Current Conferences

2008 Church Unbound

July 1-5, 2008

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For lay leaders, clergy, commissioned lay pastors, seminary students, and all who wish to take part in fashioning a new vision for the church.

How can the PC(USA) become a church for the next generation? What will it take to bridge the boundaries of age, culture, gender, race, and theological differences? Come and join others who care about the leadership of the church – present and future. Be part of an exciting conversation aimed at fashioning a new vision for a new day – of a Church Unbound!

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, thus says the LORD, ‘Let my people go, that they may serve me.’” Exodus 8:1 (RSV)

Workshops Offered

  • Facing Our Differences Together: Toward a Next Generation Church, John Franke, Hatfield, PA
  • Becoming a Multicultural Community, Jin S. Kim, Minneapolis, MN
  • Worship Unbound: Hearing the Voice of Christ Amidst the Noise of an Uninhibited Generation, Melva W. Costen, Atlanta, GA
  • Our Post-Modern Age: An Introduction, W. Stacy Johnson, Princeton, NJ
  • Activating and Energizing Youth in Ministry in a Multicultural Setting, Marissa Galván-Valle, Louisville, KY
  • Reconnecting Our Connectionalism, Jack Haberer, Richmond, VA
  • Christian Worship and Preaching in a Post-Modern World, Rhashell Hunter, Louisville, KY
  • Presbyterian Global Fellowship, Scott Weimer, Atlanta, GA
  • Leading the Church Into the Future, Linda Bryant Valentine, Louisville KY
  • The Emerging Mainline: Church from Scratch, Nanette Sawyer, Chicago, IL
  • Post-Modern Biblical Interpretation, Eugene Eung-Chun Park, San Francisco, CA
  • Why Adapting Purpose-Driven is a Great Way to Fulfill the Great Ends! Michael Carey, Satellite Beach, FL
  • The Tribal Church, Carol Howard Merritt, Washington, DC
  • Presbyterians and Emergent, Karen E. Sloan, Hamden, CT and Troy Bronsink, Atlanta, GA
  • Resurrecting Church, Shane Claiborne, Philadelphia, PA
  • Future Church, Anti-Racist Church, Lisa Larges, San Francisco, CA
  • 12 Dynamic Shifts to a Missional Church, E. Stanley Ott, Vienna, VA
  • Framing an Ecclesiology for the Congregation, John W. Stewart, Princeton, NJ
  • Another Resurrection Story, Maggie Lauterer, Burnsville, NC
  • First Order Thinking: Transforming Congregational Life from the Inside Out, Bill Golderer, Philadelphia, PA
  • Ready, Steady, Go: Young Adults Prepare to Lead! Bridgett A. Green, Louisville, KY

Liturgy Team

Melva Costen, Atlanta, GA; visiting professor, Yale Institute of Sacred Music
Paul Detterman, Louisville, KY; Executive Director, Presbyterians for Renewal
Jud Hendrix, Louisville, KY; Co-Pastor, Covenant Community Church
Lee Hinson-Hasty, Louisville, KY; Coordinator, Theological Education & Seminary Relations
Liz Kaznak, Louisville, KY; Co-Pastor, Covenant Community Church

Music Leader

Harry Pickens, Louisville, KY; professional musician, speaker, consultant, and founder of In Tune with Life™, LLC.

Program Fee

  • $200 – regular full fee
  • $125 – spouse/family member fee
  • $100 – college/seminary student fee
  • $ 75 – spouse/family member of college/seminary student fee

Scholarships are available for this conference.

Cost for Housing and Meals

Please note: Housing in the Assembly Inn, Winsborough, and Glen Rock Inn is no longer available and we currently have a waiting list! Check out the following links for alternative housing options:


Do you have questions about housing or wish to be placed on a waiting list for the Assembly Inn, Winsborough, or Glen Rock Inn? Would you like to purchase meal tickets for the Assembly Inn dining room? Please contact the registrar at 800-572-2257, ext. 339 or email susana[at]montreat.org.

The following rates for Assembly Inn, Winsborough, & Glen Rock Inn are per person and include all room and meal charges for the entire conference (Tuesday supper-Saturday breakfast). No adjustments to package will be made except for extended stay. Meals for children ages 5-11: $53.25; under 5: no charge. No room charge for children under 12 years of age in the same room with parent(s).

Assembly Inn (WAIT LIST ONLY)

  • Single, Private Bath: $461
  • Single, Connecting Bath: $385
  • Double, Private Bath: $305 per person
  • Double, Connecting Bath: $285 per person

Winsborough/Glen Rock Inn (WAIT LIST ONLY)

  • Single, Connecting Bath: $305
  • Double, Connecting Bath: $205 per person

Registration/Child Care Information

Registration must be postmarked at least seven days before the conference begins to be accepted. Conference begins Tuesday, July 1, with registration 3-5 PM, Anderson Auditorium. Conference ends Saturday, July 5, at approximately 10:30 AM.

If you would like conference information mailed to you via U.S. mail, please email carolo[at]montreat.org. Questions about registration? Email the registrar at susana[at]montreat.org.

Child care is available. PRE-REGISTRATION REQUIRED. LIMITED ENROLLMENT.

Cancellation Policy

Cancellations must be received by May 20 in order to receive a full refund less a $25 service charge. Cancellations received after May 20, but on or before June 24, will receive a 50% refund of the conference fee and payments made toward room and meal charges (if applicable), less $40. No refunds will be issued after June 24. All requests must be made in writing and received via email, fax, or U.S. mail.

Planning Team

Merri Bass, Montreat, NC
Paul Detterman, Louisville, KY
Bridgett Green, Louisville, KY
Jack Haberer, Richmond, VA
Lee Hinson-Hasty, Louisville, KY
Rhashell Hunter, Louisville, KY
Cindy Jarvis, Philadelphia, PA
Louise Johnson, Princeton, NJ
W. Stacy Johnson, Princeton, NJ
Jin Kim, Minneapolis, MN
Tricia Dykers Koenig, Cleveland Heights, OH
Lauren Mathews, Montreat, NC
Scott Weimer, Atlanta, GA

Sponsored by The Presbyterian Outlook, Cross Cultural Alliance of Ministries, and Montreat Conference Center.

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