CONFERENCE REPORT

The Children’s Spirituality Summit and the InterGenerate Conference convened together on May 24-26, 2021 as one joint online gathering. The joint conference was an astounding success. There were:
+ 964 registrants
+ from 15 nations
+ from 42 states and
+ from approximately 40 Christian faith traditions.

The participants were professors, senior pastors, doctoral students, children’s ministers, Christian education directors, youth ministers, curriculum writers, and other church and parachurch leaders. It was a wonderfully diverse, engaged group of people passionately interested in bringing the generations together in our churches and in nurturing children spiritually in a variety of settings. The two conferences joined together this May since the Children’s Spirituality Summit was canceled last summer due to COVID.

The goals of the joint conference were met:
+ Ministry leaders were informed, inspired, and equipped to lean into intergenerational ministry and to foster spiritual development in children.
+ Researchers and other academics shared their findings about intergenerational ministry and children’s spiritual formation and encouraged one another to continue further research.
+ Academics and thoughtful practitioners interacted with each other, creating a collaborative synergy that generated fresh ministry implications and perspectives.

Both conference planning teams are making plans regarding how to go forward for events in 2023.

To stay connected to your fellow intergenerational ministry leaders, join the just-formed Facebook group Intergenerational Think Tank.

About this online conference:
+ Registration gave you access to both InterGenerate Conference and the Children’s Spirituality Summit.
+ Conference events happened from 12 noon to 5pm Central Time daily.

Event features:
+ 4 keynote addresses
+ 30 workshops addressed children’s spirituality and intergenerational faith formation and ministry
+ 18 paper presentations offered new thinking and research in intergenerational ministry and children's spirituality
+ Affinity Groups shared insights and applying the conference ideas and approaches
+ Special gifts and publisher giveaways delighted attendees
+ All sessions were broadcast on Zoom
+ Enhanced or Team registration provided access to ALL recordings after the event