Dates: In person Monday–Wednesday, January 25–27 (asynchronous instruction begins in mid-December)

Time: Monday: 1pm–6pm; Tuesday: 9am–Noon and 1pm–6pm; Wednesday: 9am–Noon

Location: Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront / Online

Leaders: Dr. Margaret Murray Talbot and Rev. Sarah de la Fuente

Community-Supported Pricing: $325 Scholarship-Supported · $375 Full Cost · $400 Pay It Forward

How do we faithfully interpret Scripture in a rapidly changing world? This hybrid course offers practical tools for reading, interpreting, teaching, and preaching Scripture in contemporary ministry settings.

The course fulfills certification requirements for PC(USA) and Moravian educators, but it is open to everyone—including pastors, preachers, volunteers, chaplains, church leaders, and anyone seeking a refresher or deeper engagement with biblical interpretation.

The primary textbook will be What Then Does This Text Mean? Approaches to Critical Biblical Interpretation, edited by Steven L. McKenzie and John Kaltner and forthcoming from Westminster John Knox Press in October 2026.

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 9:00am - 4:30pm

Cost: $149

Location: Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront

Leaders: Jen James and Larissa Kwong Abazia

Our churches and communities have been in an accelerated period of transformation and change over the past decade. The pressure for meaningful change can inspire movements, but more often, leaves leaders in a state of overwhelm and uncertainty. How leaders show up in this moment matters. But how do we know what steps to take and if our well-meaning intentions are actually making a difference?

The traditional metrics of budgets and attendance are no longer adequate to evaluate success in ministry. Instead of searching for new ways of measuring, we revert to what we know, perpetuating a status quo. But, if what we are doing matters in our lives and in the world, we must develop meaningful ways to measure effectiveness and discern action. We need to change the entire culture of assessment and leading transformation.

Aligning our good intentions with transformational impact is critical for faithful witness and work. This one-day training will give you practical tools to unpack the needs of your community, churches and presbytery; honestly assess your resources and capacity; imagine ways ministries, structures and initiatives can be more effective for those we serve; and empower leaders to move towards impact in meaningful ways.

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 9:00am - 3:00pm

Cost: $95 — Includes Lunch

Location: Multnomah Falls and Menucha Retreat & Conference Center

The Columbia River Gorge offers spectacular views. The shores of the Columbia hold stories of ancient peoples and explorers, farmers, phenomenal fishing, industry and electric power. Tucked in along the bluffs are majestic waterfalls. Join us for a visit to Multnomah Falls where we will take the short walk to marvel at the splendor. On the bluff just west of the famous Vista House, we will stop for lunch and a tour of Menucha Retreat Center. Once built by Julius Meier, a future governor of Oregon, as his hunting lodge, it was purchased by First Presbyterian Church of Portland in the 1950s. Now it is a flourishing recently spun-off non-profit. Learn the story. Take a tour. Enjoy a lunch with scenic views!

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 9:30am - 3:30pm

Cost: $75 — Includes Lunch

Location: Fort Vancouver and Pearson Airfield

Just across the Columbia River from Portland is the historic Fort Vancouver. John McLoughlin, the Chief Factor (a Roman Catholic) sized up settlers coming on the Oregon Trail and sent them South or North. Narcissa Whitman (of Walla Walla tragic fame) loved the culture of the McLoughlin dinner table. The Fort hosted future military leaders for three different American wars: Ulysses S. Grant, George C. Marshall, Philip H. Sheridan, George Pickett, and Benjamin Bonneville. The Barracks and Officer Row stand as beautiful historic buildings. The magnificent lawns (parade grounds) and the Pearson Airfield museum tell us stories of days gone by. Plan on an enriching day. Museum admission and lunch are included. If you have a National Park Pass, please bring it with you. Meet at the Marriott to travel to Fort Vancouver.

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 9:30am - Noon

Cost: $20

Location: The Bible Project

Tour the BibleProject studio before the conference kicks off. See firsthand how their team turns biblical scholarship into the videos and resources shaping faith formation worldwide, then bring inspiration back to your own ministry.

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 10am - 6pm

Cost: $75

Location: Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront

Leader: Rebecca Davis

Participants will spend the day exploring the biblical, theological, and practical foundations of ministry with children and families while engaging current research, real-world ministry challenges, and creative approaches to faithful leadership.

