This program will:

• Affirm the spiritual and emotional gifts and the skills that each person brings to a leadership position
• Encourage congregations and participants to view holding a leadership position as an opportunity to enrich and deepen the leader’s faith
• Deepen participants’ understanding of covenant and the practice of keeping covenant within the leadership team and in the congregation
• Guide leaders to center relationships as a faithful practice, thinking of the congregation as a “we” rather than a collection of individuals
• Lead participants to develop an understanding of the importance of personal spiritual practice and integrity to healthy leadership
• Guide participants to consider which voices and perspectives were marginalized in the past and need to be part of congregational or leadership decision-making
• Introduce systems thinking, and provide some practice with exploring congregational issues through a systems lens
• Encourage participants to consider that conflict can indicate questions needing attention in the larger congregational system and invite them to respond accordingly
• Deepen and enrich the experience of congregational leaders and, by extension, the ability of congregations to live out their missions and values, both in congregational life and in the wider world

Invite leaders to become aware of their own role in the congregation and to develop a leadership approach and skills to guide a community toward a faithful response to conflict.