Excitement is high for the upcoming gathering of hundreds of Canadian Lutheran and Anglican at CLAY 2014. From August 14 to 17, upwards of 600 of the most passionate and talented 14- to 19-year-olds from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Anglican Church of Canada, will convene in Kamloops, BC.
CLAY is held every two years and is one of the strongest showings of full communion relationship between the ELCIC and ACC.
This iteration of CLAY features worship, fellowship over food, service-based learning events, inspiring keynotes, and late night high-energy and low-key social times. Youth will further work on a national youth project on the right to water among First Nations, explore their relationship with social media through the lens of faith, and discern together what church means in this time and place.
Participants will enjoy a range of experiences of God, church, and their faith from ancient forms of worship to collaborative multimedia explorations of issues of concern to youth.
CLAY 2014 invites all those who gather to consider the theme “Worth It.” This simple, but evocative, theme challenges participants to consider what secular culture considers ‘worth it’ and what a rich Christian faith might value instead.
Devon Goldie, the Anglican representative on the planning team, is thrilled CLAY 2014 is finally on the horizon, “I love reconnecting with the national Anglican-Lutheran youth community. It’s such a blessing to be able to learn, worship, work and play with like-minded people. Totally WORTH IT!”
Hannah Shirtliff, communications coordinator for the gathering planning team, shares in the enthusiasm for the upcoming gathering. “I’m excited to see CLAY 2014 is finally here,” says Shirtliff, who is also excited for what youth will take away with them from the gathering. “I hope youth will come away with a deeper relationship with God and a deeper appreciation of their own home church community and the wider church community. And I really hope it inspires them to get more involved with their own churches, and the wider church as well!”
It is not just the youth who are gearing up for CLAY! Sara Stratton, Member Relations/Campaigns Coordinator at KAIROS, is eager to join in as leader of a ministry project on responsible resource extraction. “Participants will have the opportunity to learn more about the impact of Canadian mining on a community in Guatemala, to reflect on their role in it as consumers, and to think about how their faith compels them to challenge injustice,” she says. “That’s really what KAIROS is all about, and to get to do it at CLAY, with this engaged and dedicated new generation of church leadership is a fantastic opportunity.
To keep in touch with the happenings in Kamloops follow:
Facebook: facebook.com/claygathering
Twitter: @claygathering
Instagram: @claygathering
Storify: storify.com/claygathering
Those who are interested can also search for social media content using the #clay2014 hashtag and read longer blog posts from youth participants at claygathering.ca.