Lunch with Pastors Jen and Jane
After a group visit about cross generational ministry and social justice issues and more, I had the pleasure of having lunch with Pastors Jen and Jane along with their daughter. The conversation was rich. Jane is a pastor at a United Church of Christ church nearby. A year ago, Jane applied and received the Lilly funded Clergy Renewal sabbatical grant. So, Jane, Jen and their two children went on a pilgrmage to Iona, Scotland and other places. They feel thankful for the opportunity. Parents and friends also joined them. “I still realize ways the sabbatical enriched my life, even now, these many months later,” commented Jane.
When I explained my sabbatical, they both chimed in with some ideas: -be a cultural anthropologist, when asking questions. With this attitude, you are not telling others how to believe, you are simply exploring their ideas and beliefs and taking notes. -let the experience unfold organically without forcing or rushing, for sure take time to read books you’ve been wanting to read but never have the time. Both Jane and Jen are aware of The Divine Spark. They see great value in story telling. They have both read a book called, “Good Time For the Truth.” This is in a similar format of story telling, this time the stories are of people of color living in Minnesota.
When talking about context, Jane and Jen said living in the University district of Minneapolis, they feel normal. It is a non issue that they happen to be two women married with children. Only, if they happen to venture out of the bubble, are they reminded that they better not hold hands. Outside the bubble, they may worry about the bumper stickers on their car. “We sort of live in a variety of contexts, depending on where we are geographically.”
Their words in summary were: “Of course we know there is much work to be done. The messages in the Divine Spark could save someone’s life. Keep sharing these messages.” When I heard such words of support from Jane and Jen, this made my day! Yay! Love, Nancy