Covenant Process

An example of an individual/group covenant. Create your own covenant that meets the needs of your congregation and group.

 
(Word Doc copyMicrosoft Word that you can modify)


Individual Covenant for (participant's name): 

 
Personal goals

These are my personal goals for the 2009 ELCA Youth Gathering; they represent what I hope to learn and experience. I will give my time and energy to these goals and take responsibility for them before, during, and after the Gathering.

    1. I expect the Gathering to help me grow in these ways:

    2. I can contribute the following skills, interest, and gifts to our group:

    3. I'd like to see the following happen within our group as a result of our Gathering experience:

    4. I plan to treat others and hope that others treat me in these ways (include comments or concerns of sexism, racism, prejudice, teasing, state pride, inclusion, etc.):

    5. The group can help me with these personal goals I have:

    6. After talking with my family, mentor(s), pastor, or other members of my congregation, I discovered that they have the following hopes for my Gathering experience:

    7. My understanding of the theme and purpose of the Gathering is:


Group behavior and goals

    1. As members of God's family, we will treat each other in the following manner:
      (Include comments or concerns of sexism, racism, prejudice, teasing, state pride, inclusion, language, etc.)
       
    2. We covenant to help one another in the following ways:
      (Consider things like encouraging each other to fully participate, reaching out to others with special needs, taking the initiative to do your share, noticing the needs and feelings of others, slow down enough to create space for relationships, etc.)

    3. We covenant to bring this experience back home to those not able to participate by:
      (Develop a plan for sharing your witness with your congregation. They sent you to New Orleans as missionaries to the larger church and world, and, like missionaries, you are returning with a witness to God’s presence and activity in the world. You may also want to formally thank those who offered support and prayers. Finally, consider how you will use what you learned.)
       
    4. In our covenanting together, we expect our adult leaders to:
      (Include a brief job description for the adult leaders.)

    5. We covenant together to handle the following behavior issues in these ways:
      (Address issues of relationships and couples, sexual relationships, smoking and chewing, drugs and alcohol, disagreements, going off alone, etc.)

    6. In the event that someone breaks our covenant, we will address it in the following manner:
      (Determine courses of action, such as holding a group discussion, calling parents, dealing with the problem in private, sending someone home at the parent's expense, etc.)

    7. In order to make our Gathering experience a safe and positive experience for all, we, the youth and adults of _________________________ congregation, also covenant to abide by the behavior guidelines established by the Gathering. (See Group Covenant for the Gathering)

Youth/adult participant signature:
Date:


Parent or guardian signature (for youth under 18 years of age):
Date:

Copy and sign 3 copies of your covenant(s): one copy for the participant, one copy for the parent or guardian, and one copy for the adult leaders to bring to New Orleans.