Whitworth University Office of Church Engagement

Still basking in the glow of four days spent with this terrific group of preachers. I think we’d call our inaugural Preacher Retreat a success 🙌🏼 If you want to be part of future events like this one, check us out at whitworth.edu/preaching to get connected.

April 19 at 7 p.m. in the Chapel! Come celebrate the Rev. Stephy Nobles-Beans with us.

Whitworth to Honor the Rev. Stephy Nobles-Beans at Gospel Explosion Finale on April 19 It will be a bittersweet celebration as the Whitworth and Spokane communities celebrate the Rev. Stephy Nobles-Beans, associate chaplain for...

You're invited to the next Formed in Faith parenting workshop with author Kayla Craig.

When: April 20, 10 a.m.-noon
Where: Summit Church (1801 E 29th Ave.)
Who: Parents, grandparents and anyone with a role in shaping the faith of kids
What: Kayla will help us consider how the daily, ordinariness of life is an invitation to encounter God and share faith with our children. She will share how parents can use prayer and liturgy in tangible ways to join in how God is forming them and their children.

Childcare and lunch are included. Register at whitworth.edu/formed-in-faith-events

Events| Formed in Faith Project | Whitworth University All events are open to the public unless otherwise specified. We encourage anyone with a role in shaping the faith of little ones to join us, including grandparents, aunts, uncles, close friends, etc.! If you have ideas for events or know of a speaker you would like us to invite, please reach out to...

Professor of Music Ben Brody is releasing a new collection of hymns, and you are invited to the release party! Join us on April 21 for a sing along and reception to celebrate this great accomplishment by Ben and a wonderful new resource for churches.

Calling all parents & grandparents! Join us online March 25 at 7 p.m. for a webinar with Jerry Sittser exploring parenting and faith.

This webinar will explore God’s role as parent and what that means for our families. Jerry will also share personally from his experience raising three children, including the ways that his faith sustained him as a parent.

Register for this FREE event at whitworth.edu/formed-in-faith

Coming up next week! See you at 7 p.m. in Weyerhaeuser Hall 👋

Christian Wiman is the author, editor or translator of nearly a dozen books, including "Zero at the Bone: Fifty Entries Against Despair", "Hammer is the Prayer: Selected Poems", :My Bright Abyss: Meditation of a Modern Believer" and "Stolen Air: Selected Poems of Osip Mandelstam."

The Weyerhaeuser Center and the Whitworth Office of the President will host award-winning author Ronald C. White on Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. White will discuss his new book "On Great Fields: The Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain." The event is free and open to the public. https://bit.ly/3SBsotP

Calling all preachers!

Check out our newest project (led by preaching extraordinaire Mindy Smith) meant to help preachers develop their skills and attend to their own spiritual health and formation. The program offers opportunities for participation in learning cohorts, events and workshops, plus access to tons of resources! Read all about it in the press release linked below.

Check out our webpage to learn more about our program values and opportunities to be involved. Visit www.whitworth.edu/preaching.

Whitworth University is pleased to announce it has received a $1.2 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to help establish the Compelling Preaching program. The program is designed to strengthen the preaching skills of ministry leaders by supporting and resourcing them to experiment with and cultivate new models of proclamation that can invite listeners into transformative experiences with God. https://bit.ly/3SwOfT2

Read the latest post in the church cultures series here!

From the post: "During my time there, I expected that, on any given Sunday, I would hear a sermon extolling a high authority of scripture followed by a sermon questioning the validity of the Trinity a week later. Highly respected church members would give both sermons without much interference or dissension from the congregation. I also came to expect that while some church members would stand stoically in worship (classic frozen chosen style), others would dance in the aisle, jubilantly moving to the music. When I asked a church leader how the community continues to operate with such diversity in belief and practice, she profoundly said, “We live in the tension.”

Notice that she did not say they live “in tension,” as if there’s a constant tug-and-pull between competing congregational interests. Rather they live “in the tension,” indicating that the community is comfortable engaging diversity, valuing inclusivity against a backdrop of a religious landscape that expects conformity."

Church Cultures: Individuated Individuated communities are comfortable engaging diversity, valuing inclusivity against a backdrop of a religious landscape that expects conformity. Churches with an individuated culture expect co…

As we have all witnessed the tragic war break out in the Middle East, many of us in ministry leadership positions have questions, recognize divisions, and are aware of our need to learn more about the many complexities of this historic conflict.

