by Colleen EM Maillie When I accepted my first (and current) call, I was intentional in looking for congregation that had time and space carved out for children during the week. To put it bluntly, I was look for on-site childcare for the future, hopefully at a reduced (if not free) price for future dream [...]
Pastor/Poet
by Jenn Moland-Kovash Collection Deep purple, nearly black splotchesMottle her arms and hands:She laughs and tells me it took the nursesNine tries before getting the needleRight in her small, wobbly veins.She remembers when her doctortook two samples from her husbandinstead of trying to get one from her. She’s amused by her veins.The stories make me [...]
Christmas in July
by MaryAnn McKibben Dana Editor's Note: In the spirit of using the slower summer months to plan ahead, this month, Sunday Morning and Beyond offers two choral readings for an Advent or Christmas Lessons and Carols service. During this year's Advent Lessons and Carols service, most of the readings will be straightforward. I’m working with [...]
On Removing the “Y” From “YCW”
by MaryAnn McKibben Dana A couple of years ago, I applied to be a commissioner to our denomination’s General Assembly. After glancing at the essay questions, I went back to the top of the form to fill out the easy stuff: Name… Address… Phone… Email… Gender… Ethnicity… Age… The “Age” line had several ranges to [...]
Stuck in the Middle with You
by Name Withheld I am a single rev. At least I think am. At least for now. And for a while to come. I think. I am falling into that “liminal space” (thank you seminary vocabulary) that comes between single-but-dating and single-but-engaged. For some couples, this space is short, maybe only a minute or two, [...]
The Discipline of Living Sacramentally
by Mihee Kim-Kort Sometime during college I came across Richard Foster’s Devotional Classics –- a neat collection of writings that focus on various spiritual disciplines. It was a welcome change in pace from the Max Lucado and Phillip Yancey books I had devoured during this time as I sought to articulate some kind of theology for [...]
“Always Say ‘Yes’” and Other Truths from Bossypants
by Sarah Kinney-Gaventa Full disclosure: When Tina Fey was hosting Weekend Update in the early oughts, I rocked a pair of tortoiseshell glasses, mostly because my boyfriend at the time had a giant crush on her. But also because here was a woman so funny and relatable that I both idolized her and was pretty [...]