Pooling Resources

by Diane Monroe (January / February 2004 — Volume 20, Number 1)

Cooperative clustering of congregations will pool people and resources in a way that enriches the community experience, adds variety to learning, and assists leaders in implementing ideas through shared planning.

Use the two examples described in this current issue in articles by Deaconess Erdmann and Pastor Hahn as a springboard as you consider other ways this approach may be used in your setting.

Here are a few additional examples that may lend themselves to cooperative clustering of congregations and people:

• An annual Reformation fair.
• A monthly gathering of pre-Confirmation youth (4th, 5th or 6th graders) with themes that reflect the seasons of the church year.
• A quarterly event for confirmands and their mentors and/or parents.
• Occasional cooperative service projects or youth-led worship services.
• A community rotation-style confirmation ministry program (see www.rotation.org).

For a look at several approaches to confirmation ministry, see Confirmation: More than Business as Usual!
Call or click (800) 328-4648, www.augsburgfortress.org (ISBN# 6-0000-99924)

Diane Monroe, an associate in ministry, is associate director for Youth Education and confirmation, Christian Education in the Division for Congregational Ministries, ELCA, Chicago, Illinois.