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THE CENTER LETTER 2008
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"Cultivating Communities of Reconciliation" |
Each monthly issue of the Center Letter is edited by Dr. Inagrace T. Dietterich and presents the very best of the Center's research and practice. The timely theme "Cultivating Communities of Reconciliation" will explore thought-patterns shaping today's culture of fear and revenge while offering alternative biblical perspectives and concrete practices of hope and compassion.
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| The Center Letter is published on an annual subscription basis, beginning with the January issue. Persons who enter a subscription during the year will receive all issues for the current year. |
Subscriptions to the Center Letter:
| $15 Individual Online |
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| $15 Individual Online Gift Subscription |
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| $25 Individual (US) Mailed |
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| $28 Individual (outside the USA) Mailed |
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| $250 Syndication Rights (US) |
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| $275 Syndication Rights (outside the USA) |
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| $40 Single Issue (unlimited reprint) |
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| "Forgiveness" is central to Christian life and practice. It is at the heart of Jesus' life and New Testament communities. It is featured in the prayer that Jesus taught and in the confessions of faith of early Christian councils. It is central in our celebration of baptism and eucharist. But in contemporary church life, it has been increasingly sidelined, seldom practiced concretely. Christian common life that embodies reconciliation involves learning how to acknowledge that we are sinners: learning to confess the ways in which we have fallen short, and learning how to become forgiven: embracing God's freely given love and mercy which renews us and our relationships with each other. Reconciled relationships involves truly listening to each other, practicing concrete acts of helpfulness toward each other, and bearing and not side-stepping one another's burdens. Through these practices God's reconciliation is proclaimed and embodied in the church's common life as its witness before a watching world. |
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In the 2008 Center Letter the Center's staff will join with ministry partners across an ecumenical spectrum to bring you current sharp cultural analysis along with focused theological thinking, illustrated with concrete practices. Themes around reconciliation, forgiveness, restoration in community will be illustrated by -
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- An urban Chicago congregation embracing a death-row inmate whose sentence was commuted by the Illinois' governor.
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- A presbytery in the PC(USA) learns to facilitate its "stated meetings" in a new way that provides space and time for honest and meaningful conversation, envisioning God's vision, and discerning in a new spirit the difficult decisions that before had pitted people against each other.
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- A congregation that equips all of its members - and even instructs its new members - in the process of Matthew 18, living out of a vision of reconciliation in word and in practice.
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- A congregation in Austin still recalls its Sunday practice in the days of the Civil War when the whole congregation prayed for Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis in the same prayer week after week, an historic practice still relevant in the midst of current differences.
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- A regional church leader who is trained as a resource to local civil courts in the ways of restorative justice (in contrast to retributive) utilizes these concepts basic to Christian faith in the context of congregations.
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- How can Christian congregations from other traditions learn from the experience of the Amish community in Nickel Mines, PA, about practicing forgiveness and reconciliation.
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How subscribers are using the Center Letter in their church:
- They make unlimited copies of each issue; include it in monthly resource packets to all congregations, or they send it as a special mailing to all pastors.
- Local church leadership teams (council, session, or administrative board) use it to balance their focus on operations with a quality time of strategic study and group building each time they meet.
- Clergy group meetings use the Center Letter as they support and encourage one another to lead from a missional perspective.
- Church consultants and resource persons use the Center Letter to focus learning in workshops, seminars, and consultations.
- Visioning teams use it to ground themselves, surface important issues, and to assure that they are asking right questions.
- One judicatory associate purchases syndication rights and makes the Center Letter his annual Christmas gift to key leaders.
Think how you can use the Center Letter to stimulate questions and conversations you know are needed in your church organization! |
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