by Kate Smanik Moyes From its conception, I have loved the idea of a “Holy Ghost Grab Bag”. There is something incredibly appealing to me about the idea that we have a place to highlight God’s unexpected presence in our lives. However, as I pondered the concept I always imagined that the story of the [...]
When a Single Rev Opts to Adopt
Interview of the Rev. Joyce Borger by the Rev. Sarah Kinney Gaventa For some young clergy women, the call to motherhood may not come as they expect. As children they may have dreamed of getting married and having kids, but as they grew older, circumstances did not line up with their original vision, and they [...]
Christ & Creativity
July 22, 2008 byThe View from Your Ministry
by MaryAnn McKibben Dana Announcing the first (and perhaps only) Christ and Creativity Photo Exhibition! Get those cameras (and camera phones) ready… whether you consider yourself a photographer or not, we want to hear from you. Andrew Sullivan, a blogger for the Atlantic Monthly, has a feature called "The View from Your Window," in which [...]
Finding Church
by Elsa A. Peters “It’s just too hard. I don’t know what to do,” my stepmother confessed. There was silence on our phone connection, which granted me enough time to put on my pastor hat, even if I was reluctant to adorn this accessory with my family members. It didn’t matter though. I was going [...]
Book Review: Those Preaching Women: A Multicultural Collection
by Ann Bonner-Stewart I don’t normally read sermon collections much, having experienced them as peculiar, self-indulgent, and disjointed. In my mind, sermons are oral events that God brings to life somewhere and somehow in the space between the preacher, Scripture, and the congregation. I had relegated written sermons to be like my incredibly beautiful and [...]
Looking Over My Shoulder
by Maria Bergius Krämer When I was in seminary, and ordination loomed ahead, we, the young soon-to-be-clergy women, often discussed what to wear underneath our cassocks. I guess we were scared. I guess we saw our whole future ahead of us as very respectable members of society, and we were panicking. In any case, we [...]
Counseling and the Single Girl
by Stacey Midge I still remember the first crisis I faced as a pastor, when I was really just a seminary intern. I can still feel the terror that swept over me as I thought of all the ways I could fail. I can still taste the bile of inadequacy that came as I realized [...]
Hard to Negotiate
by Carol Howard Merritt Along with Advent comes salary-negotiating time here in the Merritt house, my least favorite part of the year. Honestly, I hate it. I wish that everyone just got paid from the Local Governing Body (LGB). You know, a socialized system where everyone is given as they have need. I wish that [...]
Summer Time in Corinth
The God of the Wilderness calls to me during the summer. She is a beckoning God. She wants me to abandon all responsibility to praise her radiant glory. She is determined to spoil me with a golden glow and abundant warmth. Alas, she can only distract me from my office window. She is still calling – but so is the [...]