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A PLACE FOR US ALL
Mark your calendar for 2010!
Dates:
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July 30 -
August 2, 2010
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Location:
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Tatamagouche
Education and Retreat Centre
RR3
Tatamagouche, NS B0K 1V0
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Costs:
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$380 – Includes
registration, accommodations, and meals.
$350 – prior to
June 15, 2010
$100 – Saturday
only (includes registration and meals but
not accommodations)
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Click
here for a registration form
Click here for
brochure |
The conference will open
with a welcoming gathering and orientation in the
afternoon, of Friday the 30th of July, at
approximately 4:00 pm. At that time conference
participants can choose the workshops they are
interested in attending. The conference ends with
worship Sunday evening, August 1st. The Affirm
United/S’affirmer Annual General Meeting will be
held Monday, August 2nd from 9:00 am to Noon.
Answering God’s call, Affirm
United/S’affirmer ensemble is an organization of
people of within The United Church of Canada who
work to provide the full inclusion of all people
regardless of gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity,
age, differing abilities, or socio-economic status
in the church and in society.
We are a worshipping,
pastoral, and prophetic community celebrating the
biblical and theological liberation. We believe that
all people are created in the image of God and are
unconditionally loved by God.
Tatamagouche Centre
Tatamagouche Centre one of four non-profit
education, conference, and retreat centres of the
United Church of Canada. Since 1955, the Centre has
been offering its leadership to individuals, church
groups, and community organizations. Situated on
fifteen rolling acres, overlooking Tatamagouche Bay,
on Northumberland Strait in Nova Scotia, the Centre
is a natural gathering place in a relaxed and
picturesque setting.
The conference is a weekend gathering, beginning
Friday evening, July 30, 2010 and ending at noon on
Monday August 2, with the Affirm United / S’affirmer
ensemble Annual General Meeting. The weekend
promises to be an stimulating gathering with
worship, fellowship, community building, interesting
workshops and an engaging theme speaker.
Theme Speaker ─ Michael Blair
Where’s the power in this “place for us all”?
Is a “welcoming and inclusive” church really what we
want? These are gracious words, but too often the
reality behind them is that the welcoming comes from
people of a dominant culture who have decided to
include marginalized people in their church,
suggests United Church minister Michael Blair.
Instead, says Michael, we need to become an
intercultural church of “mutuality,” where members
welcome each other and no-one holds the power. As
theme speaker, Michael will focus on this vision for
and on other ethnic, cultural, and racial justice
issues he deals with in his executive post at the
United Church’s national office.
Michael himself is no stranger to discrimination, in
and out of the church: As a Black teen from Jamaica,
he faced a variety of challenges. And, after finding
his first calling to ministry in the Baptist Church,
Michael was fired when he came out as gay. With
childhood experience in the Anglican and Pentecostal
churches, and as a community chaplain with a
multifaith program for ex-prisoners, Michael is at
home with ecumenism.
The former director of a ministry serving homeless
and marginalized people in east end Toronto, Michael
lives in Toronto and has two teenage sons.
Workshops:
Dancing Together
A celebration of the partnership between the United
Church of Canada and Affirm United / S’affirmer
ensemble as we work together to achieve social
justice.
Living our Gender
A presentation and discussion on what is gender and
how do we live out both our internal and external
gender.
Bi-Ways of Life
A workshop examining the issues faced by
those members of the community who self identify as
bisexual, pansexual, omnisexual, polysexual, or just
sexual.
The Call to Rural Ministry
– A discussion and examination of the gifts and the
pitfalls of ministry in a rural congregation.
Affirming Ministries A
workshop to discuss the need for Affirming
Ministries within the United Church of Canada, the
affirming process, and the expectations of Affirming
Ministries.
Atelier: S’affirmer ensemble en français.
Affirm United/S’affirmer ensemble est une
association majoritairement anglophone. Comment
s'affirmer aussi en français? Comment vivons-nous
cette marginalisation supplémentaire. S'affirmer
c'est être GLBT et chrétien-ne. Quelles sont les
barrières qui exclues et les problématiques qui
divisent? Quelles sont les solutions pour pouvoir
développer l’accès au francophones dans notre
association et dans nos milieux?
United in Relationship
Similar
to marriage preparation for heterosexual traditional
couples, together we will explore different aspects
of enriching relationships (communication and
conflict skills, sharing histories, sexuality and
spirituality). This workshop will seek to
honour a variety of relationships - emphasizing
the support needed for those in non-traditional
relationships to honour and sustain the commitments
they have made to each other. This
workshop is intended for both those who are in
relationship and those who want to support others'
relationships.
Our Home, now and in the future
An opportunity for people attending the conference
to meet with the directors of Affirm United /
S’affirmer ensemble to talk about events and
programs in their home community and to name and
discuss issues and programs Affirm United /S’affirmer
ensemble can address in the future.
Important Information
Accommodations:
The onsite accommodations are limited to 60 persons
and are in shared rooms.
Off site Accommodations
There are several off site accommodations available
in Tatamagouche. A list of accommodations can be
obtained by an internet search of “Tatamagouche
Accommodations” or if you prefer, request a list
from the conference organizing team at
conference2010@affirmunited.ca
Finding Tatamagouche Centre
The Tatamagouche Centre is situated at, 259 Loop 6,
RR3, Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia B0K 1V0.
Tatamagouche is approximately 120 km north of the
Halifax International Airport.
Thanks to all the planners and participants who made
2009: Celebrating Diversity Gifted in Human
Form a wonderful event.
Click here
for the brochure for this last summer's event.
THEME SPEAKERS FOR 2009
Susan Beaver is the Vision
Keeper at Francis Sandy Theological College. She
will invite us to look at “Two-Spirited People”
through the eyes of some of our First Nations.
Kim Uyede-Kai wowed us at
Saskatoon last year and has graciously agreed to
return again this year. Kim will offer insight to
this year’s theme of “Celebrating Diversity Gifted
in Human Form.”
For information (including speakers presentations,
worship services and Sunday morning sermon) about the Saskatoon
2008 Creating Community with Welcome at the Edges . . .
click here.
For information (including a
report, links to Anne Squire's Sunday Address and to
online photos) about the Peterborough 2007 Conference
Never Doubt . . . click here.
At our banquet on the Saturday
night of our Annual Conference two
awards are presented. Click on the name of the award to open
a pdf nomination form.
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