Forward Movement Board Meeting at Grace Church, Yukon
In late May, the Forward Movement Board met at Grace Church in Yukon for their spring meeting. Founded in the 1930s as the Episcopal Church was facing a steep decline in membership, the leaders of Forward Movement realized early on that “If we want the Episcopal Church to be strong, we need strong congregations. And if we want strong congregations, we need them to be filled not with habitual Christians, but with disciples.” Since that time, Forward Movement has been committed to inspiring disciples by providing materials supporting robust prayer, studying scripture, living the Christian life, and empowering evangelism. If you have ever seen a Forward Day by Day booklet in your church and picked it up, you have seen one of the over 200,000 quarterly booklets printed and distributed across the Episcopal Church and beyond. In addition to Forward Day by Day, Forward Movement publishes many resources ranging from individual devotions to group Bible studies to engaging and accessible curriculum for congregations of all sizes.
Today, as the Episcopal Church faces some of the same challenges from a century ago, we are reminded that prayer and study are still the essential ingredients for building up the body of Christ. The Forward Movement Board met to identify how Forward Movement can continue to support people in their lives of prayer and discipleship. The annual spring meeting is often held somewhere outside of Forward Movement's home in Cincinnati, at a congregation or in a diocese doing innovative ministry, so the Board can listen and learn from the wider church. While Grace Church in Yukon is known for combining traditional liturgy with contemporary and beautiful music, the Forward Movement Board was deeply impressed with the presentation by Father Tim Baer on Grace's commitment to forming disciples through an intentional scope and sequence of four formation courses including newcomer incorporation, Prayer School, Episcopal theology 101, and a rigorous Confirmation class.
If you are interested in learning more about resources that Forward Movement offers to support prayer, scripture study, discipleship, and evangelism in your congregation, you can visit ForwardMovement.org or email Canon Kate at KBond@epiok.org.
