For the past two years Allelon has been in conversation with leaders around the globe about the questions of forming missional leaders in a post Christian world. One of the constants that has emerged from these many conversations is a deepening sense that the task of forming leaders will take time. This is probably going to be a multi-generational movement in which we are continually discerning the shaping of the holy gusts of the Spirit. At the same time, we have been struck by the almost universal consensus we have heard about the need for the formation of some kind of missional order.

It was with a sense of great excitement then, October 15-18, 2007, that we gathered in Seabeck, WA with 40 companions who desired to journey with us as we explore forming a missional order. We were also joined by Andrew Jones and Pete Askew from the Northumbria Community. Both Andrew and Pete were wonderful partners in this process of discernment and their wisdom was a gift to us.

This time of listening and discernment included spending time together in the Northumbria Daily Office and the practice of Dwelling in the Word in Luke 10: 1-12. We spent a good deal of time listening to the stories that brought us all to Seabeck, and sought to discern what God might be saying to us about forming a missional order through the narratives that brought us together. Out of this time we sensed that this process needs to be shaped by the following questions and commitments.