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Southeastern Synod Leadership Convocation
Lutheridge Conference Center
Arden, NC
September 15 - 17, 2015
 "What are you looking for?"
These are Jesus' first words in John's gospel, asked of two of John's disciples who have followed him.
When people gather to participate in worship they come for many reasons: dedication, routine, need for community, hunger to be fed. As "stewards of the mysteries of God," those involved in planning and conducting worship consider the context and needs of the gathered community. When the seeds of expectation land on the tilled soil of preparation there are great possibilities for the Holy to happen.
Join us for the annual Southeastern Synod Leadership Convocation September 15 - 17, where our keynote speaker, author and retreat leader Robert Benson, will lead us in conversation regarding the expectations the people who gather in our worshipping communities bring with them, and how "what they are looking for" should shape and influence our planning and our practices of worship and preaching.
The Leadership Convocation is an annual gathering for the rostered leaders, staff, and lay leaders in the Southeastern Synod. It is a time for learning, worship, fellowship, and Sabbath. While in the past the Convocation has been attended primarily by our rostered leaders and staff, lay leaders who serve on synod committees and task forces, Synod Council, and as leaders in our congregations, as well as our synod's ministry candidates, are welcome and invited to attend.
We are pleased to welcome Robert Benson to our Convocation this year. Having grown up in Tennessee, where he still lives, in a family of writers, publishers, and speakers, Benson describes his writing as "[writing] about paying attention for the things that can point us to the Sacred in our lives. About the longings that we have for home and community and a sense of belonging. About practice and ritual and work and contemplation and the way that such things can be constant reminders of who we are and who we are to become."
He writes for readers who are interested in discussing such things in the traditional language that the Church uses - the language of spirituality and prayer and liturgy, the language of religion, and he writes about trying to discover the Holy that is to be found in the ordinary when writing about more general subjects such as baseball, gardening and travel. Mr. Benson will also lead a workshop on writing during our Leadership Convocation.
Benson is an alumnus of the Academy for Spiritual Formation, a two-year program of study and prayer in community. He is a member of The Friends of Silence & of the Poor, an international prayer community. He leads seminars and retreats on prayer, silence, writing, and spirituality. Learn more about him at
www.robertbensonwriter.com/.
To register for the Leadership Convocation, visit the NovusWay website at www.novusway.com. Click on "Our Programs" and "Registration Information." If you already have a NovusWay username and password, you will need to have it available when you register.
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