Church leaders may feel like successful ministry depends on magic or the charismatic priest. Not so! The College for Congregational Development offers tools and resources for helping lay leaders and clergy grow churches to be more effective, faithful, and joyful.
Participants can register in teams (preferred) or individually for either a week-long intensive program during the summer or a six-Saturday program during the fall. Both programs last two years and give participants the opportunity to bring a real-life challenge or goal to The College and turn it into a project that benefits their church.
This summer, four people from our diocese started The College: Ms. Charlette Queen and the Rev. David Casey (St. Mary’s, Colonial Beach), the Rev. Katherine Dougherty (All Souls, Atlee), and the Rev. David Potter. Congratulations to the Rev. Stephen Haggerty (St. David’s, Ashburn) who graduated.
The Rev. Shirley Smith Graham finished her intern-year as a trainer for The College in Maryland, while helping to re-launch the Diocese of Rochester’s program. She will remain a trainer for Maryland’s College.
Trainers may be invited to participate in Colleges across the United States. Participants also may register in any College.
The relationship between Virginia and Maryland is an example of life-giving cooperation, said Smith Graham. “Just as each church has specific skills and charisms, so it is with dioceses. We do our best work when we practice ministry as an ecosystem and rely on each other in mutually interdependent ways. I’m grateful that The College in Maryland is so easily accessible to folks in Virginia.”
For more information about The College or congregational development, please contact The Rev. Shirley Smith Graham.