Explorations IV: exploration as reflection

Dear friends,

As you will know by now, we will be engaging in an exploration together about where Parkview is heading as it is now fully into its second century.  I have been keeping you posted about this exploration in the last three coach’s corners.  Again, we are not engaging in an exploration because of possible perceived problems, but simply because every organization and especially every congregation needs to review what it’s about periodically.  As joint session and pastor leadership we actually feel very good about Parkview right now. The session has decided that all those of you who are in one way or another active in the life of Parkview Presbyterian Church will have a chance to share your views about our church in two group meetings, one this Fall and one next Spring.  A list of the members of these groups will be on the wall in the social hall in the next two weeks.  We have another reason for sharing in groups and that is to bring the members of our community closer together in an informal setting in each geographical area.  The groups are being formed with two considerations in mind: proximity to your home addresses (as far as possible) and the –roughly- equal size of the groups.

Session is preparing a few questions for the first reflection meeting which will be shared with you on or before the day of the reflection.  Session members will be conveners of each group meeting, meaning that they will contact each of you to set a date that will be convenient for each member of your group to meet.  There is no specific date on which all groups need to meet for the first time, but session is recommending that it will be before mid-November since the last month and a half of the year are usually very busy times for everyone.

Each group will have a facilitator.  Some of the session members have agreed to be facilitators also, but they are looking for a facilitator still who lives in the South Land Park area or Pocket area near South Land Park.  They will also need one for the North(east) Area.  So please let Donna or me know if you are willing to be a facilitator.  Facilitators will be expected to guide the discussion so that 1. questions are answered, 2. new questions are generated, 3. every group member has a chance to share his or her opinion and 4. decisions are made in a manner acceptable to all in the group.  Session will contact the facilitators and set up a brief two-hour facilitator training in the next two weeks or so. Each group will appoint someone to take notes to be shared with the session and the other groups.

The questions emerging from the groups will become input for the Spring group reflection meeting.   The reflection in the Fall meeting will focus on who we are as a church today while the meetings in the Spring will focus on where we want to be in the future.   There may be a plenary meeting next summer when we would establish some actions we might want to take.  If those would happen to involve major decisions the session may call a brief congregational meeting in the fall of 2014 to approve those decisions.

May God guide us to see new things and may God bless our ministry. Thank you for participating and for celebrating the life of our church.  See you in church! Aart