Ministry in the City HUB Update, September 2026

Dear HUB friends,

Fall is here, and for us on the East coast, it’s sweater weather! It is an exciting start to the new ministry and academic year at City Seminary of New York, and we are looking forward to seeing you in various net-making gatherings in the upcoming year.

This month, we launched new and continuing learning communities (see below) and have been meeting with grantee cohorts online at our regular check-in meetings. It’s been a busy and fruitful time indeed. What a gift it has been to see and hear what God has been up to in your lives and communities!

We have a special announcement for grant opportunities coming up this fall. See below for Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for grants in three categories. Information sessions will be held in October, and applications will be due in November.

Finally, we have a brand new episode of “Light Breaking Out,” our HUB podcast featuring conversations with various members of our network! This season focuses on leaders we are working with as we build institutional capacity in our Strengthening Pastoral Formation grant-stewarding category. We’ll be featuring Dr. Jesse Sudirgo from Tyndale Seminary (Toronto). See below for more details.

Please reach out with updates so we can continue to pray for you.

Blessings on this fall start,
Maria and Mark (on behalf of the HUB team)
Highlights
Learning Communities Fall Launch
NET-MAKING
We are excited for learning communities launching this fall. We are hosting another round of HUB team-led Affinity Working Groups (AWGs) focused on Asian American and Next Generation ministry leaders (previous round featured here). These meet three times online for storytelling, relationship building, and encouragement.

We’ve also begun meeting with our inaugural cohort of HUB Women in Leadership and Ministry (WILAM). This community will meet eight times online (in the fall and spring), and in person in New York City at the 15th Annual Symposium on WILAM. It has already been a powerful time of fellowship and learning from and with each other.

Finally, we look forward to launching the Pastoral Communities of Practice in November with a gathering before our HUB Fall Convening. This is an exciting new opportunity for us to walk alongside and support pastors in community.
RFP Announcement: AWGs, CSGs, and HLGs
GRANT STEWARDING
We would like to announce three funding opportunities for this fall:

1) Affinity Working Groups (AWGs) - small groups processing a ministry question together over a season;
2) Collaborative Seed Grants (CSGs) - collaborative projects with artists and ministry organizations/churches (featured here); and
3) HUB Local Gatherings (HLGs) - neighborhood or citywide gatherings around a particular ministry-related topic or question.

Information sessions will be held online on October 7 and 15 (12:15-1 PM). RSVP to mitcHUB@cityseminaryny.org if you are interested in attending. Please indicate which date and grant categories you would like to apply for.

RFP documents with more details on eligibility and the application process can be found here.

NOTE: PLEASE do not forward these on or send a representative in your place as they are for HUB network participants only.
RSVP here
Mercy We Need
RESOURCE SHARING
At our recent Food + Fellowship, Julian David Reid shared Not Home Yet, a track from his latest album release: Mercy We Need. As we listened, we were drawn into the melodies and rhythms that pulled upon our hearts and expressed longing within our communities. Mercy We Need is a soul-stirring, eight-track project cinematically explores themes of grace, grief, and resilience. Julian will be holding two album-release shows in Chicago and New York. You can also stream this album online and learn more about his work at juliandavisreid.com
Catch the Wave - Jesse Sudirgo
STORYTELLING
We start our third season of Light Breaking Out with a focus on theological institutions and their work in urban contexts. Our first guest, Dr. Jesse Sudirgo,  professor of contextual ministry at Tyndale University in Toronto, shares about his work, connecting students with both scholars and ministry practitioners to learn what the Spirit is doing in our cities. Listen to this conversation and learn how Tyndale is responding and adapting to changes in our cities and communities. Listen to the latest episode here.

Ministry in the City HUB
City Seminary of New York
302 West 119th St, 3rd Flr
New York, NY 10026, USA

This national initiative is generously supported by Lilly Endowment, Inc.
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