A sold-out crowd of parish leaders from around North America and beyond recently gathered at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology during the final weekend of April for the fourth annual Inhabit Conference. This year’s conference was themed “Rooting & Linking” and featured an impressive collective of speakers doing kingdom work in neighborhoods and communities around the world, including keynote speakers Christena Cleveland, Rev. Alexia Salvatierra, Noel Castellanos, Rev. Dr. Brenda Salter McNeil, Michael Frost, and Shane Claiborne.
Dwight Friesen, co-creator of Inhabit Conference and co-facilitator of The Leadership in the New Parish Certificate program, said that this was the most exciting gathering yet, noting the rich sense of communion among participants, both seasoned and newcomers. Breakout sessions included talks entitled “From Slow Food to Slow Church” with John Pattison, “Living Sustainably in Place” with Mark Scandrette and Dani Scoville, and “Loving Neighbors Through Entrepreneurship” with Leroy Barber.
Panel discussions explored questions such as “What practices of spiritual formation are most crucial for parish renewal?” with Mark Scandrette and Christine Sine and “How do we find unity amongst the ongoing culture war?” with Alexia Salvatierra and Al Tizon.
In between sessions, participants connected with like-minded attendees, seeking to link together and learn from one another for the sake of their own communities and for the kingdom of God.
The weekend ended with the announcement that Inhabit Conference will be coming to the United Kingdom this October. Taking place in the city of Birmingham, Inhabit UK will bring together innovative, missional practitioners from across the UK to empower, encourage, and engage one another. Like the annual Inhabit Conference in Seattle, this premiere conference will showcase artists, community organizers, and entrepreneurs compelled by their faith to pursue reconciliation, including keynote speakers Martin Robinson, Juliet Kilpin, Rev. Dr. Kate Coleman, Ann Morisey, and Inhabit co-creators Tim Soerens and Paul Sparks.
Learn more about Inhabit UK and register here »
Learn more about The Leadership in the New Parish Certificate »
Image by Melissa Marie Rudin Yakey