A Companion for the Journey

  I sat in the blue Queen Anne’s chair (not mine) in the formal living room (not mine) of the parsonage (not mine, of course) and watched, nervously, as he took the cover off the grand upright piano (mine). He had a case of ancient-looking tools behind him on the bench, a cell phone in […]

Book Review: Blessed Are The Crazy

“Blessed are the crazy for we shall receive mercy.” – Sarah Griffith Lund If you have ever struggled with mental illness or loved someone who has, then you know that we have a cultural problem. There are many misperceptions; high-profile, violent events have become the face of mental illness. Yet most people with mental illness […]

Introducing the Board

The Young Clergy Women Project is organized by two boards — the Editorial Board and the Community Board. Together they form the Full Board, which offers vision and direction for TYCWP. Using various online meeting resources, the Editorial Board and Community Board each meet regularly throughout the year. The Full Board also meets periodically online, and once […]

Images from “Out of the Deep: Pastoring in Creative Space”

Over 70 young clergy women from all over the world gathered in Minneapolis, Minnesota just a few weeks ago for the seventh Young Clergywomen Conference.  We learned from our wonderful speaker, Rev. Ruth Harvey.  We could feel the Spirit’s presence as we worshiped and prayed together.  We offered a conference that welcomed children, as well as one […]

Four Thoughts on Incorporating Faith Into Daily Family Life (For Clergy Moms and Everyone)

There is a proverb in Spanish: “En la casa del herrero, cuchillo de palo.” It means “In the blacksmith’s house, a wooden knife.” In English we express the same idea when we say some variation of the proverb “The cobbler’s children are barefoot.” In Chinese: “The woman who sells fans uses her hands to fan […]

Introducing Ruth Harvey: Conference 2014

I’d like to introduce you all to my colleague, Ruth Harvey. Ruth is a person who stretches my mind and my soul whenever our paths cross. Back last summer when The Young Clergy Women Project’s Conference Committee met in a classroom at Vanderbilt Divinity School to dream and to imagine and to make tentative plans […]

Sometimes You Just Need to See the Love

Many of our members have excitedly jumped on board for our very first Meet-Up Week, scheduled for February 16-21, 2014.  (If you’re still looking for one to attend, the link to the map is here.) But maybe you’re hanging back, waiting to see how it goes first before jumping in.  Or maybe you’re thinking “I […]

Calling New Board Members!

Have you enjoyed reading articles by other young clergy women on Fidelia’s Sisters?  Have you gotten advice on a liturgical quandary or support during a difficult time through the Facebook group?  Have you benefitted from new learnings and side-splitting laughter at one of our conferences?  Are you excited about meeting up with other YCWs during […]

To Be Separate or Not: That Is the Question

God and the world.  Sometimes, I think we think of them as two different things.  Sometimes we can think of faith, and the presence of God, as something that happens inside a brick building for an hour (or maybe two) on a Sunday morning.  I know this because even people who long for God in […]

A Prayer for Syria… A Prayer for Peace

As I write this, the world waits to see if (or, sadly, when) the U.S. and its allies may launch some sort of military strike against the Syrian government in retaliation for the country’s use of chemical weapons last week. Indeed, the news reports and gruesome images of the ongoing violence occurring in that region have […]