November Renewal Session: A New Kind of Church

Wednesday, November 19 at 12:00 pm MT via Zoom

Register Here

When we think about what shapes our beliefs, for many of us, religious communities are a big influence. But how do our beliefs shape our religious communities? How do our beliefs about community, identity and belonging guide our spaces of worship? Do we need to rethink what we believe about church?

For our November 19 Renewal session, Rev. Dr. Jenny Whitcher (PhD ’12) will share about her work at the Juniper Formation, a Denver faith community that is trying to reimagine church. Join us for conversation about religion, belief, and community in action. Wednesday, November 19 via Zoom from 12:00 to 1:30 pm MT.

Presenters

Rev. Dr. Jenny Whitcher (she/her) is the Minister of Prophetic Formation and Co-Founder of Juniper Formation. Jenny is an entrepreneurial minister, community organizer, and theologian committed to social justice. She has over 20 years of experience coaching and mentoring leaders, teaching, and developing community partnerships. Her work spans nonprofit, congregations, and higher education. Her areas of expertise include: change management; entrepreneurial and prophetic ministry formation; democratic culture, leadership, and pedagogy; and social change theory and practice.

She is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ (UCC) and was the recipient of the Peacemaker Award from the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Church of Christ in 2006. She has a B.A. from New York University, an M.A. in International Human Rights from the University of Denver, and a Ph.D. in Religion and Theological Studies from Iliff School of Theology & University of Denver.

Bry Brannan (they/them), Iliff MDiv Student, Minister of Land Discernment, accompanies congregations discerning ways to utilize their Land and buildings for community flourishing and intergenerational resilience. In 2026 they are launching a new ministry, the Root & Reckon Community of Practice for Rocky Mountain congregations who are reckoning with racism and colonization through Land stories. Reach out if you are interested in learning more!

Bry is finishing their MDiv at Iliff School of Theology where they focused on ecotheology and decolonizing congregational leadership. They were formed as a faith community organizer while working with the Church Council of Greater Seattle, the Southwest WA Synod of the ELCA and collaborating with the Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network, and Farmworker Ministry Northwest. Their B.A. is from Pacific Lutheran University where they studied Global Studies, Political Science, and Spanish.