Event

Reclaiming Rural 2.0 (Nov 2024 – Feb 2025)

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Program Description

Designed as a follow-up course to Reclaiming Rural 1.0, join us as we take what we learned of opportunities for revitalization, alternative narratives for rural, and theologically grounded practices and implement it! This course will meet once a month for four months, with one follow-up celebration. Each session allows participants to focus on a key concept for revitalization in rural areas, the why behind this concept, and a monthly practice for each participant or congregational group. These monthly practices will begin to move congregations as they work through practices and discover how God is leading each.

 

Rev. Dr. Sarah Cordray will facilitate learning with conversations centered on the following:

  • #1 (November 7)-Curiosity: Short review of 1.0, shifts in posture of leaders and congregation, center, and commitment to God’s call and one another.
  • #2 (December 5)-Community: Group recap, congregation’s assets and personality, listening
  • #3 (January 9)-Connection: Group Recap, The Gospel of the Small, Noticing, Building upon Strengths, and Surprise in the Old
  • #4 (February 6)-Collaboration: Group Recap, Experimenting, and Redefining Success for Rural Ministry
  • Follow-up Celebration-TBD by group

Instructor:

From camp counselor to 3rd grade teacher to youth minister to pastor, Rev. Dr. Sarah Cordray has served as an associate pastor in Aitkin, MN (2005-2009) and as head of staff for a rural four-point parish in the panhandle of Nebraska (2009-2014). She is currently serving as the Senior Pastor at Luther Memorial Church in Syracuse where she has been since early 2014. All these calls have given opportunity to Pastor Sarah to discover her passion and unique vocation within her call: to be God’s agent in accompanying individual leaders and congregations to [re]discover their identity and purpose in relationship to God, community, and self while becoming revitalized through Christ. Sarah is also an ELCA Level 2 Certified Coach-Mission Development and Congregation Vitality.

Along with the joy of this call, Sarah gives thanks to God for the best gifts of her life: her husband Nick and their two children, Nathanial and Samantha.

Class Details

Format: Online via ZOOM – Zoom link and additional course information will be send to those registered after November 1. Watch for emails from Pastor Sarah Cordray.

Date: Thursdays – November 7, December 5, January 9 and February 6

Time:   7:00-8:00 Central/6:00-7:00 Mountain

Perquisite: This course is built on Reclaiming Rural 1.0 which is offered in September – October, 2024. Please complete Reclaiming Rural 1.0 before participating in Reclaiming Rural 2.0.

Target Audience: Lay and rostered leaders are welcome. Congregations are encouraged to participate with pastoral leader (pastor, deacon, PMA) and at least one lay leader. Having a partner will help integrate the learning and provide support for sharing with the congregation. This is the third time we have offered this Emmaus course. Each of the congregations that have participated in Reclaiming Rural 1.0 have shared having a group gathered helped them formulate their next faithful action steps living into their mission and call as a rural congregation.

Continuing Education Credits: This course is considered 4 hours of continuing education credit.

Cost: Course fee is $20/person. Register 3 and bring as many as you would like to a group watch party. Registration deadline is November 1. No refunds after November 1.

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