The Minster Project 2020 Important information about participating in Diocesan Convention Note: Lay delegates and all canonically resident clergy may participate in Diocesan Convention this year in one of two ways: In-person at a location in one of the 11 minster churches OR Individually, online from your home Here is information participants need to know about each option. At a minster site At home online Wear a mask at all times when Have the Zoom meeting log-in indoors. information handy. If you’re new to Zoom, take part in one of the Zoom tutorials ahead of time. 6 feet Keep 6 feet distance from anyone not in your family. You can participate using any ó Internet-connected device: desk- top computer, laptop, tablet or smartphone. Tablets and smart- Bring your convention book and phones require the Zoom app. other mailed materials and your Note: You also will need to use red and green cards. one such device for voting. Bring an Internet-connected Have handy your convention device with you for voting: laptop, book and other mailed materials tablet or smartphone. and your red and green cards. Bring a lunch or plan to visit a If you wish to speak during the drive-through. The meeting room convention, put your name in the will be closed during the lunch chat box, and you’ll be notified break for cleaning. when it’s your turn. If you feel sick, do not attend in We know it’s hard to stay fully person. Use the link sent to you engaged in online meetings, so by email to connect by Zoom from thanks in advance for watching home. carefully. • 1 • Agenda for Minster Time The minster shepherd will lead two, half-hour discussions (one hour total) with the lay delegates and clergy from their minster (those online via Zoom and those in person). Session I: The Minster Project, the concept and brief review of Year One (30 minutes) Reinforce minster concept for mission and ministry Inform delegates about minster activity in 2020–2021 The minster shepherd reintroduces the minster concept to delegates, either reading aloud or allowing all to read silently the bishop’s description of the Minster Project on page 3. One intention of the minsters is that they empower us to live Jesus’ Way of Love, both in our church circles and in our neighborhood contexts. The group will watch Presiding Bishop Michael Curry’s Way of Love video (provided to minster shepherds and Zoom vergers) and review the Way of Love practices on page 4. If there is time, the minster shepherd invites participants to share with one another which Way of Love practices they are personally drawn to most, and which practice is a strength of each particular parish community. The minster shepherd will describe the activity in which the minster has engaged over the last year and invite minster participants to offer their own reflections (suggested questions): How have minster participants built a sense of community in the past year? What have been some gains or setbacks for your sense of community? Session II: How can we move forward in missional action in Year Two? (30 minutes) The minster neighborhood is the local community context that our parishes inhabit. Please look at the maps that follow (pages 5–10). In what kind of “neighborhood’’ is your minster located? The bishop is asking that each minster prayerfully choose one or two action items to adopt for the upcoming year. The minster shepherd now allows time for all gathered to read the items that have been offered by diocesan task forces, on pages 11–13. The minster should discuss: Has any missional or outreach work begun yet? If so, what is it? If it is aimed at the larger community and not just the church circle, the bishop will approve actions outside this list. Please discuss which action items are resonating most. The minster shepherd (or an appointed scribe) needs to write down and submit to the bishop and canon to the ordinary the items that are surfacing. Members should pray further and by the end of November make a final choice of direction. Discussion with Vestry and other lay leaders of each parish is encouraged, if helpful; the idea is that the minster teams lead, but many Episcopalians in the minsters participate. All clergy automatically are on the team in each minster. What lay leaders might be added to empower the chosen work? • 2 • The Kansas Minster Project: From Bishop Cathleen Bascom Presiding Bishop Michael Curry has inspired all of us in recent years with the understanding that we are “the Episcopal branch of the Jesus Movement.” He has also encouraged us to revisit — or learn anew — spiritual practices described as “the Way of Love,” that our mission and ministry as the Jesus Movement may be deep and rich and centered on God. Simply put, the