Lilly Endowment, an Indianapolis-based, private philanthropic foundation, seeks to strengthen Christian congregations by providing an opportunity for pastors to step away briefly from the persistent obligations of daily parish life and to engage in a period of renewal and reflection. Renewal periods are not vacations, but times for intentional exploration and reflection, for drinking again from God's life-giving waters, for regaining enthusiasm and creativity for ministry.
In the 2012 National Clergy Renewal Program, the Endowment anticipates awarding as many as 150 grants of up to $50,000 each directly to Christian congregations for the support of a renewal program for their pastor. Up to $15,000 of the grant may be used for congregational expenses associated with the renewal program. Deadline for submission of proposals is May 11, 2012. Notification of grant awards will be made in September 2012.
A full description of this grants program, together with information on how to apply, is available by clicking the Application Guidelines link below.
2012 Application Guidelines (Full color version)
2012 Application Guidelines (Printer friendly version)
The following downloadable application form may be filled in and saved as a Word document on your computer. To save this form, click on "Application Form" and click "Save."
Application Form (MS Word Document)
The following documents contain helpful information, tips and examples for preparing proposals for submission to this program. Anyone choosing to prepare and submit a proposal in this program should access and download this information by clicking on the links below.
What makes a high-quality proposal? (Adobe PDF Document)
Grace Notes (Adobe PDF Document)
2011 Grant Recipients (Adobe PDF Document)
2010 Grant Recipients (Adobe PDF Document)
