After a lot of discussion, we decided on a name for this years Roundtable for Emerging and Underground Ministries - "Kalejdoskop", which in English, means Kaleidoscope. Bet you would never guess that in a hundred years.
Why a Polish name? Because the event will be in Poland and we have a habit of letting the host countries name the event in their language. Thus, we had Die Gefaehten 'The Fellowship' in Germany (2006), Epicentre (2004, UK) Epicentrum (2003, Czech Republic), Epicenter (USA, 2001) and Ecclesia (USA, 1999)
INTERESTING TRIVIA: "Kalejdoskop (Kaleidoscope) means "to look at a beautiful shape" So, our hope for this Roundtable, is to gather leaders from many nations and allow us to look at the shape of the body of Christ - to see it's current beauty and how it is taking shape and pointing to a beautiful future." Andrew Jones, from the invitation.
Dates are July 8-11, 2009. This year will be a big one and in fact, a GLOBAL one, meaning that all the continents [or most of them] will be represented. In 2009, we are expecting emerging church and underground ministry leaders from about 30 countries. We will meet for discussion, resourcing, prayer, encouragement, networking, indoctrinating, friendly insults, late nights, bad coffee and a good time.
This roundtable will be held at the Slot Art Festival which happens when 6000 young people turn up with tents and sleeping bags at a huge Cistercian Abbey in Lubiaz, Poland. Our family were there in 2007 and really loved it.
INTERESTING TRIVIA: "Founded 1163 and closed 1810. The abbey is believed to be the second largest Christian architectural complex in the world (after Spanish Escorial). The area of the roofs is about 2.5 hectares, and the length of the facade is 223 meters (the longest baroque facade in Europe). In the crypts, there are 98 well-preserved mummies of Silesian dukes." Link
And no, in case you were wondering, we are NOT going crypt-digging to crack open old musty mummy boxes with crowbars! But, there WILL be a celebration evening in the Princes Hall [permission pending], possibly the world"s best example of a Baroque ballroom, which I am pretty excited about. Anyone partial to a dance?
Now thats posh! Lets hear it for the Counter-Reformation . . . YEAH!!!
INTERESTING TRIVIA: Rock star Michael Jackson requested to buy this Abbey and was turned down.
The Underground Railroad network returns to be a major player in this year's event. They have been hosting roundtables since the mid 90's and usually host a smaller one for North Americans each year at Cornerstone Festival. Thanks Trevor!
The Kalejdoskop Roundtable is an invitation-only event for Christian network leaders. Nobody can enter unless they have an official invitation and they can spell 'Kalejdoskop' without looking it up. The roundtable represents the generosity of Slot Art Festival and a number of Christian Foundations and ministries that are supporting mission to the emerging culture. There is no charge for participants apart from a puny 10 Euros a day entry ticket to the Festival which includes camping priviledges. If someone can't afford that, then pity the poor beggars - REALLY - 10 Euros a day - compare that with most Christian conferences these days! However, they can apply for a scholarship if they really need to.
Invitations have been sent out but there are some other countries and networks not yet represented. If you know of a Christian network leader or movement catalyst in the emerging culture, especially if they are working in urban centers, among postmodern youth, alternative cultures etc, and you think they and their network should be represented, then send me an email or leave a comment below.
Related: Festivals as a Way Forward
Technorati Tags: emerging church, mission, underground ministries
