Biblical Storytelling 101: Amelia Boomershine leads a two-part introduction to the art of biblical telling, which will have you accomplishing the telling of a short biblical text by heart by the end of the first hour! (And you thought you had a terrible memory...)

 

Ancient Rings: A Way of Learning: John Frank Epp brings a method of reading, remembering and re-telling biblical text: the word and theme pattern of a Ring.

 

Life and Breath to the Story from the Inside Out: Telling as Devotion: Kathy Culmer takes us into a spiritual practice drawing on the Lectio Divina approach for meditating with scripture, and exploring questions to make deeper connections with the Word, with God and with the world.

 

Becoming a Sacred Storyteller - a Guide for the Pilgrimage: Jeff Lawrence asks, in this spiritual practice workshop: ‘What must I do to become a sacred storyteller, moreso than just a teller of sacred stories?’ 

 

Creative Ways to Present Scripture with Children of All Ages: In this very hands-on workshop, participants will engage in Echo Mimes, Liquid Pictures, and Number Stories, Story/Drama Bags, simple crafts and more. Carole has led this popular workshop around the world.

 

Godly Play - The Wonder and the Joy: Enter the world of Godly Play with Beverly Matthews, to discover this unique form of biblical telling which evokes questions and connections, honouring the innate ability in each one of us to make connections with the voice of God.

 

Storytelling as a Way Home - an Indigenous Approach: Phillip Gatensby, who sees himself as a peacemaker, a bridge builder, and a 'reminder-er’, will reflect on how, by the sacred use of Story, we are reminded of who we truly are, coming home to our true identities as human beings sharing this planet.

 

Little Tiny Tellings: Taking a bite-sized approach to remembering and sharing biblical texts, Linnea Good will share some 1-and 2-line scriptures and lead in a conversation about the situations in which they can be used.

 

What is the Big Deal About Performance Criticism?: Tom Boomershine, founder of the modern movement in biblical storytelling, takes a deep dive into the difference it makes to our understanding of the Good News when we know that it was originally composed and shared by tellers.

 

I Love to Sing the Story - Weaving Paperless Song into Biblical Stories: Paul Vasile and biblical tellers will model how short songs and refrains taught without paper can enrich, engage, and support practices of storytelling and draw our communities into a deeper relationship with scripture.

 

Heart-To-Heart - Script Preparation: Rae-Ellen Bodie, who works in the Arts community with actors and speakers preparing for performance, will bring practices and perspectives for tellers to adopt in their by-hearting of the Word.

 

Sign Language as an Act of Inclusion in Bible Telling: Steph McClellan, a longtime advocate for the diversability community, will teach us a short Bible story in basic American Sign Language, reflecting on how this form of biblical telling can be a new way home for those eager to embody the Word.