In our last Episode 83, Pete and I talked about why ministers need to study culture. He gave us two reasons: People come to seminary shaped and formed by culture innately — largely unawares. Reflexivity is that significance of learning…
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The first time I met Pete Ward in person we had a theological argument. We also had drinks and some laughs in a mutual friend’s living room. As I recall, Mary McClintock Fulkerson and I might have teamed up against…
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Chaplaincy Jennifer Hundley Batts Thomas sat down with me in the late spring to talk about ethical wills. She helped me to share with my students in the Death, Dying, and Bereavement course at Union Theological Seminary about the significance…
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This week we are sharing our final conversation with Rev. Alisha Smith Haddock. What a joy to speak with her this month about her calling to do justice work and her many collaborations to rebuild North Nashville after the March…
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This week we are going deeper into our conversation with Rev. Alisha Smith Haddock. She is helping us see how multiple factors are impacting the community of North Nashville. Back in March, Nashville was hit hard by tornados that ripped…
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“I knew early on I was called to this work.” -Rev. Alisha Smith Haddock Called to ministry Vocational calling comes in all different sizes, shapes and forms. Traditional congregational ministry, in spite of what people think, is not the only…
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LOn Sunday afternoon I hosted a conversation on Zoom with friends from my childhood church. Together we were remembering one of our friends, a fellow youth group member, who died earlier this summer. It was good to be with each…
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This summer has been one of the hardest on record. What a gift to have the wisdom, insights, and pastoral presence of Rev. Dr. Stephanie Crumpton to guide and inspire us! This week, Dr. Crumpton, who is associate professor at …
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This week we continue our conversation with Dr. Stephanie Crumpton about caring for girls and women who have experienced violence. Earlier we talked about the complexity and intentionality of care, particularly for Black women and girls. Our focus today is…
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Pandemic. Protest. Parenting. Pedagogy. Pastoring. Whew! This is probably the strangest and most demanding summer in living memory for most of us! We are challenged in new ways. We are facing demands at every turn. And we are trying to…
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