Executive Conference Minister the Rev. Darrell Goodwin recently sat down with Rev. Dr. Diane Schmitz, who will be leading a series of affinity groups for white clergy who want to work on becoming more conscious of race and racism and with Rev. Heather Ramsey-Mabrouk, Program Director for the Together We Thrive Initiative, which is hosting the groups.
Schmitz emphasized that the groups are looking at "becoming more" racially conscious.
"This is a lifelong journey," she said. "I don't consider myself as knowing all. I am always learning. And ... we've been bombarded with messages so much about what it means to be a pastor, to be a minister, to be white. We're starting to get more information about that, but oftentimes it can stay at kind of an intellectual level and that's helpful, but it's both the head and heart that's really going to create the kind of transformation that is so urgently needed. So this is an opportunity where we build relationships with each other. We develop some trust. We are free to ask questions. We are free to acknowledge what we don't know."
The groups start with a series of sessions in the fall, offers a check-in session in January and a closing gathering in spring of 2022. There are three different time options for the fall. The first series of sessions starts in mid-September. The second series is an evening time slot for those who prefer not to meet during the day. The third series starts in mid-October and ends before the start of Advent. Registration for the first fall series closes on Sept. 3.
Read more and register here
Watch the interview below:
Schmitz emphasized that the groups are looking at "becoming more" racially conscious.
"This is a lifelong journey," she said. "I don't consider myself as knowing all. I am always learning. And ... we've been bombarded with messages so much about what it means to be a pastor, to be a minister, to be white. We're starting to get more information about that, but oftentimes it can stay at kind of an intellectual level and that's helpful, but it's both the head and heart that's really going to create the kind of transformation that is so urgently needed. So this is an opportunity where we build relationships with each other. We develop some trust. We are free to ask questions. We are free to acknowledge what we don't know."
The groups start with a series of sessions in the fall, offers a check-in session in January and a closing gathering in spring of 2022. There are three different time options for the fall. The first series of sessions starts in mid-September. The second series is an evening time slot for those who prefer not to meet during the day. The third series starts in mid-October and ends before the start of Advent. Registration for the first fall series closes on Sept. 3.
Read more and register here
Watch the interview below: