National Christian Formation Conference visits our diocese

Forma 2018 Conference in Charleston January 24-28 with Presiding Bishop Michael Curry

A national conference on Christian formation will explore the theme “Formed for Justice” with help from Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Michael Curry and other speakers as more than 400 people gather in Charleston for the 2018 Forma Conference January 24-26.
 
Forma is the network for Christian formation for The Episcopal Church and beyond, with members from across North and South America and Europe and ecumenical relationships with Lutheran, Methodist, Moravian and Catholic communities. The annual conference is a time for members to learn and share resources on Christian formation, attend workshops and hear from nationally recognized speakers including:

• The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate of The Episcopal Church, who will give the sermon at the closing service of Choral Eucharist at Grace Church Cathedral on January 26. The service will be live-streamed; the link will be available on the Forma website, www.forma.church.
• The Rev. Dr. Jennifer Harvey, professor of Religion at Drake University. The Rev. Dr. Harvey is a preacher in the Progressive Baptist movement and is author of several books including Dear White Christians: For Those Still Longing for Racial Reconciliation.
• Heidi Kim and the Rev. Chuck Wynder, staff officers for Racial Reconciliation and Advocacy for The Episcopal Church. They will address “Becoming Beloved Community,” programs offered as part of a church wide commitment to racial healing, reconciliation, and justice.

 
Dozens of presenters will offer nearly 40 workshops over the three days of the conference at Grace Church Cathedral, as well as at neighboring Mount Zion AME Church and Memminger Auditorium.
 
"This week especially, I am reminded of Dr. Martin Luther King’s statement that we will either flourish as brothers and sisters in community or we will die as fools,” said the Right Reverend Gladstone B. Adams III, Bishop of The Episcopal Church in South Carolina. “Forma’s presence among us is an exciting opportunity to be an outward and visible sign of the community Dr. King envisioned. Together, with God’s help, we can work ever more faithfully toward God’s dream of justice for all people. It starts with us.”
 
Registration for the conference is full, but a free pre-conference session, live-streamed on the Forma website, will be on Tuesday, Jan. 23 between 7-8:30 p.m.
 
"Digital Communications as Formation" will discuss digital platforms and communication techniques, with Jeremy Tackett, Digital Evangelist for The Episcopal Church; Scott Gunn, Executive Director of Forward Movement, and Sarah Stonesifer, Digital Missioner and Learning Lab Coordinator for the Center for the Ministry of Teaching at Virginia Theological Seminary.
 
Jamie Martin-Currie, President of Forma, said the theme “Formed for Justice” has special significance for the 2018 conference.
 
“We agree in our baptismal covenant ‘to strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being’,” Martin-Currie said. “Our 2018 speakers will remind us of this promise, and we will surely leave inspired to live it out as well as model to others in our daily lives.”
 
Forma members attending the conference are both ordained and lay, paid and non-paid professionals, part-time and full-time, who are responsible for Christian formation for children, youth and adults. Forma operates independently of The Episcopal Church but partners closely with the Church’s Department of Lifelong Faith Formation.