On June 1-4, a wonderful group of young people of color met at The University of the South, Sewanee TN to explore ministry in community while celebrating their cultures.
The Does it Fit Conference, a collaborative effort between the Ethnic Ministries Offices and the Pastoral Leadership Search Effort-PLSE, was a rich experience. It was rich not only as stated by the participants in their testimonies and evaluation forms but also for the Design Team and Seminary Staff who were delighted by the gifts, talents, personalities and passion of the group and the high sense of community and fellowship shared with one another.
Does it Fit? was also an opportunity for celebration of a multicultural experience and community, where languages, dances and food were shared. From enjoying a Round and a Rabbit Native American dance to eating coconut and tamarind dessert from the Caribbean, from hearing about the beauty of Alaska, hearing a beautiful song in Spanish, to enjoying laughter during a wonderful funny sketch about black history prepared by the African American delegation.
A significant number of participants expressed how life changing the conference was and left with enthusiasm and desire to continue exploring God’s call in each area of their lives. If you are interested in learning about some of their experiences, check the Discussion Board on PLSE Facebook Group.
The event provided a safe space for conversation about ministry and life in general, as well as a space to build community and establish new friendships, which are being nurtured by the constant communication, wall posts, picture posts on Facebook and other social networking tools.
Among the 39 participants, 13 students expressed their desire to consider ordained ministry in the future. Jasmine Bostock a college student of the Diocese of Hawaii, who resides in Washington DC, commented "I came in to the conference with a clear acceptance and realization that God had called me to ordained ministry. I have never fought against the call, but, until the conference, had a lot of unanswered questions."
Indeed, Does it Fit? provided an opportunity for exploring and asking all kind of questions about ministry.
Others participants, like Amasi Kumeh from the Diocese of Newark expressed her interest of pursing missionary work after graduate school.
At the lunch hosted by PLSE for participants interested in ordained ministry, Diego Veizaga, a 20 year old from Florida expressed his desire to go to law school and his passion about serving others. Diego shared with the group how the ministry of his rector encourages him to consider ordination, as a second career in life.
The Rev. Dr. Bradley S. Hauff preached during the Eucharist honoring Native American and Black Ministries, reminding us that we are all ministers and that is not easy sometimes to know what kind of ministry God is calling us to pursue. Dr. Bradley urged the participants, “to not be afraid… be who you are, celebrate who you are, God’s unique creation." He affirmed that God has a plan for each one of us. "We need the help of one another to know what that plan is”. His powerful words were received with enthusiasm by the attendees.
What is next for us, the leaders who organized this event? We must continue this initiative. We must follow up with, nurture, and guide Does it Fit? Participants to continue exploring and living their call to lay or ordained ministry and to usher them into the various ministries and networks of our Episcopal community at large.
We must commit to continue nurturing and promoting ministry and diversity within the Church to continue embracing our mission as children of God and ambassadors of God's Kingdom.
If you have questions about future Does it Fit? events please contact any of the following staff person at the Episcopal Church Center:
The Rev. Angela Ifill - Black Ministries Office
The Rev. Anthony Guillen - Hispanic Ministries Office
The Rev. Winfred Vergara - Asian American Ministries Office
Sarah Eagle Heart - Native America Ministries Office
Let's keep the beat! It does fit!
-The Reverend Miguelina Espinal, Pastoral Leadership Search Effort |
