Seminars Mission, Millennium, Memetics - The Future of the Church in the 21st Century
		Mission: Creating Caring Communities
		CHURCH LEADERS SEMINAR SUBJECT/THEMES: Mission, millennial change, multicultural ministry, memes, diversity, unity, visionary leadership, reaching the unchurched, memetics, spirituality, and social change. RATIONALE: The rapid changes taking place in our world society are pushing leaders to the realization that the old ways of doing business with a Flatlander approach, running people through the same car wash, one-size-fits-all method, and falling prey to the tempting solutions of the latest "flavor-of-the-month consultants," will no longer do. As Clare W. Graves, late professor of psychology at Union College (NY), declared: "Human beings exist at different 'levels of existence.' At any given level, an individual exhibits the behavior and values characteristic of people at that level; a person who is centralized at a lower level cannot even understand people who are at a higher level." In view of such situation, leaders need to move from a Horizontal approach of leadership and doing ministry, to include the Vertical dimension. This enables them to be cognizant of the various deep-level, spiral forces that operate within people, organizations, and systems, and how to help people at these various levels of existence to work together for effective, proactive, and lasting change. The challenge facing the Christian Church is that the church has become too diverse for one single style of leadership, method for mission and ministry, and way of preaching the Gospel. The Gospel is universal but the pulpit is not. We tend to forget that. TITLE OF SEMINAR: "Mission, Millennium, Memetics&emdash;The Future of the Church in the 21st Century." DEFINITIONS: Memes: Memes (analogous to genes) are cultural units of information that self-replicate by means of thought-contagion, using the human mind as a host, and attach themselves to individuals, organizations, and entire cultures and societies. Christianity is a meme, so also is the Sabbath, salvation, and all other doctrines. Memetics: The study of ideas and their transmission. DESCRIPTION: This seminar addresses the most basic challenge facing the world's most diverse church&emdash;how to maintain a sense of unity in the face of increasing diversity. This challenge can best be described through a series of questions. These questions describe what will be taught in the seminar, and how the seminar will benefit pastors. How does one communicate the Gospel effectively across all the social barriers imposed by society? Why is the church having greater growth in certain areas of the world field, or with certain people groups, and not with others? Should the Church take a one-size-fits-all approach to ministry, mission, and leadership? Since people occupy different levels of existence, how do people at one level minister to people at another level? How does one preach messages that transcend levels of human existence, each with their own unique perspectives, values, lifestyles, worldviews, and approaches to God and Scripture? Is the church, at both local and global levels, too diverse for one style of leadership, worship, and mode of ministry? What is the 'secular mind,' and how does one go about reaching those dominated by such a mindset? What is 'spirituality'? How does it differ from 'religion'? What are the challenges of New Age religions and cults to the church? Why do these emerge? Who joins them? What can the church learn from New Age religions to more effectively reach the secular minded and unchurched in the next millennium? What really happened in Rwanda's tribal massacres? How can the church avoid such catastrophes in the future? Why are both independent and celebration churches increasing in Adventism? Is this the wave of the future? Is the Willow Creek Community Church the 'model' for denominational Christianity in the 21st century? If so, with what results? What is the basis of human conversion? What is the most influential force, other than the Holy Spirit, in the process of conversion? Why is the oldest method of reaching people still the best one? How can racism and sexism cease being the main socioreligious problems dividing the church? Where do values and ideas for change come from? Why do some last and others, like seed on rocky ground, fade with the morning sun? Why does one mind latch onto certain values and ideas while another rejects them categorically, and another not even recognize them in passing? Why is 'memetics,' the nascent science of ideas and their transmission, and Spiral Dynamics&emdash;the idea that we may live in many different realities, all at once&emdash;the cutting edge of church leadership for the next millennium? How can Adventism move from the sidelines of religious marginality in the 20th century, so as to be the central spiritual force to be reckoned with in the 21st, in preparation for the soon return of Christ in glory? How can our entire message be reframed in language and concepts that speak to the social and spiritual needs of a diverse world society in the third millennium? HOW should WHO manage WHOM to do WHAT, WHEN, and WHY? Do new times demand not only new thinking but also new methods? If Christianity were to have its initial beginnings in the year 2000, what would it look like? All these factors, concepts, and questions comprise the content of this unified, integrative seminar. TIME FRAME: The length of the seminar is two-day, 16-hour training session LANGUAGES: The seminar can be given in both English and Spanish. SIX "DO-ABLES": The seminar will enable participants to: Determine at what level of existence are their constituents and church members, and how to meet their needs effectively. Develop a successful model of ministry. Develop an effective style of spiral leadership. Understand how to communicate with the secular mind. How to effectively manage diversity in a multicultural environment. How to be proactive rather than reactive, by being a change-anticipator rather then a problem-solver.
		For more information contact us through the following media: Rosado Consulting for Change in Human Systems Email calebrosado@earthlink.net Website www.rosado.net Voice 215.769.3132 Fax 215.769.6785