Happening

HAPPENING of RI is a once in a lifetime experience for any teen in grades 10 - 12. An encounter with Christ, a real meeting between you and God. It's exciting, fun, full of joy and you are invited! It’s a weekend to experience God’s love in a very special way!

What is "Happening - A Christian Experience"?

Happening is a Christian experience presented by teenagers for teenagers with the help of clergy and lay adult leadership.

The purpose of the Happening - A Christian Experience program is to be one of the instruments within the Anglican Tradition to renew the Christian Church in the power of the Holy Spirit, in order that the Church may respond more readily to its call to spread the Kingdom of God throughout the world.

Happening - A Christian Experience seeks to achieve this purpose by bringing young persons and adults to a fuller personal knowledge of and relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, and to a deeper level of commitment and apostleship.

- from Standards and Guidelines for conducting the weekend

What can I expect at a Happening weekend?

During the Happening weekend (usually beginning Friday evening and continuing through Sunday afternoon) there are activities designed for fun and Christian community building among participants.

Throughout the weekend a series of talks are presented by youth and clergy to logically present the elements that define a mature profession of faith and the catechism process. The presentation of key talks by youth using personal life experiences is intended to offer Christ's message to attending Happeners on a level they can understand, and to answer many of the faith questions youth struggle with daily. Talks about church teachings and their importance in the lives of youth attending the weekend are presented by clergy in a fair and friendly manner. Each talk is a critical building block in the creation of the Happening message. The entire series of talks is given in a sequence that is intended to guide Happeners by opening an avenue of discussions to help them verbalize and internalize their faith questions in a safe environment and hopefully lead to a renewed or new relationship with Christ.

Caritas, or signs of God's love through letters, messages and small tokens are distributed at times over the weekend to deepen fellowship, and to demonstrate the knowledge and support that comes to each weekend from the "wider church."

-- From the National Happening Website

When is Happening Happening?

For more information and a calendar of upcoming events browse the Christian Formation Catalog below. You can also visit the Happening RI facebook group to meet real life happeners.