SUNDAY CELEBRATION:
EVERY 3rd SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICE more...
7 - 8:00 pm
SOCIAL TIME
8 - 8:30 pm
LOCATION:
10209 SE Division St., Portland, OR 97266
(2 blocks east of I-205. Look for the "Blessings" Bookstore sign, then drive around the back of the building. We share space with Open Spirit Center) map...
MAILING
ADDRESS:
11307 NE Fremont Ct, Portland, OR 97220
Why We Exist
Meetings are the core of recovery for 12-steppers, and nothing can quite replace what a meeting does for us when we need one. Over the years, we have heard long-term 12-step recoverers express a need to add another spiritual dimension to their regular 12-step meetings. For some this has meant returning to their childhood religious roots. For others it has meant adopting a new religious path that feels comfortable. Others are still looking. Among all of these seekers, many have exclaimed, "I wish there was a 12-step church!"
When Berdell and I finished our seminary and felt called to pioneer a worship center, there was a huge part of us that wanted to create that 12-step church. For reasons having to do with, I'm sure, youth, inexperience and lack of confidence, we took our church in the direction of the status quo, and for 17 years it remained that way. In 2009, we decided to take a sabbatical of undetermined length, figuring we would have time and more energy to get clear about the direction God was nudging us toward.
Ministry Was Still in the Cards
We still loved being ministers, but something was off, and had always been off. Our sabbatical gave us the chance to explore what that "off" was about. For the first year, we had no direction on that question, and it almost seemed there never would be an answer. Then, in 2010, there was a moment of clarity that started everything moving again.
Our deep love and respect for 12-step, coupled with a wisdom that only age, experience and confidence can create, led us to make the decision to open a worship community for 12-steppers.
All that was left was to find the perfect setting for services, classes and workshops. It took over a year to find but with a little help from God and our friends, we found it.
All Things Work Together for Good
Here's the chain of events that led to our finding the space:
A dear friend, and husband of my ministry advisor during my ministry studies, passed away. At his memorial service, I reconnected with another dear minister friend, who, in the midst of a very long canasta game (7 hours to be exact) suggested I call Rev. Julie Applegate of Open Spirit Center for Spiritual Living. She had just recently found a wonderful space for her congregation. For years, she and I have toyed with the idea of doing something together to enhance each of our ministries. When I called her and let her know I wanted to share space with her, she didn't hesitate.
Berdell and I met the next day with Rev. Julie and her co-minister, Rev. Cathi Condon. Since Step 11 was to hold its services on Sunday evenings, there would be no conflict of time. The date was set for September 18, 2011 to be our first service. The rest, as we say, is history.
The Technical
Step 11 is a newly formed ministry under the auspices of the Portland Center for Spiritual Growth (PCSG). PCSG is a federal 501(c)(3) non-profit religious corporation, founded by Casey & Berdell in 1992. Being a branch of PCSG, Step 11 is covered under the federal 501(c)(3) statute.