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Hope in Conflict logo

Hope in Conflict:
Discovering Wisdom in Congregational Turmoil

September 8-25, 2009
Presenter: David Saywer, Ph.D.
12.0 contact hours

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The seminar introduces a new approach to conflict as a hopeful sign of God's transforming mercy for a congregation. Using case studies from his new book, David Sawyer will introduce participants to the three keys that help unlock the deep mystery of congregational conflict: looking at structures, listening to stories, and learning from symptoms. These keys, drawn from structural and strategic family systems theory and practical theology, remind leaders that each congregation is a system, an interrelated whole, in a context of change. Later in the seminar participants will practice writing a hopeful hypothesis that enables leaders to lovingly challenge a congregation stuck in its reaction to change.

Dr. Larry Austin

Presenter:

After 35 years of pastoral and judicatory ministry, David Sawyer joined Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary where he serves as Professor of Ministry and Director of Lifelong Learning and Advanced Degrees. In his ministry, teaching, writing, and professional associations, he has brought the insights of the applied behavioral sciences, spiritual disciplines, and theology to the issues of leadership and the development of healthy churches. He has led conferences and workshops around the country on the family systems approach to conflict resolution and leadership development. He holds degrees from Southern Illinois University, Louisville Seminary, and Ohio University. His new book, Hope in Conflict: Finding Wisdom in Congregational Turmoil (Pilgrim Press) will be out in time for this workshop.

He and his wife, the Rev. Deborah Fortel, have four 30-something children in Illinois, Minnesota and Ohio, and share their Louisville home with Ambrose and Finian, their cat and dog.

Presentations:

Thinking Holistically, Looking at Structures

  • Seeing Connectedness, Seeing Change
  • Looking at Structures

Listening to Stories and Learning from Symptoms

  • What does the Narrative Mean?

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  • How SYmptoms Serve

The Hopefull Hypothesis

  • The Characteristics of a Hopeful Hypothesis

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  • Lessons for Leadership

Learning Objectives:

Following this seminar, participants should be able to:

  1. Recognize organizational/congregational conflict as an opportunity to look for wisdom and the transformational power of God in the turmoil
  2. Thinking holistically about organizations and congregations through looking at ways these groups organize themselves in structures.
  3. Identifying wisdom and hope in the organization's/congregation’s stories.
  4. See beyond the most apparent difficulties by learning from symptoms.
  5. Write a hopeful hypothesis for an organization or congregation to gain loving leverage for change.
  6. Reflect theologically about organizational/congregational conflict.

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Registration:
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