Our work in the OCE asks us to move into today’s challenging issues - to learn, listen and seek greater understanding, especially for the people we serve. On Thursday, Nov. 30, at 7 p.m. in the Seeley G. Mudd Chapel, you are invited to an event, The Israel-Gaza Crisis: A Conversation with a Recently Evacuated Christian Peacemaker.

The gathering will feature Jer Swigart, the co-founder and executive director of Global Immersion, an international peacemaking organization. Jer will join us to discuss the Israel and Palestine conflict, its history, and the humanitarian implications of the ongoing violence. He was on the ground in Palestine/Israel when the conflict escalated in early October, and he will share insights from his experience as a Christian peacemaker in the region.

It has been a little over a week since our parenting workshop with Meredith Miller. If you missed the event, here's a little review of the day:

🙌 We heard from Meredith all about creating a family faith culture that prioritizes trusting God over obedience.
👍 We explored our own "webs" of faith and explored what attributes of God have anchored our faith.
✌️ We invited the kids in to help us think about the goodness of God.
🌮 And we shared a yummy Chipotle lunch after it was all over (not pictured 🙃)

We were overjoyed to see all the parents, kids and grandparents that took a Saturday morning to join us as we think carefully about how to share our faith with our kids in ways that are meaningful and sustainable. If you have kids in your life, we hope you'll join us for future events! Fill out the interest form at www.whitworth.edu/formed-in-faith to stay connected to this Formed in Faith project.

Social scientists have studied an interesting phenomenon over the past several decades, a theory that can be summarized as – "the stricter the church, the stronger the church." Using economic arguments, congregational scholars explain why ascetic churches (strict churches) have an easier time retaining members (hence, strong) than other types of churches. Find out more about why in our latest blog post!

Church Cultures: The Ascetic Asceticism is based on the belief that deprivation, particularly regarding physical things, will enhance spiritual formation and deepen connections to Christ and others. Critics of ascetic churches…

Parents, grandparents, caregivers and ministry leaders are invited to this interactive workshop led by Meredith Miller, author of "Woven: Nurturing A Faith Your Child Doesn’t Need To Heal From." Together we will explore new and imaginative ways of nurturing faith in our kids and cultivating an intentional family faith culture.

Join us Oct. 21, 10 a.m.-noon, at Whitworth Church. Childcare is included and lunch will be served after the event. Registration is $15 per family. Find all the details on our website whitworth.edu/formed-in-faith.

If you're a ministry leader - invite the families in your congregation!
If you're a parent - invite your friends, family and the children's ministry leader at your church!

We hope this will be a great conversation starter for parents and church leaders to explore together what it looks like to form our kids as Christians.

Next up in our Church Cultures series is the entrepreneurial culture.

From the post: "Churches that emphasize entrepreneurial culture incorporate Christian beliefs and worship practices that are new or haven’t been used in such a long time that they seem new. Given the novelty of these beliefs and practices, they tend to garner attention."

Do you think your church shows traits of this culture? Read more and find resources in the full post.

This series is being developed as part of the Resilient Church Program. The program invites churches into a two-year exploration of their culture, mission and identity in order to cultivate traits of resilience and plan for the future - all guided by a team of expert consultants who love the church. Learn more on our website www.whitworth.edu/resilient.

Church Cultures: Entrepreneurial Churches that emphasize entrepreneurial culture incorporate Christian beliefs and worship practices that are new or haven’t been used in such a long time that they seem new. Given the novelty of th…

Join the next Resilient Church cohort!

Are you a church leader looking for space and resources to plan for where God may be calling your community into the future? Would you benefit from collaboration with experts in areas like church vitality and community engagement? Then consider applying! Together we will explore what it means to be resilient in the midst of our changing culture.

Participating churches receive:
🤝 Collaboration and fellowship with other church leaders
📋 Personalized reports and recommendations from experts in fields like church history, church vitality, city planning and entrepreneurship
💰 Seed money (up to $10,000) to kick-start new initiatives

Learn more and connect with our team at whitworth.edu/resilient.

Check out this new free resource for churches! Get to know your neighborhood and explore opportunities to better serve in your unique context. Get access here: https://bit.ly/3QOW4TQ

This resource was developed as part of the Resilient Church Program, which invites church leaders into a learning cohort to explore their history, identity, neighborhood context, and more! We are recruiting a new cohort now. The application opens Sept. 1.

Check out the latest entry in our church cultures series, which is an exploration of the seven church cultures that dominate the North American church landscape.

