Connect | See Each Other: A Dialogue Lab
This fall, we’re setting aside two dates to practice one simple, difficult thing: seeing each other. Not debating ideas or fixing each other, but learning how to notice the people right in front of us.
This lab grows out of a story from the Christian scriptures in Acts 6. In that story, a community that loves God, is growing fast, and doing a lot of good realizes that some people are still being overlooked. The widows on the margins are in the room, but not in the circle of care. The community has to stop, listen to a complaint from the edges, and let their life together be rearranged to create true community for all.
You don’t have to share that story as your story to recognize the pattern. In a busy church, busy company, or busy city, it is possible to look at people and still not really see them. We drift toward people who sound, vote, and think like we do about faith, politics, race, and what “a good life” looks like. We see the ones whose stories we recognize, whose experiences resonate. Everyone else stays in the background.
These dialogue sessions are a space to practice a different way of seeing:
To listen across differences without trying to win or withdraw.
To notice who we might usually miss.
To let people at the “edges” of our circle become teachers, not interruptions.
We’re calling it a “dialogue lab” on purpose, because the real work will happen at your tables, in the stories you share and the questions you ask each other. As people learning how to live well together in public, not just in a faith community, the lab is place to practice how we live.
Each session will stand on its own, and they’re designed to complement each other. If you can only make one, come to that one. If you can come to both, you’ll be able to go a layer deeper the second time.
Session One
Thursday, September 24 | 7:00–8:30 AM | Downtown Church, 2030 Gregg St, Columbia, SC 29201
Session Two
Thursday, October 29 | 7:00–8:30 PM | Downtown Church 2030 Gregg St, Columbia, SC 29201
The times are different (You already noticed, didn’t you?) on purpose. We are attempting to make room for a variety of schedules and seasons of life. Come to the one that fits. Bring a neighbor, a coworker, or a friend who sees the world differently than you do. Or just bring yourself.
This lab is designed for anyone who cares about how we live together in a divided world. Whether you’re a person of the Christian faith, another faith, or no faith at all, it’s a place to be seen.
Our desire is that, in these conversations, we learn together what this story is teaching our community: seeing is not a step toward community; seeing is the community. We hope to see you there, and to really see each other from this point forward.
Space is limited to 21 people per session. Register Here