Gatherings

Section 1: Purpose of Gatherings

Gatherings are occasions through which members and participants of Thronos come together for prayer, worship, learning, fellowship, reflection, conversation, and other forms of shared participation.

Gatherings provide a rhythm through which the community may come together beyond individual Projects, Spaces, and personal activities.

They may take place physically, digitally, or through other forms established by Thronos.

Section 2: Christian Character

Because Thronos is founded upon the Christian faith, gatherings may include distinctly Christian practices and activities.

These may include:

prayer;

worship;

reading and study of Scripture;

teaching;

fellowship;

reflection;

testimony;

discussion;

and service.

The particular form of a Gathering may differ according to its purpose.

Not every Gathering must contain every element, but Gatherings conducted as Christian activities of Thronos shall remain consistent with the Christian foundation established in this Constitution.

Section 3: Gethsemane

Gethsemane (“Your will, not ours.”) is a Gathering of Thronos centered upon surrender to the will of God.

It reflects the posture of Jesus Christ in Gethsemane: that human desire, ambition, plans, and intentions must ultimately remain subject to the will of God.

Gethsemane may therefore involve prayer, worship, Scripture, reflection, confession, thanksgiving, and the consideration of the purposes and responsibilities entrusted to us.

It is not intended merely as a planning session for what we wish to accomplish, but as a reminder that what we desire to build must remain submitted to the One to whom we belong.

Section 4: Worship and Prayer

Thronos recognizes prayer and worship as important expressions of its Christian foundation.

Gatherings may provide opportunities for members to seek God together, give thanks, ask for wisdom, intercede for others, and surrender their plans and ambitions to God.

Participation in prayer or worship shall not be used as a means of manipulating, coercing, humiliating, or controlling another person.

Section 5: Scripture and Teaching

Gatherings may be used to study, teach, discuss, and reflect upon the Holy Scriptures.

Teaching presented as the teaching of Thronos shall remain subject to the Christian foundation and Scriptural commitments established by this Constitution.

Participants may ask questions and engage in good-faith disagreement.

Questions and disagreement shall not by themselves be treated as disloyalty or misconduct.

Section 6: Fellowship and Reflection

Gatherings are not intended solely for instruction or productivity.

They may also provide opportunities for people to meet one another, share experiences, encourage one another, talk, listen, reflect, rest, and simply be together.

The value of a Gathering is therefore not measured solely by the amount of information transmitted or work accomplished.

Community itself is part of the purpose.

Section 7: Participation

Gatherings may be open to the wider Thronos community or limited to particular members, Spaces, Projects, programmes, or invited participants.

Where a Gathering requires limited capacity or preparation, Thronos may establish an RSVP or registration process.

Participation in a Gathering does not create an obligation to participate in any other Thronos activity.

Section 8: Gatherings and the Local Church

Thronos gatherings are not intended to replace the local church.

Thronos recognizes the distinct role of the local church in Christian worship, discipleship, pastoral care, sacramental life, and the life of the Christian community.

Thronos may provide opportunities for prayer, worship, teaching, fellowship, and spiritual formation, but participation in Thronos does not constitute membership in a local church.

Members are encouraged to maintain healthy relationships with the local church and other Christian communities to which they belong.

Section 9: Conduct at Gatherings

The Community Guidelines apply to all Thronos Gatherings.

Participants are expected to conduct themselves with respect, humility, honesty, and consideration for others.

Gatherings should provide room for serious discussion, sincere questions, disagreement, joy, silence, prayer, and reflection without permitting harassment, manipulation, disruption, or abuse.

Leaders and facilitators of Gatherings are responsible for maintaining an environment consistent with the purpose of the Gathering and the standards of Thronos.

Section 10: The Rhythm of Gathering

Thronos believes that a community becomes a community partly by gathering together.

Projects give people places to build.

Spaces give people places to gather around that work.

Gatherings give the wider community occasions to come together simply as people.

Through these rhythms, Thronos seeks to cultivate a community that does not merely coordinate activity, but shares life.

Section 11: The Purpose of Gathering

The purpose of Thronos Gatherings is not merely to produce events.

They exist to create occasions in which people can pray, worship, learn, reflect, fellowship, encourage one another, and remember what the community is ultimately for.

We gather to build one another up, to seek God together, and to return to our work with clearer hearts and renewed purpose.