On Being Restorative Congregations in the Aftermath of COVID (June Safe Church Webinar)

This was the second webinar of the 2021 Series: On Being a Safe Church! In these webinars, we have been hearing from a variety of people that heave helped inspire us to create healthy and safe cultures in our congregations and communities.

View the recording here!

Safe Church Ministry also hosted a free Restorative Practices Listening Circle Workshop on June 23rd. If you are interested in the recording of this workshop, which a listening circle was modeled then reflected on by the group, please email [email protected]

Webinar Details:

Who: Our guest speakers were Anne Martin M.A. Ph.D. (Director of Restorative Practices) and Mark Vander Vennen M.A., M.Ed, R.S.W. (former Executive Director of Shalem Mental Health). Eric Kas from Safe Church Ministry and Liz Tolkamp a Faith Formation Catalyzer and member of Restorative Practices Task Force of Classis BC South East hosted this webinar conversation.

Anne and Mark help lead FaithCARE, a part of Shalem Mental Health based in Ontario, Canada. Their services include individual, couple and family counseling as well as equipping and supporting communities, including faith communities. Shalem has a particular focus on equipping in Restorative Practices. They have a team of experienced and certified trainers and focus on supporting the community to build the capacity to successfully sustain healthy relationships, through workshops, training, consultation and coaching.

In this webinar Anne and Mark explored some of the following questions:

• Why is being restorative and using restorative practice needed for such a time as this? Why would it be worth it for our churches and congregations to engage with one another and our communities restoratively?
• What is the "The Social Discipline Window (U.S. Term)" or "Practice Domains (Canadian Term)" of restorative practices? How can we be with, rather than simply being for others or do things to others?
• What do the practices actually look like? What is the continuum of restorative practice: from informal affective questions, to more formal restorative circles and conferences?
• What does fair process look like in communities and organizations?
• With a heightened awareness of shame in our culture, what is the "Compass of Shame" of restorative practices, and how can it be useful for our communities?