Transcript
Orientation to the Conference
Mike Wacker, September 3, 2022 (mentor conference)
MIKE: The purpose of the consultation is summed up in the slogan that’s on the front of the journals that were sent out: “Understanding our Past, Discerning our Future.” This theme came out of a consultation that the South Bend branch had, coming out of COVID. And in response to a question—“What do you think the Lord is saying to you about what we should do as a branch moving forward?”—our sister Karen Zuehlke made a connection to Vatican II and its themes of ressourcement and aggiornamento. She said, “I think as a community, we should look to our traditions, to our founding documents, and the wisdom of long-time members, to understand our sources and roots, even as we try to move into a new time and situation.”
When we read that response, we thought that was the word from the Lord. Recall Romans 12 [verse 2]: “Do not model your behavior on the contemporary world, but let the renewing of your minds transform you, so that you may discern for yourselves what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and mature.” Praise God! Let it be so! Renew our minds, Lord, so we can discern your will.
The purpose of this conference is training you, the mentors, so that you, in turn, can train the leaders of the men’s and women’s groups that you’re responsible for how to do their part in the consultation. So we hope that you will leave here with a clear understanding of the entire consultation, but especially of Phase I, the first part of it; and confident in the part that each of us has in the consultation; and confident in explaining and teaching it, so that we can serve our brothers and sisters well.
Two small asides about language: throughout the conference we are going to be talking about men’s and women’s groups as “small groups.” That will save us from repeating it over and over.
And second, we’ll use the word “mentor” a lot. Now the vast majority of us here are going to be mentors, in the technical sense of [being] responsible for training the leaders of some small groups. However, some of you here are gonna be table leaders, and some are serving in other roles of the consultation. What the mentors have to do for the leaders of their small groups, the table leaders have to do that for their mentors.
So, a men’s group leader may tell his mentor: “I have this difficult men’s group; it’s not working out for these reasons. What do I do?” Well, if you’re the mentor, don’t worry. You’re not alone. You can talk to your table leader one-on-one; or, even better, the table could meet again and each share how it’s going and discuss it together, so that each person learns from the challenges, and everyone benefits from the advice given by the table leader. But whatever works for you going forward. . . .
So, not everyone is going to be a “mentor,” technically, but we’ll refer to all of you as mentors, and we’ll all benefit from learning. So the more of us who know and understand, the better. We’ll all be able to help the members of the branch do their role and participate in the consultation.
Thank you for the replies that you sent to our survey a few weeks ago! Your responses were very helpful. We’ll be addressing your questions in the course of these two days.
Remember that the most important person in the consultation is each member of the community. And that’s what we’re aiming at here: freeing them, and equipping them to be able to fully participate in the consultation. And if the stories are any like the ones we’ve just heard1, I’m really excited for what the Lord does.
So, when you leave here, you’ll be helping men’s and women’s group leaders to help the individuals in their groups. So you’ll need to understand everything that we’re saying, so that you yourself can teach it to them. And that’s why we’re going to have a lot of practical instruction.
Starting on Monday, you’ll need to develop a plan to teach your small-group leaders. Most of the recordings will be available for you. So, one scenario could be having a mini-conference with the mentors you’re responsible for, using these resourc- —these videos. And everything we say here is public to the whole community. We want the people in the branches to hear about it and learn about it through you. Please take notes, but know that transcripts will be available also, so you don’t have to write down everything that’s said.
As far as the schedule goes, we’ll be addressing both the spiritual and the material: the soul and the body, so to speak. So there will be workshops and demonstrations. There will be time for you to practice these skills; time to talk with each other, especially at the tables. We’re also going to have a lot of fun!
When my little sister was young, she talked a lot, incessantly. I mean, quite young. So at one point Dad turned to her and said, “You know, Kathy, you don’t have to talk all the time.” She thought about it. . . . “How do you breathe?” [Mike and audience laugh.]
Years later, I was picking her up from work because her car broke down. And I knew she was in a hurry to get to the next thing—but when I pulled up she was talking with someone that she had just met, waiting for me to get there. So I went out—I thought maybe she needed a graceful way to exit the conversation. So I said, “Oh, you know, Kathy, we gotta go now.” And, she just like—she didn’t hear or something; she just kept going. Finally, I was able to drag her away. When she got into the car she was exasperated saying, “I know, Mike, I’m sorry. But that woman just wouldn’t stop listening to me!” [Laughter.]
The first story is true. The second story is a joke. [More laughter.]
All right. Praise God. We now have a break until 10 a.m. Time to stretch your legs, get some coffee. Please be back at 10.
Endnote:
1Mike is referring to Charlie Fraga’s introductory talk; Charlie invited brief updates from across the community on how the consultation is going. Return to text.
Copyright © 2022 People of Praise, Inc.