This year’s Generous Space Retreat ended three weeks ago, and I’ve finally recovered enough to reflect on it. Actually, “recovered” is an exaggeration. To tell you the truth, I didn’t feel nearly as exhausted as I expected after this year’s retreat, and I’ll tell you why. As Director of Community, I sometimes catch myself believing…
DetailsTwo weekends in a row, two gatherings, two different experiences of family = a lot of reflection. The first, our fourth annual Generous Space Retreat with my LGBTQ+ family. The second, the national gathering of the Canadian CRC, my denominational family. Way back in the planning for the retreat, I suggested to our team that…
DetailsOur 2016 Generous Space Retreat is coming up two weeks from today in Orillia, ON, and we’re excited to have 97 people registered already! We’ve already published an interview with Michael Blair, one of our keynote speakers this year. Today we want to highlight another one of our special guests, Jenna Tenn-Yuk, who will…
DetailsGenerous space is a posture intended to be lived out in real relationship and in the formation of authentic faith community. Full inclusion of LGBTQ+ people, eagerly welcoming their participation and contribution of their spiritual gifts, is one of the catalysts for intentionally growing in generous space. The vision of such community is one of…
DetailsGenerous space communities are not merely a response to the lack of inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in many churches, as significant as that is. Generous space is a framework for maturing disciples of Jesus in healthy, diverse community. In this series of distinctives, we have considered the sufficiency of the cross as a secure foundation…
DetailsOne of the distinctives of generous space community is the recognition of the healthy tension between being an individual and being called into community. God knows our names and counts the hairs on our head. Who we are uniquely as human beings matters to God. We are each invited into living connection with God and…
DetailsGenerous space community encourages joyful engagement with the scriptures as the living Word that reveals who God is and what God has done on behalf of humanity and all of creation. We recognize that people are at different places with scripture. Some in our community have been wounded by how scripture has been wielded against…
DetailsCommunities marked by generous space keep enlarging their capacity for diversity. How can such a generous community remain pure in its commitment to God? In finding its center in Christ, generous space communities rest in finding our life, our identity, and our reconciliation with God through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. “God made…
DetailsAt its core, generous space acknowledges that on the question of covenanted same-sex relationships faithful Christians disagree about what is the most faithful path for a disciple of Jesus. We promote the idea that the church ought to make room for people to be honest about their convictions and/or their uncertainty on this matter without…
DetailsTwo articles by New Direction staff members were published in the February edition of the Christian Educators Journal. We wanted to reprint the articles here for those who haven’t had an opportunity to review the journal. The first article can be found here. The second, by Wendy Gritter, raises some of the unique realities our…
DetailsTwo articles by New Direction staff members were published in the February edition of the Christian Educators Journal. We wanted to reprint the articles here for those who haven’t had an opportunity to review the journal. In the first, Beth Carlson-Malena shares some of the experiences members of our Generous Space community shared with her…
DetailsIn celebration of Black History Month, we interviewed Rev. Michael Blair, one of the keynote speakers at our upcoming Generous Space Retreat in Orillia, ON. Michael is a member of the Order of Ministry in the United Church of Canada and serves the General Council of the United Church of Canada as Executive Minister of the Church in Mission…
DetailsPieter Niemeyer and his wife Susie have been part of our New Direction community for a little over a year now. They’ve been married 22 years, and they have three children. Last year, Pieter came out to his family as a gay man, and has also more recently come out more broadly, including being interviewed for Daily Xtra. Pieter…
DetailsAt its core, generous space acknowledges that on the question of covenanted same-sex relationships faithful Christians disagree about what is appropriate for a disciple of Jesus. We promote the idea that the church ought to make room for people to be honest about their convictions and/or their uncertainty on this matter without pressure to conform…
DetailsTheological disagreement in the Body of Christ matters. It presents the perfect opportunity to actually live in the way of the resurrected Jesus. Unfortunately, that isn’t what usually happens. There is a vein of Christianity in which monitoring fellow siblings in Christ for right belief seems to be given utmost priority. Ironically, it is not…
DetailsI used to be terrified to make mistakes. I hated getting in trouble and tried to do everything perfectly to avoid getting the equivalent of the “howler” as JK Rowling describes in Harry Potter. My perfectionism first began to crumble when I literally burned out and simply lacked the energy needed to maintain my impossibly…
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