This story, previously entitled Leverage the Internet for your small church, contains updated information.
“A Symposium on Formation for Small Church Leadership” will be offered by The Episcopal Church’s Standing Commission for Small Congregations on Thursday afternoon, July 31; Friday, August 1, and Saturday, August 2, 2014, at the American Airlines Training and Conference Center in Fort Worth.
The symposium will feature many opportunities for question and answer sessions as well as breakout sessions to explore various topics in more depth. Invited guests for the symposium include the Rev. Canon Dr. Michael Barlowe, executive officer of the General Convention, and Dr. Fredrica Thompsett, historian, theologian, and author, and a member of the Executive Council of The Episcopal Church. Seminary leaders, pioneers in distance / web-based learning, and ministry developers from across the U.S. will also be participating.
Commission members will arrive Wednesday, July 30, for a commission meeting on that evening and Thursday morning. Registration for the symposium begins at 1 pm Thursday in the lobby at the American Airlines Center. The Friday session begins at 9 am. There will be a social hour at 5:30 PM Friday, with dinner at 6 and brief stories from people from small congregations in the Diocese of Fort Worth from 7 to 9 pm. The evening will conclude with Eucharist. The altar for the Eucharist will be the altar set up every Sunday for worship at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, Hurst. That congregation worships in the Northeast Wedding Chapel, and anticipates moving to a new home in mid-August.The Saturday session begins at 9 am and ends at noon. All sessions will be held at the American Airlines Center.
All interested people who are members of congregations with less than 70 average Sunday attendance are invited to participate and/or help with the symposium. Contact Demi Prentiss at demi.prentiss@edotn.org or at 817-534-1900.
The mandate of the commission is “to identify and recommend to General Convention policies, priorities, and opportunities to affirm and strengthen the health and development of small congregations.”