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| Bishop Yvette Flunder |
General Association |
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Sept. 23 - 25 Cost: $35.00 registration, meals $15.00 each, lodging at SLCC $40.00/night. |
Staff |
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Barbara J. Libby Interim Associate Conference Minister for Clergy Concerns 860.761.7107 barbaral@ctucc.org |
Drawing from her Baptist and Pentecostal roots, Bishop Flunder, Senior Minister of City of Refuge UCC in San Francisco, proclaims,
“Revival is not an event. Revival is a way to live; it’s a lifestyle!”
Ministry can leave us feeling parched & weary… Teaching and preaching a Gospel of extravagant welcome, Flunder revives spirits, restores souls, & affirms our calls.
Plan now to join us at General Association this fall for a time of personal restoration!!
Bishop Flunder founded the City of Refuge UCC in 1991 to unite a gospel ministry with a social ministry; it is a thriving inner-city congregation that celebrates the radically inclusive love of Jesus Christ. Preaching a message of action, the church has experienced steady numerical and spiritual growth and is now located in the South of Market Area of San Francisco. A third-generation preacher, first ordained in the Church of God in Christ, she is now an ordained minister of the United Church of Christ and a graduate of the Ministry Studies and Master of Arts programs at the Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley, California. She received a Doctor of Ministry degree from San Francisco Theological Seminary in San Anselmo, California.
In June 2003, Flunder was consecrated Presiding Bishop of The Fellowship, a multi-denominational fellowship of 110 primarily African-American Christian leaders and laity representing 56 churches and faith-based organizations from all parts of the United States, Mexico, and Africa. Responding to the needs of the AIDS epidemic, Flunder and her staff opened Hazard-Ashley House and Walker House in Oakland, and Restoration House in San Francisco, through the Ark of Refuge, Inc., a non-profit agency which provides housing, direct services, education and training for persons affected by HIV/AIDS in the Bay Area, throughout the USA, and in three countries in Africa.
Flunder has also performed and recorded with “Walter Hawkins & the Family” and the Love Center Choir. Her gospel music recordings include “There’s Power“ with the City of Refuge Praise Ensemble, “We Won’t Be Silent Anymore” with The Fellowship Mass Choir, and “How Sweet the Sound” with the Grammy Award-winning Chanticleer. She is a Trustee and Adjunct Professor at Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California, as well as a board member of the National Sexuality Resource Center, and an active voice for the Religion Council of the Human Rights Campaign. She also serves on the UCC Unified Governance Working Group as representative of the United Church of Christ Seminaries. She has lectured at numerous seminaries to include Lancaster, Duke, Drew, Eden, Yale, and New York Theological. She is the author of Where the Edge Gathers: A Theology and Homiletic of Radical Inclusion Pilgrim Press.
Here are some links to the City of Refuge website and videos or recordings of Bishop Flunder:
Hopkins booksellers will be present during General Association.
Check in beginning at 7:00 pm; please note that dinner will not be served.
Join in worship at 7:30 pm, then enjoy your friends' company until bedtime!
8:00 am: Breakfast
9:00 am: Morning Presentations including the General Association Moderator's Address
12:30 pm: Lunch
1:00 pm Options: Experience Silver Lake's high ropes challenge course, tour the camp, chat with the Conference Minister, or enjoy some free time!
3:00 pm: Afternoon Presentation
5:00 pm: Social Hour
6:00 pm: General Association Dinner (Don't miss this!)
7:00 pm: Evening Worship with Holy Communion
7:30 pm: Free Time
8:30 am: Breakfast
9:15 am: Devotions and Morning Presentation
11:15 am: Conference Minister's Address
12:30 pm: Lunch
1:00 pm: Afternoon Presentation
3:00 pm: Closing Worship
General Association is the longest standing ecclesiastical gathering in the United States, beginning in 1709. Throughout the years it has served as a time of spiritual renewal and a chance to network with other colleagues in ministry. Annually this time of reflection and refreshment has been held at our own Silver Lake Conference Center in the hills of Sharon, Connecticut, where all are invited to experience the presence of God’s creative glory as we seek harmony within our hearts and among each other.
Make time this September to experience this wonderful opportunity for spiritual growth. Many of our churches pay for their pastors to attend this event, either from continuing education funds or from other budget items cov-ering professional meetings.
