2026 Reimagining Preaching Conference
The Center for Transforming Engagement is excited to extend an invitation to its second annual Reimagine Preaching Conference.
One Table Preaching: Making Room for Every Voice
This is a one-day laboratory for pastors, lay preachers, and ministry communicators who kneel at the pulpit each week between clashing world-views. Through keynote storytelling, scripture-rooted workshops, and hands-on listening labs, participants will practice sermons that bridge cultural, political, generational, and socioeconomic gaps. You鈥檒l leave with concrete frameworks, fresh metaphors, and a renewed courage to proclaim good news to congregations as complex as the world God loves.
The 2026 Reimagining Preaching Conference will equip clergy to navigate the complex reality of preaching to congregations divided by cultural, political, generational, and socioeconomic differences.聽
1. Unlike traditional homiletics training that focuses on exegesis and delivery, this conference addresses the pastoral challenge of maintaining unity while addressing divisive issues faithfully.聽
2. Participants will learn practical tools for self-awareness, cultural exegesis, and bridge-building communication that honors both biblical truth and congregational diversity.聽
3. The conference does not prioritize advancing progressive or conservative agendas, but developing the courage and skill to address hard topics while fostering inclusion and genuine dialogue across differences.
Keynote Sermon: Proclamation as Theological Crowdwork: How Interactive Preaching Expands Exegetical Practices, Rejects Generative AI, and Bridges Political Division
Keynote Speaker: Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow
Rev. Bruce Reyes-Chow is a 3rd Generation Filipino/Chinese American and an active speaker, writer, coach, and podcaster on topics of faith, leadership, activism, culture, race, and technology. An ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA), he also works with organizations on immigration, decarceration, and Palestinian liberation. He is the author of six books, most recently Everything Good about God is True: Choosing Faith, with his next book, 鈥淧rophets, Priests, Pastors & Poets: Being and Becoming the Resurrected Christ,鈥� due out in Fall 2026. He and his wife live in San Jose, CA.
WorkShop: Preaching Politics as Curating Community
In our time, we will look at how preaching about “politics” can help build community and belonging 鈥� if the community and leadership believe that the body politic is deserving of being built up. While each preacher will have to translate for the communities they serve, Bruce will offer some perspective and practices to help spark conversation and movement.
Inclusive Preaching as a Liturgical Act
Rev. Nat Johnson
Sermons and homilies are not stand-alone components of a worship service – they are part of a larger movement within the liturgy itself. This workshop will explore how inclusive preaching both fits within that larger movement and has the formative capacity to draw the gathered community deeper into God’s transformative presence.
Preaching Through the Lens of Disability
JessicaThompson
The Gospels are full of disabled people traditionally viewed as nothing more than a canvas for Jesus healing or a metaphor for sin. In this workshop we will use the lens of Disability Theology to reimagine the healing stories, allowing us to give voice to the disabled individuals, treating them as more than props in the story and invite our congregations into a bigger, broader, fuller Church and world.
Cooking Up a Sermon: Word, Spirit & Story for New and Emerging Preachers
Pastor Silas Sham
Every good sermon starts with raw ingredients 鈥� the Word that grounds us, the Spirit that stirs us, and the stories that bring faith to life. In this hands-on workshop for new and emerging preachers, we鈥檒l explore how to 鈥渃ook up鈥� a sermon from scratch: mixing study with imagination, crafting messages that nourish hearts with the life of Christ, and discovering your unique voice in the kitchen of God鈥檚 Word.
Preaching the Good News to all Generations
Rev. Danielle Merseles
While many churches emphasize intergenerational ministry and the benefits to everyone, how do we preach one sermon so that people of all generations in the pews can connect with the good news of Jesus? Can middle schoolers, Millennials, and retirees all find meaning in the same message? I often teach students and I also find myself preaching on a Sunday morning to all ages. Preaching is a way of proclaiming God’s word, but how can we do this with a generational intelligence so that everyone is truly worshiping together?
Planning and Implementing the Sermon-Dialogue-Sermon Method in Your Congregation
Rev. Dr. Leah Schade
Based on her book, Preaching in the Purple Zone: Ministry in the Red-Blue Divide, Rev. Dr. Leah Schade will introduce participants to the 鈥渟ermon-dialogue-sermon鈥� method to use in their congregations. We鈥檒l discuss how to choose 鈥渃ool,鈥� 鈥渨arm,鈥� or 鈥渉ot鈥� topics, and how to plan sermons and deliberative dialogues to address a social issue that鈥檚 important to their community.
Preaching Peace From Below
Rev. Lina Thompson
This workshop will facilitate a conversation on how to read and preach biblical text for the sake of the city and its most vulnerable people.