Westwood is part of a national conference of churches called the Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (CCMBC), and we work together to bring the transformative power of Jesus and the Gospel to all of Canada. Leadership is critical to the mission that we share, and the national conference gives freedom to individual churches to determine if gender is a relevant factor in deciding the make-up of their leadership teams (board of elders and/or lead pastor).
The practice of Westwood is that the board of elders consists of qualified men only. After a significant amount of time praying and talking about this topic, our current leadership team of elders and pastors believes that it would be good for Westwood to explore the role of women in ministry leadership and discern whether the role of elder and/or lead pastor should be open to men only, or be open to both men and women.
A core part of Westwood’s culture is open discussion and dialogue, and we want to make sure that this process is as accessible as possible. The board has not predetermined the outcome and will go through the same discussion and discernment process as everyone else, and will present a recommendation at the end. The entire process is outlined below; be sure to write the dates on your calendar.
Introduction – Sunday, March 8, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Presentation of the CCMBC Resolution and the Westwood process
- CCMBC Women in Ministry Leadership Resolution
- CCMBC Women in Ministry Leadership – A word from the Board of Faith and Life
- CCMBC Women in Ministry Leadership – Biblical support for positions
Decision Forum – Sunday, March 15, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Summary of Introduction
- Congregational vote re: agreement with the CCMBC Resolution that women in ministry leadership (elder and/or lead pastor) is a non-confessional issue
Teaching Forum #1 – Sunday, March 29, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Mission, Vision, Values, Governance, and Ministry Model of Westwood Church
Teaching Forum #2 – Sunday, April 12, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Special Speaker: Ken Peters, Saanich Community Church (egalitarian perspective) – 45 min (Download Audio)
- Special Speaker: Lee Francois, Crossridge Church (complementarian perspective) – 45 min (Download Audio)
- Q&A (for clarification)
Discussion Group #1 – Monday, April 13, 7:00pm
(All three discussion groups will be the same, you need to come to only the evening meeting that works best with your schedule)
- Prayer
- Congregational discussion
Discussion Group #2 – Tuesday, April 14, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Congregational discussion
Discussion Group #3 – Wednesday, April 15, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Congregational discussion
Discussion Groups Summary – Sunday, April 19, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Summary of feedback and comments from Discussion Groups 1-3
Elders Meeting – Monday, April 20
- Prayer
- Discussion and recommendation regarding women in ministry leadership at Westwood
Decision Forum – Sunday, April 26, 7:00pm
- Prayer
- Summary of process and learnings
- Recommendation by Board of Elders
- Congregational vote regarding women in ministry leadership