Submitted by Kathleen Owens, Manager of Clergy Programming and Communications for the Center for Clergy Renewal (CCR)
On Wednesday, Jan. 29th, the January immersion for our fifth cohort of pastors concluded. As we gathered for midday prayer following the conclusion of the immersion time, the psalm we read was 126, which says in part:
God brings us back to Zion, we are like dreamers, laughing, dancing, with songs on our lips.
God, bring us back as water to thirsty land. Those sowing in tears reap, singing and laughing.
This is yet another time when the Psalm that comes in daily prayer speaks to the heart of our current experience. When this cohort first arrived at Holy Wisdom Monastery last July there was anger and some weeping, there was also a lot of dreaming. In their time together this January, the return to a place and community they know was healing for their thirst and fulfilling for their souls.
This immersion was cofacilitated by Rev. Nancy Enderle and Rev. Winton Boyd, with the assistance of our new Director of the Center for Clergy Renewal, Rev. Rachel Young Binter. Nancy’s leadership for the immersion marked her last offering to the Center for Clergy Renewal before fully transitioning into retirement.
There is much to celebrate, and we will continue to share comments, photos, and a video in future Weekly Wisdom installments. For now, please hold these pastors in your prayers as they transition into walking alongside each other through monthly online small groups over the next 18 months. This will be a time for the Rules of Life that arose during their time here to settle into their lives and practices as new things unfold in their ministries.
This cohort is already talking about when to schedule their reunion. In the meantime, our second cohort will be back at Holy Wisdom, Feb. 5-9, and the fourth cohort is coming back Feb. 12-16. We know this land is healing. It keeps drawing us back to dream together, cry together, and then go out again with singing and laughter!