If this series interests you, consider applying to be part of the next Resilient Church cohort. As part of this program, you'll journey with a diverse group of ministry leaders to examine your church's identity and culture, explore your place and plan for the future (with the help of seed money). Find more info and fill out an interest form at www.whitworth.edu/resilient.

Church Cultures: Identity-Driven Some churches specifically identify a particular demographic group to which they minister, perhaps even naming the group in its mission. These are identity-driven churches.

Do you belong to a church with an embedded culture?

Embedded churches are small, often totaling less than 50 congregants. They can provide tremendous socio-emotional and physical support for participants since they allow individuals to present their honest, authentic selves. They also have some weaknesses. Find out more about this church culture in this post.

This is part of our Church Cultures Series where sociologist and church vitality expert Mark Killian is walking us through the seven church cultures that characterize the North American church landscape. Based on his research and work with churches, Mark is exploring the main characteristics, strengths and weaknesses of various church cultures - plus, offering insight into the Biblical precedent for each one.

If you're interested in exploring your church's culture more deeply, we can help! Check out the Resilient Church program and fill out an interest form here: www.whitworth.edu/resilient

Church Cultures: The Embedded Historically, embedded networks served as the foundation of churches. In fact, some have argued that the first-century church was a collection of embedded networks dispersed throughout the Roman Em…

This week we are chatting with two Whitworth students from our Summer Fellowship Program. Willow and Sabine are two thoughtful and faithful students who are working out for themselves what it means to belong to the Church and to the body of Christ as young adults.

Search Where We Belong on Spotify or Apple Podcasts to listen.

In this episode, they chat with Lauren all about their backgrounds with the church, how moving away from home has changed their perspective, and what true belonging means to them. We hope you are encouraged by these insightful young adults 🙂

P.S. Sabine is currently serving as a Resilient Fellow - a special fellowship placement that serves a church in our Resilient Church Program. She is working on completing in-depth ethnographic research within the congregation to help the church explore its own identity and mission. If this intrigues you, check out the program's website at www.whitworth.edu/resilient. We are recruiting a new cohort now!

We are really excited about this one 😁 The Formed in Faith project will bring together churches and parents/caregivers to investigate parenting as a site of intentional discipleship AND help us all think carefully about how to pass faith to our children.

If this excites you too, read more about the program in the news release linked below and fill out an interest form.

Parents: https://apply.whitworth.edu/register/formed-in-faith-interest-parents
Churches: https://apply.whitworth.edu/register/formed-in-faith-interest-church

Whitworth University is pleased to announce it has received a $1.2 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. to help establish the Formed in Faith Project. The program will bring parents and churches together to investigate parenting as a site of intentional discipleship. https://bit.ly/3ObhVTQ

This week we are getting a new perspective on the Church by chatting with a Jesuit Priest!

Matt Yim serves as the parochial vicar at St. Ignatius Loyola Parish in Sacramento. In this episode he shares what it means to belong as a Roman Catholic, how he came to own his faith and belonging as a Catholic, How Ignatian Spirituality shapes his understanding of the Church, and why an individual relationship with Jesus trumps belonging to the institution of the Church.

We hope you enjoy 😊 find Where We Belong on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

First up in our church cultures series: The Marketplace Church!

In case you missed it, sociologist and church vitality expert Mark Killian is walking us through the seven church cultures that characterize the North American church landscape. Based on his research and work with churches, Mark is exploring the main characteristics, strengths and weaknesses of various church cultures - plus, offering insight into the Biblical precedent for each one.

Here's a quick excerpt: "Before some of you start judging these types of churches as simply commercializing Christianity, consider Paul’s preaching in front of the Aeropagus. In Acts 17, Luke chronicles Paul’s distress as he traveled through Athens, witnessing the worship of false idols. Paul’s response was to engage rather than chastise. Using the altar of the unknown god as a focal point, Paul created a relevant gospel experience for Athenians, causing some to follow him on his journey. Simply put, Paul engaged the religious marketplace to benefit the first-century church."

Church Cultures: The Marketplace Here’s the truth: All churches provide goods and services in a religious marketplace. Some people don’t like to think of churches this way. But no matter how we slice it, churches operate in …

As a follow up to our last conversation about scandal in the church, we are chatting with a pastor who very often deals with the fall out of those failures of institutions and leaders. Elle Grover Fricks is the pastor at Refuge Church in Pullman, Wa, a faith community for those healing from church hurt.

