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Retreat hosts students exploring a future in ministry
Fifteen students and several faculty and staff members gathered at Camp Assiniboia near Headingley, MB for the 2023 ministry inquiry retreat
In the midst of CMU's winter semester, 15 students and several faculty and staff members gathered at Camp Assiniboia near Headingley, MB for the ministry inquiry retreat. Amidst times of worship, prayer, and individual silent reflection, students had the chance to hear from each other and from experienced pastors and leaders in ministry. They ate together, spent time outside at the camp, and closed the weekend by sharing communion.
"It had a brightness and joyfulness that was especially noticeable this year," said Andrew Dyck, Assistant Professor of Christian Spirituality and Pastoral Ministry. He organized the retreat on January 27–28, which hosted a higher number of students than recent years, with Sunder John Boopalan, Assistant Professor of Biblical and Theological Studies.
"I think my prayer would be that students would find freedom in serving Jesus in the way they're wired, with whatever abilities and interests they have," Dyck said, emphasizing that's different than saying everyone should become pastors. The students came from a myriad of backgrounds—some in their early 20s and others in their 50s, studying music and psychology or already working in churches, ranging from Anglican to Mennonite to Baptist.
"I actually found it was the most profound experience and easily the most spiritual conference I've ever been to," said Janice Gibson, a mature student in her final year of a Bachelor of Arts in social sciences with a counselling focus.
Gibson feels called to ministry, but has faced many obstacles, having spent decades in what she labels as an oppressive and misogynistic church context. Reflecting on the retreat, Gibson becomes emotional. "To feel accepted by a community of believers, and that they believed in me to invite me...I felt so positive, so powerful, and so valued by the Holy Spirit," she says. "Not that I know now what my calling is supposed to look like...but just that energy to take a step, find out."
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