A release from the Standing with People of Color Committee
This month the Standing with People of Color Committee will offer two opportunities for facilitator training for those interested in leading “7 Prompts” conversations in their communities and congregations.
The committee is asking the entire Church of the Brethren to engage in crucial Christian conversations using seven discussion prompts around the theme of standing with people of color and working for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion. The committee developed the prompts, along with the “BELOVED” model of conversations, to help the church engage in urgent and heartfelt conversation in a way that builds up our Beloved Community.
Designed to take place in small groups, each of these prompts moves the conversation from the participants’ history to discussions of justice and racism. The design of these prompts invites participants to look within themselves and reflect on their own experiences and perspectives. It is our prayer that these conversations, across the denomination, can help foster broad engagement and create a path toward faithful and passionate Church of the Brethren involvement in racism and racial justice in our times.
If you would like to prepare to become a facilitator, join us:
–Saturday, Oct. 26 at 1 p.m. (Eastern time) at www.onearthpeace.org/2024_10_26_swpoc_7_prompts_facilitator_training
–Monday, Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. (Eastern time) at www.onearthpeace.org/2024_10_28_swpoc_7_prompts_facilitator_training
Register at the above links. Registration will close 24 hours before the workshop. Once registration has closed, sign up at www.onearthpeace.org to indicate your interest in a future offering, or contact us at StandingWithPeopleOfColor@brethren.org.
More than 75 people have already been trained, and they are leading “7 Prompts” conversations in their congregations and districts. If you were previously trained and have led a conversation, we want to hear from you! Please use this link to share your experience: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd4uVnMeSjK6zvYgIYJ0EwfMfEmXRV1-zTb-_r-dxJuKrn5iQ/viewform.
If you would like to experience the “7 Prompts” first-hand, consider joining us on Saturday, Nov. 23, from 1-5 p.m. (Eastern time) via Zoom, where you can share, listen to, and process your feelings and observations about racial justice and racism in your own life and in our lives as Brethren in small groups of three or four people.
Here’s what to expect during this event on Nov. 23:
- We will remind ourselves how profoundly helpful it is to listen to each other.
- We’ll learn how to be a better listener by micro-paraphrasing.
- We’ll open our hearts to God in prayer.
- We’ll go through a series of seven prompts in small groups—where everyone gets a turn to talk and deeply listen.
- Between these seven prompts, we’ll have a chance to share briefly with the larger group.
We welcome ages from young adult to seniors who are eager to learn and grow as followers of Jesus. We hope you will join us!
To learn more about the event on Nov. 23 and/or to register, go to www.onearthpeace.org/2024_11_23_swpoc_7_prompts_workshop.
— Christy Schaub contributed this piece to Newsline.
———-
Find more Church of the Brethren news:
- Church of the Brethren Mission and Ministry Board shares concern for immigrant, migrant, refugee church members (in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole)
- Faith working through love—the grief process: An invitation from the Annual Conference moderator
- Hundreds gather for worship service commemorating 500th anniversary of Anabaptism
- El programa de Pastor a Medio-Tiempo; Iglesia a Tiempo Completo ofrecerá un nuevo estudio en formación espiritual
- Marcia Sowles joins the Church of the Brethren Office of Peacebuilding and Policy