Benedictine Women of Madison, an ecumenical religious community, received a five-year grant to support its Ecumenical Center for Clergy Spiritual Renewal program. This endeavor seeks to offer pastors in the early- and mid-stages of their careers the opportunity to experience spiritual renewal through immersions in Christian contemplative practices and the forming of supportive relationships with clergy peers. The pastors will participate in two immersions to experience the rhythms, people and sacred space of Holy Wisdom Monastery. Between immersions, pastors will stay connected to one another through video conference calls and a variety of leadership resources and activities sponsored by the Center. The Benedictine Women will sustain this program through partnerships with congregations and external organizations, grants, earnings from its endowment and modest participant fees.
Westmont College, a nondenominational Christian college, seeks a five-year grant to create its Frontiers program, an effort to support pastors and help them find communities that will be intellectually and spiritually invigorating. A survey of nearly 800 clergy in the college’s network, conducted in the spring of 2018, helped Westmont identify the needs of two distinct populations of clergy: new and mid-career pastors. The program will serve pastors during the first years of their ministerial careers by widening their vision for their work and strengthening their commitment to the calling of ministry. It also will focus on mid-career pastors who are seeking renewal and wisdom as they consider whether to stay in their current posts or seek new positions at other congregations. In both dimensions, the pastors will have opportunities to meet with mentors and receive advice from experienced clergy through retreats and participation in peer mentoring groups. The program also will host leadership development events, provide clergy with self-reflection experiences and encourage pastors to practice spiritual disciplines. Frontiers will be included in the Westmont’s capital campaign, and the college is committed to raising an endowment for the program.
Project Name:
Fourth District Thriving In Ministry Initiative
Description:
Fourth Episcopal District A.M.E. Church (Fourth District) seeks a five-year grant for partial support for its Thriving in Ministry Initiative project, an effort to strengthen mentoring to aid current and future pastoral leaders in building relationships with seasoned clergy. The project addresses two areas of professional transition for pastoral leadership. First, the Fourth District’s senior leadership and Board of Ministerial Training faculty will receive mentoring training and then mentor new candidates for ordained ministry as they transition into their first pastorate. Second, in partnership with Payne Theological Seminary, pastors who desire to shift their ministry from a more inward focused approach to a community engagement model of ministry will receive training to mentor other colleagues in the annual conference. The Center for the Church in the Black Experience at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary will help identify existing resources and develop new ones, including online and virtual mentoring opportunities to enhance pastoral leaders’ skills in community engagement. The Fourth District will incorporate project activities into its ongoing operations and operating budget.
Project Name:
Bridges: Colloquia for Cultivating Ministry
Description:
The Ministers and Missionaries Benefit Board of American Baptist Churches (MMBB), which serves nearly 18,000 pastors and religious leaders in more than 5,000 churches and faith-based organizations from more than 15 denominations and hundreds of independent churches, requests a five-year grant for the Bridges: Colloquia for Cultivating Ministry program. Using the colloquium model, this program will bring together pastors to share with each other best leadership practices, reflect on key topics related to ministry challenges and transitions, and build relationships for personal and professional renewal. By fostering peer colleague relationships, the pastors will give each other support and guidance as well as accountability to foster higher levels of professional competence and well-being. To sustain this program, MMBB will incorporate programming into its operating budget and seek funding from new donors and denominational partners.
California Lutheran University received a five-year grant to create the Thriving Leadership Formation Program. Working in partnership with Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary and 11 synods of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), the program will help pastors and church leaders strengthen specific practical leadership skills not learned in seminary while encouraging them to deepen their engagement with their congregations and communities. This effort will emphasize collaborative learning in cohorts (in person and online) that cultivate mutual support, practices, and accountability, and provide pastors and church leaders with mentoring, spiritual direction and coaching. To sustain this program, California Lutheran and its partner organizations will monetize mentoring and leadership development resources developed through the program and solicit financial support from its network of synods and congregations.
Project Name:
RISE Together National Mentorship Network
Description:
Union Theological Seminary is home to RISE Together, a national mentorship network specifically for women of color that connects seminarians and early/mid-career clergy with experienced female ministers, pastors, scholars and community leaders. Founded as an initiative of Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York (Union) in collaboration with the women of color in Ministry (WOCIM) Project, RISE supports both the professional and pastoral formation of women of color as they embark on ministerial careers and serve in church and faith-based leadership positions. RISE Together program staff are working to develop a sustainable model for the recruitment and retention of mentees, mentors and host institutions. Currently, the mentorship network has 10 cohorts in 7 cities—New York, Atlanta, Nashville, Chicago, Lancaster, Pa., Oakland and Los Angeles with a total of 104 mentees. Host institutional partners include, RISE headquarters Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York, American Baptist Seminary of the West, Innovative Spaces for Asian American Christianity, Vanderbilt Divinity School, Interdenominational Theological Seminary, Lancaster Theological Seminary and McCormick Theological Seminary.