wise words

A pastor friend of mine told me on Sunday, "Sabbath is what happens when you realize that your work will still be there and the world will be just fine if you rest."

Amen.

Big Fork, MT
A. Hanson 2008

I'm not really a feminist

I am not really a feminist any more.  In College, when I was working on my gender studies program, I became kind of an obnoxious feminist.  To the point where I would shut down any man who attempted to  have a conversation about women's issues.  I remember getting into a bit of an argument with a guy that I worked with at camp about my t-shirt that said, "This is What a Feminist Looks Like."  I was really, really difficult to deal with and be around.  In some ways, I was shooting myself in the foot with my militant feminism.  I guess I kind of grew out of that and realized that is was profoundly unhelpful when attempting to engage in conversation with other human beings who don't happen to populate gender studies programs.    I do not want to be marginalized on the basis of my gender, but I also do not want to be offered opportunities for advancement solely based on my gender.  I would rather be recognized for my gifts and what I have to offer.

However, now as I am preparing for ordained ministry a few years down the road, the issue of what women can/should/might do in the church has come up over the last couple months.  There is a TON of vitriol about how women should not be ordained pastors.  I am blessed to be a part of a denomination that values the contributions of women in ministry and has been ordaining women for 42 years.  But there are some subtle and not-so-subtle obstacles for women who are called to be pastors.  I am not demanding that everyone listen to militant feminism but rather, that we can all meet in the middle and have a conversation.  I do not want to be defined as "the lady pastor" I want to serve and use my gifts and best support and lead my congregation in whatever way I can.  I am just interested in supporting people on their journey of faith and using my life to point to Christ.

So I am not a feminist and I will likely never march for women's rights and frankly just not interested in solidarity and girl power and all that jazz.  I am just someone who wants  to do what I am called to do and if I am shutting down people because they do not agree with me or are not sufficiently liberal or feminist or progressive, I just can't do that.

That being said...my wild and rampant snarkiness has gotten me into trouble before, so hopefully this will not be taken the wrong way.  But it is pretty funny and completely a joke.
 (credit to www.christianfeminism.wordpress.com)

Why Men Shouldn't be Ordained

File this one away for future reference

Credit www.psychotherapynetworker.org 

Another edition of things that are ridiculous and in the news

1. Classy behavior in Colombia on the part of secret service agents...

Secret Service Scandal

2. I think helmets for crawling babies might be taking it just a little too far...

Completely over the top parenting

3. The 2012 Republican Primary has been exhausting to watch.

A tribute to the 2012 Republican primary

Ministry vs. Academia

I am taking some pretty academic and reading heavy classes this quarter, that are filled with PhD students.  In my Comparative Religious Pilgrimage class last week one of the PhD students remarked (in reference to an article about pilgrimage vs. tourism):

"I find myself really bothered by the fact that there is not a clear system for defining what makes a pilgrimage a pilgrimage.  I need to have a concrete way of explaining this."


And I found myself thinking, "I have never once had that thought.  That is so far removed from what I consider to be important."  Wherein lies the difference between students who are preparing for ministry at seminary and those who are preparing for academia.  I feel like I am sometimes floating above the academic work, trying to put the pieces together and why they matter for my ministry later.

 Learning about Hindu death rituals and pilgrimage is interesting, but what matters to me is looking at the motivations for pilgrimage, what that means for my congregations at a later date.  It can be kind of exhausting to continue to hold the concept of what this all means, but it does matter.

I think that pilgrimage is a universal for meaning-making in religion.  It is less important for Christians, particularly in a post-modern context, because our religious expression has God present in everything, everywhere.  It is not necessarily mandated by our religious institutions that we journey to a certain geographic location (for example, like the hajj), but we often do so in order to feel closer to God.  I think this is the take-away for a future minister from this class.

What does pilgrimage mean for Christians?

What can we as Christians learn from the pilgrimages of other religious traditions?

How can Christians nurture their own relationship with God and in community through pilgrimage?

If something is not mandated, why do it?  What might we have to gain?