ALEXANDRIA, Va. — This year’s 21-C Conference — a 10-year-old evangelism and vision-casting event sponsored by the Virginia Baptist Mission Board — will host the inaugural national gathering of Fresh Expressions U.S., a movement which develops creative expressions of church alongside existing congregations.
The March 16-17 event will be held at First Baptist Church in Alexandria, Va.
This is the first national gathering for Fresh Expressions U.S., a collaboration between the Baptist General Association of Virginia and Fresh Expressions U.K.
The movement began about 10 years ago in the United Kingdom as Christians there grappled with rapid social changes impacting churches.
Fresh Expressions is “the most life-giving example of an initiative helping established churches and denominations move into the mission-oriented future of the church in the west,” says Chris Backert, national coordinator of Fresh Expressions U.S.
The initial partnership between the BGAV and the British leaders of Fresh Expressions has expanded to include a number of affinity groups who share the BGAV’s mission and freedom commitments. The BGAV is taking a lead role in developing the movement in Virginia and surrounding states.
Featured speakers at the inaugural national gathering will be Reggie McNeal, missional leadership specialist for the Leadership Network in Dallas; Graham Cray, an Anglican bishop who serves as team leader of Fresh Expressions UK; and Jo Saxton, director of 3DM, a Southern California-based organization which helps congregations develop a missional way of being church.
The gathering begins at 9 a.m. on March 16 and concludes at 4 p.m. on March 17. The two-day conference will include both plenary sessions — the platforms for the featured speakers — and workshops on a wide array of topics. The topics are listed on the Fresh Expressions web site.
Online registration is available www.freshexpressionsus.org/national-gathering/register/. The last day for online registration is March 11. After that date, registration will be on-site.
For more information, contact Caitlin Figura at the Virginia Baptist Mission Board at 804.915.5000 or caitlin.figura@vbmb.org.