OST for religious communities

[Lisa Heft]

Hi, Ray (and hello, dear Brendan)

 

Ray wrote:

<I will be holding open space for a religious community of men gathering for
chapter to focus on direction for renewal.

I would appreciate any wisdom, and experiences to learn from as I prepare
for this adventure.In the chapter I am working with, there will be a time to
analyze and reflect on the state of the congregation and then we will move
to open space to let people begin to explore the positive potential for the
future as the community embraces the challenges/opportunities.>

 

Ray - I have opened space for Catholics, Episcopalians and various other
faith communities.  I find that faith communities enjoy and benefit from
Open Space just as much as anyone else - it's a good fit, even in religious
organizations where there people are used to receiving top-down direction. 

 

I have done Open Spaces with faith communities where the event has started
and ended with prayer and song; in one case, delightfully, the planning team
for the event wrote a prayer that was specifically about/for the work about
to be done in Open Space.  

 

In another congregation the Pastoral (strategic) Plan born in the Open Space
was translated into many languages and shared in each church's service,
along with a Pastoral Planning Prayer.  

 

In another, closing included a segue into Mass, and in another, I found out
that while I harmonize when being invited to sing with the congregation, not
all congregations *do* harmony ;o)   (Lisa dances to the beat of a different
drummer.again.).  

 

Once, when the design included prioritizing, the planning team designed a
'mark the topics you feel should move forward' process with breath work
before the dot-voting (to release and be filled with a power and wisdom
greater than themselves) and a hallelujah chorus to celebrate each group
decision (there were 3 decisions to be made so this process repeated 3
times).  

 

Once, when participants got anxious just before a situation where they were
to prioritize, I felt I needed to ask the group if they were people of faith
- did they truly believe that the right thing would happen if they gave
themselves over to the greater wisdom. (I don't know if I did that for me or
for them though - I am sure they would have done just fine without my jewels
of wisdom.)

 

So: design it, prepare for it, and facilitate just the way you would any
organization, and as with any organization, use the inspiration and ideas of
the organization's planning team to see if weaving in bits of code and
culture (such as song, prayer, lighting candles, or breath work) helps to
invite and frame the Open Space for that community.  Let me clarify - don't
feel that extra warm-up or intro things are necessary for the Open Space to
work - it will work if it's been chosen as the right tool for the job and is
thoughtfully prepared for.  What I'm saying is if the culture traditionally
frames its work and coming together as community in a way that involves
ritual, you may wish to design in time for ritual in the open or close of
your day(s).

 

Take care,

 

Lisa

 

___________________________

L i s a   H e f t

Consultant, Facilitator, Educator

O p e n i n g  S p a c e

 <mailto:lisaheft at openingspace.net> lisaheft at openingspace.net

 <http://www.openingspace.net> www.openingspace.net 

 

 

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