Susan Teige (Sunday School Coordinator)

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Anglican Church Women's Conference

April 11-13, 2008 St. Luke’s Anglican Church Beaverlodge, Alberta Speaker: Rev. Ruth Adams

THEME: You Are A Beloved Child of God Please Bring:

• Bible
• BAS if you have your own
• Skit or song to share Saturday evening
• Comfortable clothes
• An expectant spirit
• Musical Instrument if you play
• Any items for Agenda(General Meeting)
• Names of Women who are deceased(during past year)

Registration Time.-5-7pm Conference begins 7pm Friday and ends 12.00 noon(after lunch on Sunday) Note: You are on your own for Friday night supper.

Speaker –Rev Ruth Adams Ruth is a retired Anglican priest who continues to be active in spiritual guidance and interim ministry (St. Luke’s, Peterborough, Ontario, Christ Church, Grande Prairie and presently at St. John the Baptist, Lakefield, Ontario). She is the mother of 5 and grandmother of 11. Moving is a theme in Ruth’s life. From birth in the City of Toronto to the present day, she has moved 17 times, living in 3 provinces - Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, and in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Her best gifts are pastoral - she has a listening stance, a healing ministry and a passion for people to experience the presence of God in their everyday lives as we do the joyful work of living out Jesus’ command “to love one another as I have loved you”. Ruth is looking forward to returning to the Peace Country, to see dear friends and make new ones as she journeys with the women of the Diocese of Athabasca With faith, hope, love and anticipation. Ruth Adams+

Anglican Women’s Conference C/O Kathy Greer 9933-76A Avenue Grande Prairie, AB T8V 3Y5

Western Canada Summer Training Institute for Church Leaders
June 2 to 5, 2008, at The Kings University College, in Edmonton

Dear Diocese of Athabasca Church Leaders,

With this e-mail, I would like to extend an invitation to you, and your fellow Anglican and United church leaders, to Conciliation Services Canada’s first Western Canada Summer Training Institute for Church Leaders.
This ecumenical institute will be held June 2 to 5, 2008, at The Kings University College, in Edmonton, on the topic of "Dealing With Differences In The Family of Faith: how to move your church through conflict."

Our facilitator will be the Rev. Speed B. Leas, known internationally for his work as a Senior Consultant of the Alban Institute, and as one of North America's foremost experts on this subject.

The dates were chosen to fit between the annual conference/synod weekends of the United and Lutheran churches of the region, hopefully making it possible for ministers coming from a distance to attend both events.

The brochure/registration form for the Institute is available in pdf format on the web site of the Alberta and Northwest Conference of the United Church of Canada at www.anwconf.com/coffice/LeasEventBrochure.pdf .

From 1993 to 2001, Canadian clergy and lay leaders of many denominations enjoyed the Summer Training Institutes for Church Leaders sponsored by Mennonite and Brethren in Christ Conciliation Services of Canada, Canada’s first church-based conflict transformation service, at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario. Although we brought the Mennonite-based Conciliation Services project to a close in the fall of 2001, past participants in our training events have asked for the continuation of our multi-denominational training opportunities for Canadian clergy and lay leaders. In response to these requests, we have continued to offer our Summer Training Institutes under the auspices of Conciliation Services Canada, a nondenominational practice in church conflict transformation. In 2008, we will offer three Training Institutes: in Waterloo, Halifax, and Edmonton.

Our Institutes in recent years have often focused on broad themes within the field of congregational health, usually under the leadership of Alban Institute facilitators. Many congregations have become healthier, more faithful communities as we have applied the learnings from these training events. But in every congregation, no matter how healthy, we are still faced with the daily challenges of building a life together within a diverse family of faith and a changing environment; in other words, we all still need to be able to deal skillfully, faithfully, and redemptively, with conflict in the church. With our first Western Canada Summer Training Institute, we have decided to return to our roots to help church leaders to do just that.

Sharing the best practices learned over 30 years of the Alban Institutes work with congregations, Rev. Leas will explore with us how to surface and work with conflicts in our own congregations - before they become crises - and how to reduce harm and facilitate healing if were too late. Well work, also, at managing ourselves in the midst of conflict, learning how we might lower anxiety and better access the resources of our faith as we work through challenging situations as leaders.

The cost for this event is $450 for early registration by May 2,'08, after which the fee is $480. Lunches, study materials, refreshments at the breaks, parking, and taxes are all included in the fee. Reasonably priced accommodation is available on campus at The King's University College.

If you would like an electronic copy of the brochure in Word format, or if you would like to receive bulk paper copies of the brochure, please call toll free, 1-866-782-0287, or email cressman@soonet.ca.

Wishing you every blessing in this New Year,

Nan Cressman

Nan Cressman, Director,
Conciliation Services Canada,
767 Lakeshore Drive, R.R.# 1,
Desbarats, ON P0R 1E0
705-782-0287 toll free: 1-866-782-0287