In this conversation she talks about how her experience in a Mars Hill church informs the kind of pastor she wants to be, how Refuge creates belonging for those who have experienced church hurt in various forms, the importance of co-creation, how to invite people into community in ways that don't require formal church attendance, and how caring for her own spiritual health helps her hold the stories of those in her community well.

Elle shares so many practical ideas in this episode - we think ministry leaders in all contexts will be able to learn something!

Listen now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

We're bringing you something new on the blog over the next few weeks - a series covering seven church cultures that characterize the North American church landscape.

Through the expertise of Dr. Mark Killian, a professor of sociology and expert in church vitality, this series will explore the main characteristics, strengths and weaknesses of various church cultures - plus, Mark offers insight into the Biblical precedent for each culture. We hope you learn something from his unique perspective on the church.

Here's a quick excerpt from the post:
"As with all organizations, churches have unique cultures. You've probably noticed this when attending a church that is not yours. You get a sense that something is different when you enter the church - the way things look, the things people do, and the things people say. These new "ways of being" are not necessarily bad. They are simply uncomfortable and unfamiliar. That's because this church has a different culture than your own. And although you probably also noticed similarities, these cultural differences, however slight, make a strong impression.

This series is for people who are interested in other church cultures, those who want to explore and understand their impressions of discomfort and unfamiliarity when interacting with a new church. Using social-scientific research as a foundation, this series will discuss seven general church cultures that exist in the North American religious landscape. I hope these cultural types will help you understand the body of Christ more deeply, leading you to respect, if not honor, church differences."

The Church Cultures Series: An Introduction Professor of Sociology Mark Killian introduces a series discussing unique church cultures using his lens as a social scientist and expert in church vitality.

Today we are talking with Sociologist of Religion Jennifer McKinney about her research into Mars Hill Church and how Christians can grapple with scandal in the Church.

Dr. McKinney works at Seattle Pacific University and started noticing an increasing number of female students dropping out or changing majors because of what they were hearing from the pulpit at Mars Hills - this led her to take a deep dive into Mark Driscoll's theology of gender and write her book "Making Christianity Manly Again." In this episode she chats with Lauren about how her research affected her own faith, how we can grapple with the Church as an institution, and the importance of identifying patterns of abuse in order to create healthier churches (plus, why this might be harder for us protestants).

We are so grateful to Jennifer for her insight and vulnerability in this conversation, and we hope you enjoy! Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts (or check it out here: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/where-we-belong-oce/episodes/Episode-18-When-the-Church-Makes-the-Headlines-with-Jennifer-McKinney-e25vkis)

In this week's episode we are chatting with Joelle Czirr, a senior lecturer in the Whitworth Psychology Department, all about the physiology of belonging. Joelle shares a bit about her research in the area, the importance of being seen to being known, what virtual church services might be missing, and much more. We hope you enjoy!

Listen on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

Last month our second cohort gathered at Camp Spalding for a retreat to kick-off their participation in the Resilient Church Project.

The group of pastors and lay-leaders discussed what it means to be 'resilient church' and explored how sociological perspectives and church history can cultivate and sustain the resiliency of a church's mission. Together they laughed reflecting on stories of communion snaffoos, wrote sermons, ate delicious food, hiked a really steep trail, and developed relationships that span denomination, location, theological particularities, and background. We can't wait to see what comes out of our two years of exploration with this group!

If this piques your interest, we are in the process of recruiting a third cohort of churches. Head to our website to learn more and fill out an interest form: www.whitworth.edu/resilient

Lauren sits down with local ministry leader and Whitworth alum Hannah Rae Tjelle to explore the unique experience of belonging to a church as the pastor's kid. Hannah shares about the difficulty of bearing the weight of your parents’ ministry, how PKs can feel held to a higher standard of Christ likeness, the power of people knowing your name, and what has drawn her back to the church.

We are so grateful to Hannah for sharing her story with us, and we hope you enjoy this conversation!

Find "Where We Belong" on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

In this week's episode, Professor of Sociology Stacy George shares her experience of being single in the church, some of the ways that churches can better extend belonging to singles, the tricky gender dynamics that singles and couples have to navigate, and a hopeful vision for how the whole body of Christ might be strengthened as we carefully consider how to shift the conversation around singleness and relationships in the Church.

This episode is great for church leaders who may be watching some of these dynamics play out and great for young adults who are currently navigating this culture!

Listen now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. Just search "Where We Belong."