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Last week, Dick Martin and Dick Lee attended the final session of year two of the School for Congregational Development in Terrace. This program was adapted for the Anglican Province of British Columbia and Yukon to support clergy and laity in developing communities of faith in their calling to act as the body of Christ in their respective communities by providing

  • a grounding in Christian and Anglican ethos and spirituality,
  • in providing leadership that is more self aware and culturally competent, (iii) to help leaders to develop the capacity to respect and support and learn from people of a variety of cultures and

(iv) provide skills to leaders for the management of change.

This two year program has involved workshops in Kamloops, Nanaimo, Whitehorse and Terrace as well as numerous Zoom workshops. The first focus of the Terrace workshop focused on understanding how an individual’s culture impacts communication, motivation and collaboration. Not recognizing these underlying cultural differences can quickly (and often does) lead to confusion, disagreement and confrontation. In a time of changing demographics, this basic cultural understanding of differences is of increasing importance. Activities explored intercultural conflict and means of overcoming such conflict.

The second focus of the Terrace workshop was the exploration of the concepts of “power, rank and status” with respect to behaviour and how individuals interact with each other. Again, the influence of culture and background remains fundamental to behaviour and the participants were challenged to reflect on how cultural perceptions of “social value” and “rank and status” impact assumptions, approaches and ultimately a sense of belonging or of being excluded. Examples of personal failures to appreciate cultural differences presented by one of the participating bishops helped drive home just how important the understanding of cultural difference is. A final workshop was devoted to the management of change, and two different change management models were reviewed. Again, the importance of recognizing underlying culture was highlighted in the effective management of change.

The Terrace workshop concluded with awarding of certificates to the 21 participants who had completed the entire two year program. A parish followup to this workshop is planned for November.

From Dick Lee