KLESIS is an adult curriculum of Christian formation that helps participants go from outsiders wondering how they connect with the church to people covenanting together to discern and act on their calling, both individually and in community. This leads to two outcomes:

• Spiritual growth inside and becoming who God calls us to be
• Community growth outside, with strong vibrant leadership in churches

Each of the three programs in KLESIS (Connect?, Commit? and Covenant!) engage participants in a small group which meets around a table to share a meal, listen to a presentation, share questions and responses, and pray together.

Download KLESIS documents

• Connect? is AVAILABLE FREE
• The congregational development theory and theology behind KLESIS are explored in a Doctor of Ministry thesis.

Overview of Connect?, Commit?, and Covenant!

The three-fold structure of KLESIS is designed to move participants into progressively deeper commitment to God and fuller participation in the congregation. Each level of the program is designed to whet the appetite for the next, so that participants gradually develop the discipline needed to grow into maturity, measured by the full stature of Christ.

• Connect? invites participants to consider Jesus’ invitation to a new life in God’s reign of love and justice. The six session course explores what it can mean to connect to a community of worship. Participants build relationships in small groups that provide support, encouragement to grow, and a sense of connection with the congregation.
• Commit? is a twelve session course structured around the Baptismal Covenant. Participants wrestle in small groups with what Christian faith means in their lives. The themes of God as Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer are explored in experiential terms, with a special emphasis on being forgiven and forgiving others. Participants grapple with the possibility that they become true persons only in relation to God and their neighbors.
• Covenant! is a four-month small group curriculum for those wanting serious and in-depth exploration of their gifts and call in a community of support and accountability. Each person learns to create a healthy, joyful, and spiritually nourishing rhythm of life that expresses his or her identity and vocation in Christ.

Participants in each of these programs meet weekly for two hours, in table groups over a meal. The theme for each week is developed in a twenty minute talk and by the questions which form a starting point for the group discussion. Commit? provides about 30 minutes of homework reading each week, exposing participants to some of the classic literature of the Anglican tradition.

Klesis is a Greek word for calling, or call. In the Christian Scriptures it is always of the Divine call to salvation. “I therefore, a prisoner of the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called.” (Ephesians 4:1)