During the first two weeks of February, the RMC’s Board of Directors hosted a series of conversations with local churches called Stewarding Our Future. This consisted of twelve conversations with representation from 30 different congregations across the Rocky Mountain Conference. These conversations were about the future of Conference ministry, the needs of our local churches, and how all of us can play a role in stewarding the future of this important work.
First of all, I want to say a big thank-you to all who participated: the thoughtfulness and honesty shared in these conversations was deeply appreciated. And, to those who weren’t able to participate, we still want to connect with you. We are especially eager to host conversations with chaplains and ministers in wider church settings. Please email admin@rmcucc.org and we will set up a time for members of the Board to connect with you.
The conversations were, in and of themselves, a reminder of how valuable it is to take time to connect and listen to one another, not only for members of the Board to hear what is happening in the local churches, but for local churches to have an opportunity to connect with and learn from one another. It is our hope to make these kinds of gatherings a more regular practice for the Board.
In addition to the gift of the connection, there were several themes that emerged from the conversations:
Local church vitality is real.
Although there is anxiety about money and budget and buildings, there are also creative, innovative ministries reaching the wider community. And, there are several churches experiencing significant growth. Many congregations are discovering new courage in their public witness of what it means to be a Christian. From these conversations, there was more life than decline across our Conference.
Bold and courageous faith.
Many of you asked about the racial justice work of the Conference. As several congregations reflected on the importance of progressive theological witness in the public square, there was consistent concern and passion for immigrant safety and justice along with an overall commitment to being bold in our proclamation of faith as followers of Jesus.
Longing for connection and relationship.
Churches are aware of the need for collaboration, and you recognize one another as resources. The challenge is not whether the resources are there but how to create a relational infrastructure that supports the sharing and curating of resources. There was also genuine gratitude for the opportunity for lay leaders to connect to one another and an overall recognition of the untapped resources in all of our congregations.
Support for youth and youth volunteers.
Several congregations shared a hope to be able to better support their youth. Many churches do not have the capacity or the leadership to support a youth group, yet want to provide their youth with meaningful opportunities to grow in their faith. This trend coincides with multiple conversations that have been happening within the Annual Celebration Planning Committee as well as the Metro Denver Association.
Exploration of Disciples of Christ and United Church of Christ shared ministries
Since several of our congregations are being served by Disciples of Christ pastors, there were questions about how we might collaborate more closely with the Rocky Mountain Region of the Disciples of Christ.
Finally, in addition to these common themes, there were also consistent tensions:
- In many conversations, we noticed a longing for clearer structures, fiscal responsibility, and defined staff roles, as well as a desire for flexibility, imagination, and courageous risk-taking.
- Some of you want to slow down the Conference’s search process for a new settled Conference Minister in order to explore different models of how to carry out Conference ministry. Others want to ensure that we stick to the original search process timeline.
- There is also recognition of the ongoing tension between autonomy and covenant. We noticed a desire for connection and collective witness as well as a wariness of overreach and potential disrespect for diverse contextual realities across the Conference.
As an experiment, we took all the notes from the meetings and asked AI to distill the top 3 hopes and aspirations for the Conference. Here is what we got:
- Conference as Network of Courageous, Connected Communities: There is appetite for boldness.
- A Conference That Is Relational Before Institutional: People want the Conference to feel like a relationship, not just a structure.
- Imagination Over Scarcity: Amidst concerns about the Conference’s budget deficit, many of you spoke of a desire for out-of-the box thinking, experiments, abundance, and creativity. The spirit of RMC is not defeatist — it is searching.
What’s next?
One of the main tasks of the RMC’s Transition Plan was to explore different staffing models to strengthen our capacity to carry out the core ministries of the Conference within the constraints of fiscal responsibility. These stewardship conversations were invaluable in helping the Board identify what is needed and how we can better align our use of resources to support the identified needs of the Conference. We will continue to host conversations and incorporate the notes into the summaries. Once the Search Committee for the new CM is formed, we will hand over our notes and summaries to the committee for them to utilize as they begin working on a Conference profile.
Thanks again for your participation and thoughtfulness in these conversations!
Sincerely,
Rev. Erin Gilmore
Transitional Conference Minister, Rocky Mountain Conference UCC
PS – Want to know one helpful way to keep in touch with your siblings across the Conference? Subscribe to the Together Newsletter, which we send out every other Friday, full of information about upcoming events, trainings, leadership opportunities and more. To subscribe, please fill out the sign-up form on this page. Thank you!
