PARTICIPATING IN THEOLOGICAL PRAXIS
Practicing theological reflection and engagement as part of one’s
sense of ministerial identity.
sense of ministerial identity.
My theological education has been formative and an ongoing part of my sense of ministerial identity. I graduated with my Master of Arts degree from Wartburg Theological Seminary in May of 2023. I also took Biblical Greek, which is an elective course, during my time at Wartburg. I have found that this knowledge is instrumental in biblical exegesis and unveils interpretive options for texts that are simply not present in the English language.
Demonstrating an appreciation for and participation in the ecumenical and interfaith partnerships of the UCC.
From early on, when I first entered into ministry as the Director of Youth Ministry at First Congregational United Church of Christ, I have worked in partnership with other denominations. I collaborated with Presbyterian churches and Methodist churches to plan vacation bible school every summer. This is still happening today as I collaborate with First Presbyterian Church, St. Luke's Methodist Church, Westminster Presbyterian Church and First Baptist Church for our upcoming "Creator's Camp" this summer. At first, I thought of this as a positive partnership, giving us power in numbers, more ideas and more hands on deck. Later, I learned about the movement toward a unified Christian Church from the phrase "that they may all be one." During my UCC History and Polity class, I was reminded that the UCC was founded on the premise of being a "united and uniting" church.
Over the past two years serving as an authorized lay minister and Designated Term Pastor at First Congregational United Church of Christ, I have continued those partnerships with First Presbyterian Church, St. Luke's Methodist Church, Westminster Presbyterian church and Immanuel United Church of Christ for an ecumenical "Blue Christmas" worship service and well as a Christmas morning service.
I also regularly attend a women's clergy group that consists of clergy and leaders from multiple faiths and religious traditions. We gather for charcuterie, tea and excellent conversation. I have found these gathering life giving not only intellectually, but also spiritually.
I attended Wartburg Theological Seminary which is ELCA seminary. I am one of the only students at the seminary who is not a member of the ELCA church, this has given me a great deal of knowledge about the ELCA.
Over the past several years, whenever possible, I have attended the Children of Abraham gatherings. When I was the Director of Youth Ministry, I also brought the confirmation class to these gatherings. The Children of Abraham is an interfaith community including Jewish, Christian and Muslim siblings as well as other religious and non-religious perspectives. The purpose of these gatherings is to stand with communities affected by prejudice and fear and call for continued dialog; listening and learning from one another.
Over the past two years serving as an authorized lay minister and Designated Term Pastor at First Congregational United Church of Christ, I have continued those partnerships with First Presbyterian Church, St. Luke's Methodist Church, Westminster Presbyterian church and Immanuel United Church of Christ for an ecumenical "Blue Christmas" worship service and well as a Christmas morning service.
I also regularly attend a women's clergy group that consists of clergy and leaders from multiple faiths and religious traditions. We gather for charcuterie, tea and excellent conversation. I have found these gathering life giving not only intellectually, but also spiritually.
I attended Wartburg Theological Seminary which is ELCA seminary. I am one of the only students at the seminary who is not a member of the ELCA church, this has given me a great deal of knowledge about the ELCA.
Over the past several years, whenever possible, I have attended the Children of Abraham gatherings. When I was the Director of Youth Ministry, I also brought the confirmation class to these gatherings. The Children of Abraham is an interfaith community including Jewish, Christian and Muslim siblings as well as other religious and non-religious perspectives. The purpose of these gatherings is to stand with communities affected by prejudice and fear and call for continued dialog; listening and learning from one another.
Experiencing and appreciating a variety of theological perspectives.
I have always been part of ecumenical relationships throughout my time in ministry and I value theological diversity. I believe that every person should be able to develop their own theological perspective even within the same denomination. I have really been able to experience a variety of theological perspectives through a beer and theology group that meets weekly. This group contained a wide variety of theological perspectives including: ELCA, Greek Orthodox, Evangelical Christians and myself as the lone member of the UCC. . Beer and theology takes place in the backroom of the Europa Haus, which is a time capsule, Bavarian Style restaurant full of eclectic German decor: taxidermy, steins and antique weaponry to name a few! It is the perfect place for lively discussion based on various theological perspectives. I believe that discussions like this are very important in order to keep faith communities challenged and not stuck in dogmatic beliefs systems that stifle the creative work of the Holy Spirit.