The Florida Council of Churches and Pastors for Florida Children invite the Florida faith community to attend, “Together on the Path Toward Righteousness,” a convening for faith leaders, both clergy and laity. This event begins on Monday, September 25 with check-in at 1:30 PM and the first session starting at 2:00 PM. The event will conclude at noon on Tuesday, September 26. The faith community can lead the way in teaching that diversity, equity and inclusion are the true democratic values to be embraced by each of us. If we come together across ecumenical and interfaith lines to address the obstacles standing in the way of these ideals, we can make a difference.
“Together on the Path Toward Righteousness” will be held at the Florida Hotel & Conference Center (1500 Sand Lake Road Orlando, FL). Because space is limited, please call and make your room reservation as soon as possible: 407-859-1500. Rooms are $120/night + tax. The hotel block is under the Florida Council of Churches and the group rate will be available through September 8. Each guest is required to pay for their room accommodations. Reserve your hotel room here.
Be sure to register for the event by close of business on 9/18/2023 so we will have enough food for all attendees at the banquet. To register go to: www.bit.ly/FLCLERGY2023.
Event Schedule:
September 25 from 2:00 – 5:30 PM – Obstacles on the Path Toward Righteousness in Public Education (Presented by Pastors for Florida Children)
September 25 at 7:00 PM – Interfaith Fellowship Banquet, U.S. Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black, Keynote Speaker
September 26 from 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM – Obstacles on the Path Toward Righteousness in Immigration, Gun
Safety and Human Rights (Presented by the Florida Council of Churches)
Rev. Barry C. Black, Keynote Speaker for the Interfaith Fellowship Banquet, is the 62nd chaplain of the United States Senate. He began serving as Senate chaplain on June 27, 2003. Black served for over 27 years in the U.S. Navy Chaplain Corps, rising to the rank of rear admiral (upper half), and ending his military career as the Chief Chaplain of the United States Navy. He retired from the Navy on August 15, 2003. During the 16-day U.S. federal government shutdown of 2013, Black’s invocations garnered widespread national attention. On October 1, the first day of the shutdown, he prayed for divine guidance to “strengthen our weakness, replacing cynicism with faith and cowardice with courage”. On October 3, he prayed, “Save us from the madness. We acknowledge our transgressions, our shortcomings, our smugness, our selfishness and our pride…Deliver us from the hypocrisy of attempting to sound reasonable while being unreasonable.”
For more information about this event, contact Rev. Rachel Gunter Shapard (pastorsforflchildren@gmail.
