- Michael Minch
Friends,
The process of conversation and discernment we have used this summer to take an inventory of where we are as a church, and where we want to go, who we are, and who we want to be—is not over!
We have been in a time of reflection and anticipation, waiting for Pastor Michael to join us. Now that he is one of our pastors and settling in, it is time to revisit the journey we’ve been on, as we have revisited our identity, purpose, mission, and vision.
Here, we restate the summary of our conversations, but we will also add some ideas about mission and leadership generated by our pastors and the board.
As a community, Riverfront Family Church
Values diversity and inclusivity of many kinds, from the differences of racial identity to theological and spiritual to neurodiversity.
Welcomes and embraces children and youth.
Commits to healing, wellbeing, and social justice.
Intends to be a safe haven for the LGBTQ+ community.
Encourages engagement in deconstruction, seeking, and belief in whatever swirling and fluid combination they are at, at any given time.
Aspires to be a powerful force of ministry in the Hartford area.
Commits to anti-racism and building peace and reconciliation.
Engages the problematic [sic recommend change to ‘challenges”] of climate change.
Commits to helping others encounter Jesus and become more like him, that spiritual
growth and discipleship is integral to our purpose and Mission.
We are an “experiment” of sorts, and “quirky”! We affirm that we want to be available to one another, building up our church “bearing one another’s burdens” and caring for one another with love.
For the past several weeks, the board and our pastors have discussed a new model of leadership and ministry that we believe fits well with the vision summarized above. We did not “roll out” this model and language because we waited for Pastor Michael to join us and give his input.
The idea is that there will be six “Action Teams” (in our now tentative language) in the church, each with leadership from someone not on the board, and each with a board member who is a liaison to that Action Team. They are the:
Worship Action Team
Fellowship (about ministry to and with members of RFC) Action Team
Community Engagement (about ministry beyond RFC) Action Team
Spiritual Growth Action Team
Justice Action Team
Children and Youth Action Team
Realising that stewardship is critically important to all that we do, we have discussed the merits of a Stewardship Action Team or rather, making sure we keep focused on stewardship in all the Action Teams.
You will recall that early this summer you received a message about the possible adoption of a Purpose Statement or Mission Statement (noting that our church simply does not have one). This idea is still alive. We (your pastors and board) will suggest a Statement in the weeks ahead.
We will present a campaign and process of transition from these ideas and commitments to the embodiment of them. That is, as a church, we believe we are now ready to move from conversation and discernment about our identity, purpose, and mission, toward the structures that will incarnate our vision, fellowship, and ministry. All church members will have the explicit opportunity to volunteer for ministry in a number of different ways.
Please look for, and pray for, the beginning of this transition on Sunday, September 18. Please join us in a season of anticipation.
- Pastor Ben
Some folks asked if we could post this -- here is the Vision Prayer we used at this past Sunday's service...
Leader: O Love that fires the universe, thank you for burning in our midst and giving yourself
to us.
People: Let us be transformed by your love, learning to bear one another’s burdens, and give
love to all.
L: Let us grow in love, building peace and justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly with
our God;
P: Caring for the poor, the disenfranchised, the oppressed and marginalized, in our
community and world in all that we do.
L: Empower us to work for the liberation of all people, freeing us from our many forms of
captivity;
P: Caring for your creation, all species, future generations, and the climate that sustains us
all.
L: Thank you Lord of Love, for your presence, your power, and your promises. For
speaking to us and equipping us to hear you.
P: Make us whole people who proclaim the whole gospel for the whole world.
L: Thank you for giving birth and sustenance to Riverfront Family Church, for leading us
and carrying us on our journey of faith over the years.
P: Thank you for speaking to us these past weeks and allowing us to envision a future
where our love and trust in your love and power is grace and joy.
L: In this grace and joy, we anticipate the beautiful and exciting future you hold for us.
All: We thank you, Creator, Liberator, and Spirit! Amen!
Friends,
We are so grateful for the committed engagement made by our congregation, as we have been discussing our identity, mission, and vision for our future. Our conversations have revealed a considerable amount of information we’ve shared about ourselves. Moreover, the conversations themselves seemed to be intrinsically valuable, as many of you said you were grateful for the process and hoped our conversations would continue. We seem to be at an exciting time in our church’s history.
It is difficult to summarize everything said in the brief space of a newsletter. But the committee that oversaw the process, and Ben, will be communicating more to you in the coming weeks as summer unfolds. It is important that we not rush ahead quickly, as everyone should have the time needed to sit with proposed ideas, and if the Rev. Michael Winters joins us, he will naturally need some time to contribute his input. Nonetheless, this brief summary is possible.
We heard that as a church, we desire:
Reviving our Worship with greater attention to art, music, and creativity.
Creating authentic Community in which people are known, loved, served, and celebrated.
Spiritual Growth wherein we discover spiritual pathways as individuals and in groups; we learn to follow the way of Jesus; we give and receive pastoral care, including intercessory and healing prayer; and we pass on the faith generation to generation. This could include programs for small groups, discipleship classes, and a prayer ministry team.
Mission that emphasizes community engagement around, e.g., forums on LGBTQ+ and anti-racism and other justice concerns; creation care; Healing Conversations (peacebuilding among persons in conflict); community dinners; helping at the Billings Forge Apartment dinners; neighborhood clean-ups; working with the poor and marginalized; and more.
Justice through efforts like those above, and with our anti-racism team; GHIAA; advocacy; activism; and continued dialogue and learning through workshops, book groups, etc.
Educating and nurturing our children and youth through strong programs, service and mission opportunities, and more.
We heard that we should pursue exploration of our interests through the means of small
groups who organize themselves around issues of concern and excitement related to the above (e.g., worship, spiritual growth, anti-racism, creation care, peace and reconciliation, children’s and youth ministry). And that those groups would report their explorations and ideas back to the church in good time—although no dates were determined.
We heard that as a church we remain committed to Jesus-centered inclusivity and diversity,
strong children’s and youth programs, and working for peace and justice.
This schematic suggests how the components can be conceptualized in relationship to one
another:
Please also see the bullet points of the input presented by the church in our conversation on
June 5.
Grace and peace,
Alice Anderson,
Pastor Ben
Chris Graesser
Rich Gruber
Michael Minch
