewardly.
Afternoon: The Biblical Stewardship course suggests activities that participants can do on their own to make the concepts of stewardship personal, practical and relevant. Well, we are going to do them together in the afternoon. We will dive into each of the 4 T's of Stewardship: Time, Talents, Treasures and Trees and have a lot of fun learning from each other.
