God calls every Christian to a life of servanthood as a disciple of Jesus Christ. In the Lay Servant Ministries Basic Course, Sandy and Brian Jackson discuss processes to help individuals discern and respond to God’s particular call on their lives. They encourage each person to recognize and employ his or her spiritual gifts for […]

A down-to-earth, practical introduction to the ins and outs of preaching for lay preachers, bi-vocational pastors, and others newly arrived in the pulpit. Recent years have seen a considerable increase in the amount of financial resources required to support a full-time pastor in the local congregation. In addition, large numbers of full-time, seminary trained clergy […]

Helps seminary professors, leaders, ministers, mediators, facilitators, and conflict transformation consultants turn conflict from a negative force into a positive one grounded in biblical principles, love of God, neighbor, and self.Transforming conflict into a positive rather than a negative force is a spiritual pursuit and needs to be grounded in biblical principles: love of God, […]

This advanced course in Lay Servant Ministries focuses on the ministry of the Lay Servant who either regularly or occasionally leads a group, class, organization, or the congregation in worship. The course is grounded in the classic patterns of Christian worship and the practices of leading worship. Participants will come to understand more about Christian […]

Amy Oden will present on "Right Here, Right Now: Christian Mindfulness" and Jerry Webber will present on "The Parables as Spiritual Guides." More info. Register for the event

The annual Convocation & Pastors’ School is a conference that offers lectures, worship, and seminars for Christian leaders of all traditions. Led by scholars and practitioners from Duke University and beyond, this event is a cooperative endeavor with the North Carolina and Western North Carolina Conferences of the United Methodist Church, The Duke Endowment, and […]

Singing hymns brings such joy to believers. The deep theological messages and the familiar melodies speak to hearts as well as to minds, but could hymns be an even more crucial part of our spiritual lives? Yes, through meditation on hymns.   Learners will learn to incorporate this spiritual practice by exploring history and background of the composer and music, then will experience a recorded meditation […]

Vacation Bible school is one of the greatest ways to spread God’s word and love. Many companies exist to supply you with curriculum and material at a price, but why not create your own curriculum and materials and use that outside expense for other outreaches? While there nothing wrong with purchasing VBS material from outside […]

In a world full of personality assessments, the Enneagram stands apart for the ways that it not only describes our behavior (and the basis of that behavior) but for the ways it prescribes practices which can help us live more resourcefully. Join Kathy and Jim Reiter in this self-paced course (an adaptation of the 7-hour […]

Duke Divinity School is sponsoring a two-day webinar, Uncommon Ground: Living with Humility, Patience, and Tolerance in a Divided Age, as part of the 2021 Convocation and Pastors' School. Our primary 2021 Convocation & Pastors' School gathering will take place on October 4 and 5 from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. These sessions will center around panel discussions, […]

Everything was going fine … until it wasn't. For Reverend Junius B. Dotson it took an actual breakdown during a funeral for him to realize he needed a reset. As he recalls his own journey through grief, depression, burnout, and emotional breakdown, Dotson is passionate about calling for a Soul Reset. He is calling out to all […]

New Faith Communities invites you to join us as we come together for a common learning day to discuss theological and practical training in liturgical worship.Our guest speakers for this event will beJacob Breeze, priest of Holy Family HTX and Justin Morgan, pastor of Church on Morgan. Register for this event