UniteBoston

Nurturing Relational Connections Across Boston's Christian Community

Future of Evangelicalism Conference

IS THE EVANGELICAL CHURCH IN IRREPARABLE DECLINE?
HOW CAN WE GET YOUNG PEOPLE MORE INVOLVED IN LOCAL CHURCH MINISTRY?
WHAT KEY FACTORS WILL LEAD TO A VIBRANT RESURGENCE IN EVANGELICALISM?

The 2023 Kingdom Resources for Christ Spring Retreat (April 13-16) picks up where thinkers like Stanley J. Grenz and the Robert E. Webber left off. In the 1990s, both Christian thinkers were valiantly trying to re-envision and rethink Evangelicalism for a postmodern world—and yet, thirty years later, we’re still within the general trajectory of where they believed Evangelicalism needed to go, but socially and culturally, our whole world is also at a very different place today than the world they were facing.

As a corrective response, the above mentioned historical ingredients of Evangelicalism will be critically engaged towards a reconstructive proposal intended to internally renew the Evangelical movement towards something more holistic—this, without seeking to become “post-evangelical” or “post-conservative” (self-identifiers that some who have given up on Evangelicalism have already embraced). Instead, we’re proposing a re-constructive way forward for Evangelicalism.

Join Project Arctos online April 15-16 to explore how we can pursue a more vibrant Evangelical Christianity. We’ll be hosting digital access to Dr. Wen’s sessions, as well as a separate online discussion for those interested.

Our discussion will be led by Dr. Clement Wen, Professor of Theology at China Evangelical Seminary in Taiwan. Clement has written many forward-thinking articles on Christian life and theology, including his series ‘COVID-19 as the End of the Modern World?’ Full registration includes in-person access to all sessions, prepared meals, and housing on a first-come basis. Partial and online-only registration options are also available. Scholarships provided on as-needed basis. You can register here to secure your space in this important conversation. Or please reach out to Matt Reffie with any questions.

Leading Boldly in the Midst of a Community in Crisis

Join us for Vision New England’s Women in Christian Leadership “Leading Well” forum, featuring Rev. Gloria White-Hammond, entitled “Leading Boldly in the Midst of a Community in Crisis.”

Historians often discuss watershed moments—critical turning points in history that fundamentally change how people think about and do life. The past 1 ½ years has been a quintessential watershed moment in which many communities have experienced multiple painful crises simultaneously. Just as God raised up and equipped Esther to respond to the crisis in her day, God is calling today’s Christian women leaders to step up with conviction, step out on faith and step forward with courage.

Rev. Gloria White-Hammond, M.D. is co-pastor of Bethel AME Church in Boston and a pediatrician who long practiced at the South End Community Health Center. She also co-directs the Harvard Medical School and Harvard Divinity School course, “Medicine and Spirituality in Healing.” Rev. Gloria is a longtime champion of health equity and publicly speaks about COVID-19 vaccination as a pastor and a physician, especially in communities of color. Rev. Gloria’s innovative ministries include Do The Write Thing, a creative writing mentoring ministry for high-risk adolescent girls; My Sister’s Keeper,  www.mskeeper.org , a humanitarian and human rights organization that champions social justice for women and girls in conflict zones; and Shatter the Silence, a ministry that addresses sexual victimization in communities of faith.

Leading Confidently In God’s Rescue Mission – Carolyn Custis James

Vision New England – Women in Christian Leadership – Leading Well Forum Series

In our rapidly changing world, women are learning how to draw from the attitudes and skills that are developed from our unique experiences as women. These distinct approaches to leadership achieve results, but often in different ways. We invite Christian women in leadership on church staffs or in non-profits to join us online this year to explore what it means to lead well. This is a great opportunity to hear their voice and share yours…to listen, ask questions, and reflect with peers so that your own leadership is honed.

