Collegeville Institute

Bearings Online

  • Home
  • About
  • Events
  • Podcasts
  • News
  • Giving
  • Comprehensive Campaign

Title of the document Make A Gift Now

Menu
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Bearings Online
  • Calling Initiatives
  • Fellows Program
  • Giving
  • News
  • Podcasts
  • Comprehensive Campaign
  • Residency Programs
      • Scholars, clergy, church leaders, thinkers, artists, and writers who are seeking to discern and communicate the meaning of Christian identity and unity in a religiously and culturally diverse world are invited to apply for our residency programs.
      • Get Practical Information »
      • Apply for a Fellowship »
      • View 2024-25 Scholars »
      • Resident Scholars Program

        for those looking to stay a semester or a full academic year

      • Program Details
      • Work and Scholarship
      • Housing and Facilities
      • Application Process
      • Former Resident Scholars
      • Short term Residencies

        for those looking to stay for a shorter period of time

      • Program Details
      • Living and Working
      • Application Process
      • Former Short Term Scholars
      • Learn More »
    • Close
  • Writing Programs
      • Each year, the Collegeville Institute opens its doors to writers of faith for intensive writing workshops. In addition, the Collegeville Institute partners with other institutes, seminaries, or churches to coordinate regional off-site workshops.
      • 2025 Workshops

      • Pop-Up Writers Workshops
        • Pop-Up Writing Workshop, March 22, 2025 (Colorado Springs, CO)
        • Pop-Up Writing Workshop, March 29, 2025 (Birmingham-Vestavia Hills, AL)
        • Pop-Up Writing Workshop, April 5, 2025 (Asheville, NC)
      • Flesh and Blood: Crafting a Communal Constructive Theological Anthropology, May 27-30, 2025
      • Apart, and Yet A Part, June 9-18, 2025
      • A Sparked Imagination, June 23-27, 2025
      • Deep and Wide: Longform Prose Revision, July 9-18, 2025
      • The Release:  How Writing in an Economy of Gifts Liberates Writers, September 29, 2025
      • Fifty Pairs of Eyes: Creating Characters in Fiction, Non-Fiction and Poetry, October 27-November 1, 2025
      • Waiting for Words: An Advent Writing Workshop with Lauren Winner – 2025, December 2-6, 2025
    • Apply Now »
    • Close
  • Calling Initiatives
      • The Communities of Calling Initiative invites congregations into a 5-year project on vocation.
        The Called to Lives of Meaning and Purpose Initiative, coordinated by the Collegeville Institute, funds 13 innovation hubs from across North America.
      • Calling Initiatives Overview »
      • Research Seminars on Vocation »
    • Resources on Vocation:

      • BridgeIntroducing Calling & Discernment – language of calling, models of discernment, and calling across the lifespan
      • gabriel-brito-80atz53Th9o-unsplash-2Prayer & Worship – prayers, hymns, sermons, spiritual practices, and liturgical year resources
      • Vis-Group-2Small Group Series – adult education and faith formation guides for congregational use
      • FrancoisVideos & Interviews – video storytelling projects on vocation from Christian and interfaith perspectives
    • Close
  • Fellows Program
    • Bringing together an ecumenical group of gifted Minnesota faith leaders, the Collegeville Institute Fellows Program focuses on leadership development with the goal of strengthening religious leaders’ sense of themselves as civic leaders.
    • Fellows Program Overview
    • Rural Minnesota Fellows Program
    • Multi-Religious Fellows Program
    • Close
  • Participant Publications
  • Search
You are here: Home / News / Awakening Theological Imagination

Awakening Theological Imagination

August 11, 2016 By Collegeville Institute Leave a Comment

Awakening Theological Imagination

2016 Awakening Theological Imagination writing workshop participants (left to right): Gil Stafford, Bob Hudak, Kelly Brill, Judith Brackett, Karen Hering (workshop facilitator), Eric Dale, Tina Walker-Morin, Martha ter Kuile, Kathryn McElveen, AnnElise Bergstrom, Renee Jackson, Jordan Farrell (Donna Dempewolf, not pictured).

Religious leaders are called to use words to enrich the lives of the congregations where they serve. Last week, a group of pastors, chaplains, religious educators and others met at the Collegeville Institute to attend the Awakening Theological Imagination: A Spiritual Practice of Writing with Karen Hering writing workshop.

Workshop participants had the opportunity to work independently and meet together as a group to engage in guided writing sessions on a variety of theological themes. When asked to comment on Karen Hering’s facilitation, one writer remarked: “The mix of different writing exercises was interesting (and healing) in itself, but she also gave us a lot to take home to share. In her way of facilitating the group she modeled the kind of participatory leadership she was recommending to us.”

Following the workshop, one participant reflected, “The week was a Psalm 23 experience for me – green pastures, still waters, soul restored.”

Like this post? Subscribe to have new posts sent to you by email the same day they are posted.

More from my site

  • Writing Theology for the General ReaderWriting Theology for the General Reader
  • The Transformative Power of MetaphorThe Transformative Power of Metaphor
  • Summer 2016 Writing Workshops: At a GlanceSummer 2016 Writing Workshops: At a Glance
  • Christian Spirituality and the Writing LifeChristian Spirituality and the Writing Life
  • A Broader PublicA Broader Public

Filed Under: At the Collegeville Institute, News Tagged: congregations, karen herring, summer writing workshops, theology, writing workshops 2016, writing worksops

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News Categories

  • At the Collegeville Institute
  • Alumni News
  • Opportunities
  • Artists in Residence

Collegeville Institute Tour

Check out our virtual 360-degree tour experience and see our beautiful campus with its many amenities!

CI 360 Tour

Latest News

Dr. Aizaiah Yong appointed as new Executive Director of Collegeville Institute 

April 14, 2025

Collegeville Institute welcomes Andrew McNeil as its new Director of Communications.

March 11, 2025

Meet a Resident Scholar

March 11, 2025

Subscribe

Sign up for our email newsletter today, and keep up to date with what's going on at the Collegeville Institute.

Sign Up Today

Get Involved

Give online

Check out our writing workshops and our residential programs.

Contact Us

2475 Ecumenical Drive
PO Box 8000
Collegeville, MN 56321

Phone: 320-363-3366
Email: staff@collegevilleinstitute.org

Map/Directions

Copyright © 2025 Collegeville Institute. Read our Privacy Policy.