Dear friends,

We are so grateful to all of you who have participated in our Listening Sessions as we continue our process of engaging with the entire diocese to hear what is on your hearts and minds. We have received a few questions that we want to address in our letter this week.

This stage of the process is the central time in which your feedback can be incorporated into our work. Though we will continue to offer updates and be as transparent as possible, this is one of the most public portions of the search process, before nominees are announced later this summer. Your participation is vital to this work and now is the time to engage with us to ensure your voice is heard. As of today, two sessions per deanery remain on our schedule as well as an opportunity to gather on Zoom if one of those does not work. You can find the schedule here.

Note: Please register for all Zoom sessions at least 24 hours prior to the sessions beginning time in order to ensure that you receive a link. If you have not received a link, but believe you are registered, please email bishopsearch@diowestmo.org.

At any of the listening sessions you may attend, you can expect that we will share a conversation with one another around three questions. Those questions are below. These will last no more than two hours and may, depending on attendance, involve breaking into small groups for conversation. A large group conversation ends the session and written feedback is also most welcome. Here are the questions you can begin praying about as you prepare to join us:

• Tell us about something exciting in your worship community and your wider community. Tell us about a challenge in your worship community and your wider community.
• At this time in the life of the diocese, what qualities are most important in the next Bishop?
• In the next 5-10 years, what opportunities do you dream of for our diocese? What do you imagine that would inhibit those dreams?

Don’t forget to fill out this survey even if you have already attended or plan to attend a listening session. We are grateful for the many responses we have received already!