2026 Plenary Recap
The 2026 Plenary is over, but the work is just beginning.
As we gathered to close our conference on Wednesday, I was struck by how much we held together — how much we dared to feel, question, celebrate, and grieve. Mary Oliver once wrote, “We shake with joy, we shake with grief. What a time they have, these two, housed as they are in the same body.” It feels like she could have been describing this very gathering.
We began with the extraordinary presence of Dr. Dykstra, whose teaching invited us to sit with the truths we’ve left unexamined, unsaid, uninvited. We learned more about Boisen, Freud, Nouwen, James, and certainly ourselves. Dykstra’s voice was a steadying and provocative companion throughout our time together last week.
The Chapter Life podcast opened another door, sparking conversations that were rich, textured, and deeply honest. It reminded us that our chapters are not merely structures; they are living communities where covenant is practiced, tested, and renewed. Together we brainstormed what to do with this reawakening of the chapter’s essence. I trust this conversation will continue and I look forward to the renewal process.
Our workshops — offered with such generosity by Asnel, Francine, Noel, Esteban, Jacob and Craig, George and Brian — deepened our craft. They called us to be more attentive, more embodied, more courageous in the work of pastoral care and psychotherapy.
We celebrated the remarkable work of Craig, whose rollout of our new website marks a new chapter for CPSP — one that is accessible, functional, and aligned with who we are becoming.
We gathered in small groups, where so much of the real work happened. In those circles, presence, truth-telling, and thoughtful challenges were shared. New insight was offered; our practices made richer and deeper by the voices of each other.
We honored Perry Miller with the Founders Award — a moment that felt like gratitude and blessing. Perry’s life and leadership continue to shape the soul of this community, and honoring him that last night was a joy.
We celebrated our newly certified clinicians, whose formation marks a milestone not only for them but for the communities they will serve. And we rejoiced with our D.Min graduates, whose scholarship strengthens our collective voice and deepens our shared wisdom.
And woven through all of this — sometimes spoken aloud, sometimes held quietly — was grief. We made room for it. We honored its many forms. We midwifed one another through the stages we are in, trusting that grief and joy are not opposites but companions, “housed as they are in the same body.”
We also had fun. We shared in a wonderful hospitality room, thanks to Ken Waddell. We sang music together because Jacob George brought his guitar, like he always does. We ate meals together. We made new friends and reconnected with old ones. We laughed. It was just so wonderful to be with one another.
This is the heart of our psychotherapeutic tradition: the belief that healing happens in relationship, in presence, and in the courage to sit with what is real. We practiced that last week. We lived it.
May the work we did at Plenary 2026 ripple outward into our chapters, work settings, and our homes. And may we continue to be, for one another and for those we serve, companions on the long journey toward the recovery of soul.
Thank you for your presence, your courage, your labor, and your love for this community.
Rev. Dr. Rachel Greiner, BCC
Diplomate Supervisor
CPSP President
