Activity time: 5 minutes

Materials for Activity

• Chalice, candle, and lighter or an LED/battery-operated candle
• A chime or a small bell
• Newsprint, markers, and tape
• Leader Resource 1, The Soul of Money
• Optional: An object to pass from speaker to speaker during discussion
• Optional: Refreshments

Preparation for Activity

• Place chairs in a circle. Set copies of Singing the Journey on chairs.
• Set a small center table with chalice and lighter.
• Read Leader Resource 1, The Soul of Money. Optional: Plan to share all or some of this reading with the group.
• Write agenda for this workshop on newsprint, and post.
• Optional: Set out refreshments.

Description of Activity

Sound the chime and invite participants into quiet reflection as you prepare to enter into a time of centering and sharing.

Invite a volunteer to light the chalice as you share these words, adapted from chalice lighting words by Andrew Pakula, used by permission:

Come into this circle of community. Come into this sacred space.

Bring your whole self!

Bring the joy that makes your heart sing.

Bring your kindness and compassion.

Bring also your sadness and your disappointments.

Spirit of love and mystery, help us to recognize the spark of the divine that lives inside each of us.

May we know the joy of being together.

Say:

Powerful money messages are handed down in our families of origin. Today’s workshop will focus on our individual money stories and the impact those stories have on our money behaviors. May our time together be made holy by the sharing of stories, the gift of good listening, and the joy of being held in community.

Sound the chime to signal the end of the centering time.