But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be
my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Acts 1:8 (NRSV)
YOU ARE INVITED!
“Emerge: Baptist Witness in the 21st Century” combines a Ministers Conference and Orientation to American Baptist Life, where conferees will explore emergent themes in Baptist theology of the Holy Spirit, postmodern witness and third millennium mission, in this 200th anniversary year of the historic Judson mission to Burma. The conference meets in Orlando, Florida, January 6-9, 2014. Bible study teachers, worship experiences, workshops and speakers will find their themes in Acts 1:8. The 2014 conference marks the third time that the orientation conference (for Seminarians and new-to-ABC ministers) and the Ministers Conference, sponsored by ABCUSA, will be integrated into one event.
New this year!
In addition to the Ministers Conference, seminarians and ministers new to American Baptist Churches USA will be attending this conference for an orientation to ABC life and mission. The Orientation track and Ministers Conference track will both have more flexibility in 2014 than in the past, with seminarians and new ministers able to elect to attend Ministers Conference workshops and ministers able to attend Orientation sessions. Also new in 2014 is inclusion of Women in Ministry, led by Rev. Patricia Hernandez. Worship will be coordinated by Rev. John Polite, who will invite seminarians to plan and lead worship!
Major orientation sessions are planned by ABCUSA (General Ministries), American Baptist Home Mission Societies, International Ministries, Ministers and Missionaries Benefit Board, Regional Executive Ministers Council, and Associated Ministry Organizations. Dr. David Laubach, retiring associate executive director, ABHMS, is coordinator for the Orientation to American Baptist Life conference and Dr. Donald Ng, pastor of First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco and Vice President of ABCUSA, is coordinator for the Ministers Conference.
Registration fees will be $75 for seminarians, $100 for new-to-ABC ministers, and $150 for Ministers Conference attendees. Room rates at the Doubletree will be $99 per night. Seminarians are encouraged to enroll in the American Baptist seminarians’ database in order to receive communications about the Orientation conference. They can do so at http://abhms.org/education/seminarian_registration/register.cfm.
Registration will be available online soon!