Seattle Pacific University

Faith Formation Project

The Faith Formation Project will help congregations nurture faith formation within families, particularly as it pertains to the realities of mental health, disability, gender, sexuality, race, and ethnicity. Since May 2022, the Faith Formation Project has been building a community of learning composed of families, congregational ministry leaders, and scholars from the Pacific Northwest as well as Hawaii and Alaska. The team will conduct interdisciplinary research in theology and psychology to better understand how the Christian faith can be most effectively transmitted from parents and caregivers as they navigate marginalized identities. SPU will host three annual learning events with local congregations to help families and congregational ministry leaders learn from one another and leaders in related fields. The organization will also award $20,000 each year in microgrants to local congregations to support ministry with marginalized families. Finally, the Faith Formation Project will gather local leaders on a pilgrimage to Moloka’i to learn about reconciliation, focusing especially on how families can heal from the damage of disease, isolation, and colonization.