practices of the Way of Love empower us to love God and love our neighbor per Jesus’ summary of the law. The Kansas Minster Project proposes a collaborative way of organizing ourselves for God’s mission in the Diocese of Kansas in the 21st century — it is a vision of our “branching pattern” for the Jesus Movement, a way of structur- ing to bear the Way of Love with new vigor. I have come to believe that our gospel work will be more sustainable and fruitful if we revise our strict congrega- tional church models (which worked very well for much of the 19th and 20th centuries) and think more collabora- tively and regionally (looking back to models used in Europe and England in the 1st through 15th centuries). I have been in conversation with both the Council of Trustees of the diocese and the Council of Deans about this, and they are in support of further exploration of the Minster model. In the section of the bishop profile entitled “The Bishop We Seek,” one characteristic for the Tenth Bishop of Kansas reads: “Works outside conventional structures and boundaries…We seek a bishop who reconsiders conven- tional, traditional structures and boundaries at the local, convocation, diocesan and denominational levels, and seeks ways that we, the church, can be stronger together.” The Diocese of Kansas has 11 regional ministers: Free State-All Saints: St. Martin’s, Edwardsville; St. Margaret’s, Lawrence; Trinity, Lawrence; St. Aidan’s, Olathe; Grace, Ottawa; St. Francis’, Overland Park; St. Thomas’, Overland Park; Canterbury House of Lawrence Kansas River: St. Paul’s, Kansas City; St. Michael and All Angels, Mission; St. Luke’s, Shawnee Missouri River: Trinity, Atchison; St. Paul’s, Leavenworth Bluestem: St. John’s, Abilene; St. Mark’s, Blue Rapids; St. Paul’s, Clay Center; Church of the Covenant, Junction City; St. Paul’s, Marysville Tallgrass: St. Thomas’, Holton; St. Paul’s, Manhattan; Grace Cathedral, Topeka; St. David’s, Topeka; St. Luke’s, Wamego; Canterbury House at K-State Little Church on the Prairie: St. Paul’s, Coffeyville; Church of the Epiphany, Independence; Church of the Ascension, Neodesha; Epiphany, Sedan Love-Emitting Disciples: Grace, Chanute; St. Timothy’s, Iola; Calvary, Yates Center Southeast: St. Mary’s, Galena; St. John’s, Parsons; St. Peter’s, Pittsburg Heartland: Trinity, El Dorado; St. Andrew’s, Emporia; St. Matthew’s, Newton; St. Stephen’s, Wichita South by Southwest: Trinity, Arkansas City; St. Andrew’s, Derby; St. Jude’s, Wellington; Grace, Winfield Wichita: Good Shepherd, Wichita; St. Bartholomew’s, Wichita; St. James’, Wichita; St. John’s, Wichita; college work at Wichita State • 3 • TURN: Pause, listen, and choose to follow Jesus Like the disciples, we are called by Jesus to follow the Way of Love. With God’s help, we can turn from the powers of sin, hatred, fear, injustice, and oppression toward the way of truth, love, hope, justice, and freedom. In turning, we re-orient our lives to Jesus Christ, falling in love with Jesus again and again. LEARN: Reflect on Scripture each day, especially Jesus’ life and teachings By reading and reflecting on Scripture, especially the life and teachings of Jesus, we draw near to God and God’s word dwells in us. When we open our minds and hearts to Scripture, we learn to see God’s story and God’s activity in everyday life. PRAY: Dwell intentionally with God each day Prayer is a response to God’s initiative, with or without words. Jesus teaches us to come before God with humble hearts, boldly offering our thanksgivings and concerns to God or simply listening for God’s voice in our lives and in the world. Whether in thought, word, or deed, individually or corporately, when we pray we invite and dwell in God’s loving presence. WORSHIP: Gather in community weekly to thank, praise, and draw near God When we worship, we gather with others before God. We hear the Good News of Jesus, give thanks, confess and offer the brokenness of the world to God. As we break bread, our eyes are opened to the presence of Christ. By the power of the Holy Spirit, we are made one body, the body of Christ sent for to live the Way of Love. BLESS: Share faith and unselfishly give and serve Jesus called his disciples to give, forgive, teach, and heal in his name. We are empowered by the Spirit to bless every- one we meet, practicing generosity and compassion and proclaiming the Good News of God in Christ with hopeful words and selfless actions. We can share our stories of blessing and invite others to the Way of Love. GO: Cross boundaries, listen deeply, and live like Jesus As Jesus went to the highways and byways, he sends us beyond our circles and comfort to witness to the love, justice, and truth of God with our lips and with our lives.