Shane Claiborne, featured speaker at Young Clergy event
Shane Claiborne was the featured speaker for the 2018 Young Clergy Leadership Forum hosted by Church and Society last month.
More than 60 young clergy, represented 34 annual conferences, participated in this year’s Young Clergy Leadership Forum.
This year’s featured speaker was Shane Claiborne. Claiborne is a founder and board member of The Simple Way, a faith community in inner-city Philadelphia. He writes and travels extensively and is perhaps best known for his book, “The Irresistible Revolution.”
Claiborne connects faith in Jesus Christ with peacemaking and working for social justice.
The forum was held in the United Methodist Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. The building sits directly across the street from the United States Capitol and beside the Supreme Court. These are the hall of power where the critical decisions are made each day that impact the lives of many throughout the world. Claiborne’s message reminded Young Clergy “of the reign of God and the call of Christ, a reign and call that challenges so many of our human preconceptions.”
Participants in the forum heard from several other speakers who also connect their faith with the work for justice.
Church and Society partnered with the General Commission on Religion and Race to guide a conversation on racism and the church. Participants also spoke with Church and Society’s general secretary, The Rev. Susan Henry-Crowe, and Bishop Marcus Matthews, executive secretary for the Council of Bishops, who discussed a number of the challenges facing both the church and society.
The group also met with the chaplain of the U.S. Senate, the Rev. Dr. Berry Black, The Rev. Dr. Kirk VanGilder of Gallaudet University and Dr. Sayyid Syeed, national director of the Office of Interfaith Alliances at the Islamic Society of North America.
More than 750 young clergy have participated in the Young Clergy Leadership Forum over the last 15 years. The forum seeks to:
- Connect young clergy with the critical ministry of Church and Society.
- Provide a forum to share knowledge and experience with one another.
- Create bridges for future ministry collaboration.
- Build relationships with other young clergy from across the United Methodist connection.
