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.
      • Apply Now »
      • 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
      • 2026 Workshops

      • Writing in the Wilderness: reflecting on the immigration stories that have shaped our lives, led by Isaac Villegas, March 2-7, 2026
      • Reading and Writing with Joan Didion (a workshop with Alissa Wilkinson), March 16-22, 2026
      • Writing in the Wilderness: reflecting on the immigration stories that have shaped our lives, led by Isaac Villegas, May 15-19, 2026
    • 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 / New Rural MN Fellows Cohort Convenes to Discuss Church Leadership

New Rural MN Fellows Cohort Convenes to Discuss Church Leadership

November 10, 2021 By Collegeville Institute Leave a Comment

The 2021-23 cohort of the Rural MN Fellows Program met at the Saint John’s Abbey Guesthouse in Collegeville, MN on November 8-9, 2021.

On November 8 and 9, an ecumenical group of 12 pastors convened in Collegeville, MN for the inaugural meeting of the Rural Minnesota Fellows Program.

The theme of the inaugural gathering was Being a Leader. Dr. Martin Giese, President of Oak Hills Christian College, offered an insightful presentation on leadership in the church and what it means to be a leader in a rural community. Giese spoke of the “rurban” church as one where both rural and urban mindsets are present and can lead to socio-cultural tensions. The group also interacted with John Klassen, OSB, the Abbot of Saint John’s Abbey, who presented on leadership in the context of a monastic community, and the implications of that for the church and the larger community.

The program brings together clergy from rural churches with professionals from other sectors of rural society in order to strengthen these religious leaders’ sense of themselves as civic leaders and public theologians. This unique leadership development opportunity is for pastors in the early to middle years of their career. The 12 fellows will meet every three months until August 2023.

Meet the 2021-23 Rural Minnesota Fellows cohort »

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

More from my site

  • A Rural Church’s ExileA Rural Church’s Exile
  • Immigrants and the Rural ChurchImmigrants and the Rural Church
  • Sustainable Agriculture and Rural ChurchesSustainable Agriculture and Rural Churches
  • Rural Churches and Change: Why Are We Here?Rural Churches and Change: Why Are We Here?
  • Collegeville Institute Hosts Inaugural Meeting of MN Rural Fellows ProgramCollegeville Institute Hosts Inaugural Meeting of MN Rural Fellows Program

Filed Under: At the Collegeville Institute, News Tagged: church leadership, leadership, rural church, rural fellows

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.