During this experience participants will explore:

• Why ministry with children and families matters biblically and theologically
• What today's children and families are experiencing
• Current research shaping faith formation today
• The realities churches face in nurturing faith across generations
• How to assess existing children's ministry within a congregation
• Practical strategies for building healthy, sustainable ministries
• Casting a vision for the future of faith formation

Date: Tuesday–Wednesday, January 26–27

Time: Tuesday: 1pm - 5pm; Wednesday: 8am - Noon

Cost: $100

Location: Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront

Leader: Julie Gvillo

Can these bones live? Can this spirit be restored? Reiki practitioners answer that question with an energy balancing practice that people all over the world have found restorative and re-energizing for more than 160 years. Reiki is the prayerful practice of balancing the human energy field, promoting relaxation, and facilitating the body’s natural healing processes. This beautiful practice is a wonderful way to engage intercessory prayer and offer compassionate ministry.

Reiki practitioners receive training, attunement, and subsequent Level One certification in eight hours. Practitioners will be trained and certified by qualified and experienced Reiki Master, Julie Gvillo, who has achieved a Level Three training and has trained more than thirty practitioners over the last fifteen years.

Level One training centers on the history of Reiki, the theory behind Reiki, prescribed hand positions, spiritual guidance, opening and cleansing the physical body for healing, and self-care. Training includes a ritual, the purpose of which is to open, cleanse, and transform the new practitioner’s energy field.

Reiki training is not medical training. It is spiritual training and awareness training. The Reiki practitioner is concerned with centering spiritually and opening to being used as an instrument.

Participants who successfully complete the training will be certified to practice Level One Reiki using the traditional Usui method.

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 2:00pm - 4:30pm

Cost: $20

Location: The Bible Project

Tour the BibleProject studio before the conference kicks off. See firsthand how their team turns biblical scholarship into the videos and resources shaping faith formation worldwide, then bring inspiration back to your own ministry.

Date: Tuesday–Wednesday, January 26–27

Time: Tuesday: 3pm - 8pm; Wednesday: 8am - Noon

Cost: $50 — Includes Tuesday Dinner and Wednesday Breakfast

Location: Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront

Leaders: Neema Cyrus-Franklin, Kim Ness, and Becky D'Angelo-Veitch

Join the Around the Table initiative of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) for a meaningful pre-conference retreat designed to help you nurture faith with children and youth in everyday life.

In this two-part experience, Rev. Neema Cyrus-Franklin, Project Coordinator, and Around the Table coaches will guide participants through practical, relational practices - like storytelling, prayer, and other spiritual practices - that support intentional faith formation in households and congregations.

This retreat also serves as the starting point for our retreat-based cohort experience, which continues with six 90-minute sessions of online group coaching. While ongoing coaching is available exclusively to PC(USA) participants, attendees from other denominations will leave with a deeper understanding of the initiative's wealth of resources and how to adapt the cohort content for their own ministry settings.

Come ready to connect, reflect, and explore how faith can be lived - every day, around the table! Dinner on Tuesday and breakfast on Wednesday are included.

Date: Tuesday, January 26

Time: 5:15pm - 9:00pm

Cost: $65 — Includes Dinner

Location: Powell's Books and Deschutes Brewery

Experience a Portland evening filled with books, conversation, good food, and community. Participants will begin the evening at Powell’s City of Books (the world's largest independent bookstore) for a scavenger hunt, book browsing, and shopping before walking together through Portland’s Pearl District to a local restaurant for dinner, conversation, and prizes. Registration includes transportation to the Pearl District, a scavenger hunt with prizes, and dinner at Deschutes Brewery. Alcohol is available for individual purchase. Meet in the Marriott Lobby.

Date: Wednesday, January 27

Time: 9am - Noon

Cost: $75

Location: Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront

Leaders: James Potts and Mich Phillips

In Ezekiel’s vision of the valley of dry bones, God asks a startling question: Can these bones live? The answer comes not through argument or explanation, but through breath, movement, and the slow work of restoration.

This creative studio invites participants to explore how making can become a spiritual practice of renewal. Rooted in the APCE 2027 theme Can These Bones Live?, this hands-on space reconnects body and spirit, contemplation and creativity, prayer and practice.

Participants are welcome whether they are experienced makers or have never threaded a needle. Together we will experiment with quilting, embroidery, hand sewing, stole and parament making. Participants may also bring projects they want time to work on during the conference.

As participants stitch, design, and create together, they will discover how the simple rhythm of working with our hands can quiet the mind, restore tired spirits, and open space for prayer, conversation, and reflection. In a conference filled with learning and conversation, this studio offers a different kind of formation, one that happens through creativity, community, and embodied practice.

The Hands and Heart studio will be open throughout the conference. Your fee for the pre-event will give you access to the studio beginning on Wednesday at 9am through Friday at 9pm. Day passes are also available for $25 (see day pass registration).

