Public Narrative and the Mission of the Church

Starting early in the convention, all of the bishops, deputies, alternates, and registered visitors have been asked to engage in a group process called public narrative. This is a response to the last General Convention's request that we pay more focused attention on the mission of the church and on the relationship between our individual experiences of mission and their relationship to the church. This morning we sat in small groups of people from our own diocese and shared in 2 minute intervals a personal story of mission from our own lives. The group was given time to reflect on each story (what we heard, what we learned, what we didn't hear, what we are curious about, what was the crisis/transformation/shift, etc.). Out of these discussions themes began to become apparent. Sitting at a table with Dave Bailey, Bishop Otis Charles (a retired Bishop of Utah), Barbara Losse, Russ Babcock, and others I was moved by the deep and real sense of mission that everyone brings to their life in the church. This is an exciting process that I hope we will be able to bring back to Utah. We gather again on Saturday to further engage in this exercise, so more later.

Peace and joy,

Mike Mayor