View reports for our 2023 assembly on our assembly mission and ministry stories page and in this collection of blog posts.

Kimberle Kennedy shares the 2023 annual report for Diakonia. View in this blog post, in this PDF or this Word doc.

Growing in Faith: The Diakonia Program
2023 Grand Canyon Synod Mission and Ministry Story

Re-imagined : Growing in Faith: The Diakonia Program is a 40+ year old ministry within the ELCA committed to fostering learning environments for followers of Jesus to grow in faith. In the fall of 2022, the program was reimagined, taking the best of the existing program, adding new elements and more flexibility with a Foundation Year and optional subsequent Practical Year tracks. 

Community of Disciples: There are currently three Growing in Faith communities in the Grand Canyon Synod with cohorts in Metro Phoenix, Tucson, and Online offering classes, retreats, and mutual care to equip followers of Jesus to live out their faith.

Faith Development: A two-year curriculum allows folks to move at their own pace to progress through foundational and practical learning. The program accepts people where they are in their faith understanding and challenges them to grow to a deeper level. Individual courses of interest are available and attended on an ala carte basis.

Practical Ministry: Growing in Faith has touched the lives of hundreds of participants in the Grand Canyon Synod since classes were first offered in 2017 helping people to discern their callings in the world and to support them in following those callings.

Growing in Faith Diakonia Summer 2022 Retreat : The Life of Faith Initiative . Facilitated by Rev. Dr. Craig L. Nessan – Wartburg Seminary

The “agents” of Christian mission are the lives of the baptized lived out in service to others, including to creation,  in  all  their  roles and relationships in life.

Celebrating Milestones

We are looking forward to an in-person graduation celebration led by Bishop Hutterer after the close of Grand Canyon Synod Assembly on June 10th at 12:30pm at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Oro Valley, Arizona.      

Graduation Statistics:

• Diakonia Two Year Program Graduates 2019-2022: 52

• Diakonia Two Year Program Graduates 2023: 8

• Growing in Faith Foundation Year Graduates 2023: 15

Respectfully submitted,

Kimberle Kennedy, Chair
Grand Canyon Synod Growing in Faith Diakonia Steering Committee

Website: www.diakonia.education

Longing to Grow? Plant yourself in good soil