Friday, Oct. 5 at 10 am until 12:30 pm Saturday, Oct. 6. Fremont United Methodist church in Portland, OR will host a condensed catechumenate training with featured presenter: Dan Benedict, former Worship Resources Director for the United Methodist Church and author of Come to the Waters, a book on baptism and making disciples.

All denominations are welcome at this event. The services and prayers used will come from the Methodist tradition, with worship resources available for those from other traditions. Teams including clergy and 2-6 lay congregation members are recommended to attend together.

An immersion experience and training for congregational teams: welcoming seekers, making disciples.

Welcoming is important, foundational, Gospel.

But what’s next?

How do we welcome the curious, the exiled, the returning, the seeker, and create a space to be encountered by Jesus, to build relationship, to help discern the transformative path of dying with Christ and sharing in his Resurrection?

Journey to Baptismal Living (North American Association of the Catechumate) will offer an intensive weekend of experience and training for parish teams to help foster communities of transformation.

The weekend, hosted by the Anglican Studies Program Saint Paul University, and Saint Matthew’s Anglican Church and supported by the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa and the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada will include the sharing of and leadership of liturgical rites, small group formation, theological reflection, formation for leaders, faith conversation and listening skills, fellowship and opportunity for ongoing access to resources and community dialogue.

Parish teams of 3 or more are encouraged to participate and experience these paths and tools for becoming welcoming, forming, sending communities in its worship, reflection,prayer and ministry.

The great commission reveals the future of the Body is in our hands. If we are not forming new disciples, who is?