On September 24th hear from Carolyn Custis James in on free, interactive zoom forum. God’s calling on His daughters is big. His plan from the beginning has been for his male and female image bearers together to reflect his heart for the world and look after things on his behalf. This is God’s call to leadership. Throughout scripture God often chooses the most unlikely people to advance his purposes for the world. Far too often human systems impede our ability to respond. How do we as women leaders confidently embrace our calling and encourage other women and girls to hear and step into their calling too? From her theological training and years of ministry experience, Carolyn will challenge us to accept these divine assignments.

Carolyn is an award winning author who thinks deeply about what it means to be a female follower of Jesus in a postmodern world. In 2013, Christianity Today named her one of the 50 evangelical women to watch. She speaks regularly at church conferences, colleges, and for other Christian organizations both in the US and abroad and is a guest lecturer at various theological seminaries. Her speaking and writing ministry is dedicated to addressing the deeper needs and issues confronting both women and men as they endeavor to extend God’s kingdom together in a messy and complicated world. Her books include Malestrom:  Manhood Swept into the Currents of a Changing World and Half the Church: Recapturing God’s Global Vision for Women.

To register, click here.

Pastor’s Forum: Sharing the Uniqueness of Jesus in our Pluralistic Culture

The Shoemaker Center for Church Renewal and the Dean’s office at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary are please to welcome Carrie Boren Headington, Canon Evangelist, Episcopal Diocese of Dallas for a combined Pastor’s Forum/Dean’s Forum on November 5, 2019. Carrie will speak on ‘Sharing the Uniqueness of Jesus in our Pluralistic Culture.’ Lunch is free for Gordon-Conwell students with registration.

Divided We Stand? Evangelicals and Catholics Search for Common Ground

Big News! UniteBoston is featured this week on the Neighborly Faith Podcast!

Neighborly Faith Podcast hosts Kevin Singer and Chris Stackaruk searched nationwide for the cutting edge of Evangelical-Catholic ecumenism, the work towards unity among Christians. They traveled to Boston and Chicago to investigate the status and future of Evangelical-Catholic relationships in these cities, interviewing pastors & priests, professors, laypersons, seminarians, and musicians from both traditions. In their extensive and exclusive interviews, they investigate: What can today’s leaders in ecumenism teach us about the future between these two traditions?

Episodes include:
  • Evangelicals, Catholics, and Jesus’ Call for Unity: How should Christians follow the NT command for the Church to be one as Jesus and the Father are one?”
  • First Impressions of Evangelicals/Catholics…and Why They Changed: Leaders talk about their first impressions of the other, and how those impressions are changing.
  • Why is Christian Unity Difficult?: What are the hindrances Evangelicals must overcome in order to engage better with Catholics?
  • What Does Christian Unity Look Like?What does unity realistically look like in our world today?
  • Evangelicals and Catholics Working Together:  How are Evangelicals and Catholics working together now for the betterment of their churches, communities, and societies?

Here are links to the series: SERIES // SITE. These episodes would be great to listen to on a morning commute!

Featured Guests from UniteBoston include:

  • Kelly Fassett, the Founder and Executive Director of UniteBoston
  • Korleen Sheridan, member of UniteBoston’s Worship Team
  • Dr. Elizabeth Smith, Catholic scholar and ecumenist
  • Chloe Gaydos, UniteBoston Worship Team Band Manager
  • Rev. Dana Baker, Pastor of Social Justice and Multicultural Ministry at Grace Chapel and UniteBoston Board Member
“Ecumenism is us functioning as a body in which each part is playing its own role, yet there is synergy, conjunction, and coordination. I do what I can to promote a sense of honor and respect across the differences. Not that we would erase our differences but recognize them and be challenged by them. This giving and receiving is in the nature of God the Trinity”
-Kelly Fassett
Executive Director, UniteBoston
Please share this resource as widely as you are able. We’d love for the series to reach all who care about the future of Evangelical-Catholic ecumenism.
You can keep up with Neighborly Faith here: TWITTER // FACEBOOK // NEWS

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