Hope for the City - A 2009 Report

In late 2007, the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church adopted a comprehensive plan for ministry, Hope for the City, for the churches in Baltimore city. The implementation of Hope for the City beginning in 2008, under the coordination of the Baltimore Hope Council, has included the development of 7 new Communities of Shalom (involving 9 churches) in various communities across Baltimore. In addition to the Deaf Shalom Zone, housed at Christ Church of the Deaf, each of the Shalom Zones seeks to bring about community transformation using the model of asset-based church/community ministry. There are currently plans to develop at least 5 additional shalom zones in the Baltimore region in 2009-10. The implementation of Hope for the City also involves strengthening churches and communities through ongoing clergy and lay leadership development. Currently, pastors serving churches in Baltimore are organized in 6 urban cohort Discipler groups designed to provide training and address specific issues in urban ministry, and to promote collaboration among churches. Lay leadership development has involved the offering of several courses through the Discipleship Academy in urban settings, as well as Leadership Days for leaders in the Baltimore Metropolitan area. An equipping event entitled “It Takes a Village: Developing Partnerships between Churches and Schools,” will be held on May 30, 2009 and is being designed to equip church leaders from across the city to more effectively work with the schools in their communities. The Baltimore Hope Council is currently in the process of planning a region-wide urban convocation, “Redeeming the Dream: Renewing the Church in the City.” The convocation, scheduled for September 18-19, 2009 at the Maritime Institute of Technology, Linthicum, MD, will offer opportunities for persons to be further equipped in the practice of urban ministry. Other ongoing work under the auspices of Hope for the City involves Camp Life, a partnership of the Baltimore Hope Council, the Board of Childcare, and Conference Camping and Retreat Ministries where up to 100 youth from Baltimore will be able to participate in one of the Conference camping opportunities this summer; and Hope Counseling, a partnership of several agencies in Baltimore which provides free counseling and support to persons affected by violence in the city. Indeed we continue to witness and experience signs of hope in the city.