Date: Wednesday, January 27

Time: 9:30am - 1:15pm

Cost: $20

Location: Oregon Historical Society

Spend the morning at the Oregon Historical Society. Participants will have a docent-led tour followed by a stop across the street at the Portland Art Museum. Lunch will be on your own at the Art Museum before returning to the Marriott.

Date: Thursday, January 28

Time: All Day

Cost: $25

Location: TBD

Leaders: James Potts and Mich Phillips

For those who would like to experience the creative studio just for a couple of hours or one day. You will receive a sticker for your name tag for the day you are registered for.

Date: Thursday, January 28

Time: 5:15pm - 9:00pm

Cost: $65 — Includes Dinner

Location: Powell's Books and Deschutes Brewery

Experience a Portland evening filled with books, conversation, good food, and community. Participants will begin the evening at Powell’s City of Books (the world's largest independent bookstore) for a scavenger hunt, book browsing, and shopping before walking together through Portland’s Pearl District to a local restaurant for dinner, conversation, and prizes. Registration includes transportation to the Pearl District, a scavenger hunt with prizes, and dinner at Deschutes Brewery. Alcohol is available for individual purchase. Meet in the Marriott Lobby.

Date: Friday, January 29

Time: All Day

Cost: $25

Location: TBD

Leaders: James Potts and Mich Phillips

Date: Friday, January 29

Time: 1:45pm - 5:00pm

Cost: $35

Maximum: 55 participants

Registration: Select this option when registering for workshops.

In 2021, the congregation of Presbyterian Church of Laurelhurst in Portland made the difficult decision to close its church, pairing that decision with a visionary Land Back gift to benefit local Indigenous people. With support from the Cascades Presbytery Leadership Commission and the Barbie’s Village Task Force, the property was gifted to Future Generations Collaborative, an Indigenous-led coalition, and Leaven Land and Housing Coalition. Named for the late Barbie Shields, a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and a dedicated natural helper, Barbie’s Village includes a tiny-home village and early childhood center serving unhoused Indigenous families. APCE participants will tour the campus, about 15 minutes from the hotel, hear about the programs serving the Indigenous community, and learn about best practices for engaging in a land transfer.

Date: Saturday, January 30

Time: 12:15pm - 6:00pm

Cost: $25

Location: Vancouver Waterfront, Washington

You’ve explored Oregon and enjoyed a view of Portland’s Willamette River; now spend a relaxing afternoon on the shore of the Columbia River at Washington’s Vancouver Waterfront. The newly redeveloped waterfront features restaurants, tasting rooms, shops, and the Grant Street Pier. Depart the Marriott for a scenic drive over the river and arrive at the waterfront just in time for lunch at one of the many restaurants. After dining, explore the views and shops and taste some of the Pacific Northwest’s finest wines. If you’re feeling adventurous, take a short walk to Downtown Vancouver or along one of the waterfront’s many trails. Fees cover transportation only.

Date: Saturday, January 30

Time: 1:00pm - 4:00pm

Cost: $12

Location: Oregon Historical Society

Enjoy an afternoon at the Oregon Historical Society. Participants will receive a group admission ticket to the museum. Transportation to the museum is on your own.

Date: Saturday, January 30

Time: 2:00pm - 8:30pm

Cost: $250 — Includes Dinner

Maximum: 30 participants

Location: The Kitchen at Middleground Farms, Wilsonville, Oregon

Leader: Rev. Kelly Dickson, The Shalom Collective

Join Shalom Collective for an extended evening of nourishment for your body and soul. Set aside the demands of ministry and leadership for a few hours and come to a place where you don’t have to lead, fix, produce, or be in charge. Instead, you are invited to slow down, receive, and be present.

Our time together will move through a gentle rhythm of solitude, reflection, sharing, spiritual direction, and gathering around the table.

We’ll begin with time to settle in and enter a period of guided solitude. Away from the noise and responsibilities of everyday life, you’ll have space to breathe, listen, reflect, and notice what is happening within you and where God may be meeting you in this season.

From solitude, we’ll move toward sharing and small-group spiritual direction. In a small, confidential group, participants will have the opportunity to listen deeply to one another without rushing to offer advice, solutions, or answers. Instead, we practice being fully present to one another and attentive to the movement of God.

As the afternoon gives way to evening, we’ll come around the table to prepare and share a beautiful farm-to-table meal. Cooking and eating together becomes part of the spiritual practice, an opportunity to enjoy good food, tell stories, laugh, linger, and experience the simple gift of belonging.

This is more than a meal and more than a retreat. It is an invitation to be nourished in the company of others who understand the particular joys and challenges of caring for others.

Come hungry for good food, honest connection, quiet space, and the kind of nourishment that reminds us that we are not meant to do this work alone.