The future of the church is more connected. The future of the church is in deeper conversation. The future of the church is a future with deeper covenant. The Covenant Project is the work of changing structures to be more just and relationships across the church to be more connected.
The Covenant Project began more than three years ago as part of the work of Governance Committee of the General Board of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). When the Governance Committee met in retreat in the Fall of 2019, they committed to the work of aligning the Design of the Christian Church (DOC) with God’s design for the church and to claim the power and potential of covenant.
To that end, the committee took two important steps: the first was the development of the Covenant Curriculum, a small group resource for congregations to explore their identity as covenantal partners in the wider church. The second was a process of a review of the Design, with an aim to explore how the church’s structures and practices might shift to better serve the church.
When the Christian Church established The Design in 1969, much of the structures and practices were adapted from the existing structures. However, the changing composition of the church and a growing desire to have our structures reflect our commitment to be a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world means rethinking how we engage and relate to one another.
The goal is for each member of the Christian Church to understand the Covenant Project proposed changes and have the ability to provide feedback. We encourage you to attend a Covenant Project town hall.
Please take time to explore some of the Frequently Asked Questions about this process and its impacts.