For a D.Min. degree, the candidate submits what is called a “final project” rather than a dissertation. For some candidates there is very little difference between the two–the final project looks much like a dissertation except that it is different in methodology and in tone. It is based in practice rather than in scientific methodology. […]
Posts in the theology category:
when forgiveness matters most
One of the greatest temptations when working through trauma–or any kind of situation involving hurt–is to hold on to anger as if it is my right to feel it. I have even read comments from some people via books and articles that it isn’t necessary to forgive the person who hurt you. After all, the […]
Why I Stayed
Today, while browsing Facebook, I ran across an article: 10 Reasons Kids Leave Church. Every point resonated deeply with me. Kids leaving church is not a new problem, though every generation likes to talk about it like it is a fresh problem that must be solved immediately. As a child of the 70s and 80s […]
biblical studies, chronic illness, disability awareness, disability studies, healing narratives, ministry, prayer, theology
musings on the healing narratives
If a doctor can treat an illness, then why do we need Jesus? Perhaps it is a question worth asking. Is it just a matter of making a statement, of rejecting the world’s system for the Christian one? Or is there really a situation where a miracle can happen? Sometimes, it is both. It is […]
Remember
Sometimes, even with the best of intentions, I have difficulty remembering to make my medical appointments. My husband has been reminding me all week that I have an appointment to make. Sometimes I have asked him to please remind me during the day–after all, I cannot make the appointment in the late evening. Sometimes, during […]
why I don’t say happy birthday Jesus
As I grow older, I become increasingly irritable when I see so much Americanization and dumbing down of holy things. My parents laugh when I express these signs of my age. But I hope that some of my general disquiet might be worth taking seriously. The current object of my disquiet is the phrase, “Happy […]
thinking about prayer
Sometimes I feel guilty for identifying with songs that have nothing to do with what I pray about personally… But at other times I realize that this is what we do when we come together in worship. It is especially true when we come together in large groups that we don’t know all of the […]
women and college
I have a very firm policy regarding theology: I cannot argue against it if I haven’t first read it with an open mind. It is with that policy that I read a blog post entitled 6 Reasons Not to Send Your Daughter to College. I must admit up front that I have biases. I am […]
what takes courage
Yesterday in church, we spent a couple of moments discussing with people near us a moment when we did something that required courage. The people near me all said that they thought I need courage every day just to get out of the house. After all, I could choose not to leave the house. I […]
where joy and sorrow meet
There is a stone in my purse–a round, smooth stone. I received it on June 10, 2007, when I attended the last service in the old North Anderson Church of God building with my new dog guide, Loretta. Every once in a while, I take the stone out and hold it and remember the truth […]
the dark cloud of limitations
Several years ago, I participated in a guided dialogue via email with a group of people with disabilities. One of our earliest assignments was to describe ourselves in terms of our limitations. Our facilitator said that typically people have difficulty with this assignment; and throughout the time that I knew him, he maintained that he […]
disability studies, touch, and theology
I recently read an article in which the author relates an experience in which a male priest makes the sign of the cross on her forehead as he passes her while leaving her niece’s confirmation service. She is offended in part because a man touched her without her permission and in part because she is […]
thoughts on theology and the uncured body
I live in tension with many aspects of theology, but perhaps none more than prayer and healing. There is something in me that clings to health and will take advantage of every mechanism to obtain it. I have learned to temper this, to make reasonable decisions and not reach for just anything that promises health […]
wondrous things
I had an MRI recently which revealed that I have “shrinkage of both globes (aka the eyes). The MRI was done in order to evaluate potential causes of chronic headaches. The internnist does not believe the eye problem is responsible for the headaches; however, as a person who lives with a condition that often results […]
What are we singing?
It has become fashionable to rewrite the words to songs so that they are gender inclusive or otherwise politically correct. Sometimes this has a fairly neutral effect. Sometimes it destroys a song’s theological meaning; and sometimes it is quite powerful. As a songwriter and a minister, and also as a person who is a member […]
communion: a communal worship experience
In a href=”https://amzn.to/3xa29yA” target=”_blank”>Exploring the Worship Spectrum, Sally Morgenthaler makes the statement that “The celebration of the Eucharist is not simply a private participation in God’s saving work through Jesus Christ; it is an intensely horizontal, bonding, communal rite.” (p. 51) My church shares communion at least once a month; and I often ponder the […]
sound worship
Sound ministry… I am not talking about ministry based on sound biblical principles, though I certainly think this is important. I am talking about the ministry that occurs through your church’s sound technicians. If you send recordings to people who are homebound, offer them at a nominal cost to people who missed the service, or […]
disability studies and the seminary curriculum
During my seminary years, I read a lot (on my own time) about various topics in disability and theology. Some of my reading concerned the need to address disability issues in the seminary curriculum. I am completely in agreement with this. For a time, I considered pursuing a second Master’s degree in disability studies in […]
Does it matter what we sing?
Because I am blind, I have spent a great deal of my worship time unable to participate fully. Unless I know the words by heart or have a braille copy of the lyrics, I am unable to sing along with the congregation. This has several implications for me and for the people around me. I […]
speaking of worship
The encounter with Christ begins with an awareness of the application of the death and resurrection of Jesus to our personal circumstances, sin and shame. Our response to that encounter moves us into the community of the people of God. We become a people of God, one people with a shared heritage, when we celebrate […]
about the call to ministry
Recently a seminary student asked me how I hear God and how I know what I am called to do. I wasn’t surprised by these questions. Many seminary classes open at the beginning of the semester with times of introduction when students share their sense of their call to ministry. In other words, they share […]
meditation on a hymn
Come Thou Fount of every blessing Tune my heart to sing Thy grace; Streams of mercy, never ceasing, Call for songs of loudest praise Teach me some melodious sonnet, Sung by flaming tongues above. Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it, Mount of Thy unchanging love. Here I raise mine Ebenezer; Hither by Thy help […]
holy places
Holy places… I think of these as “places that are holy.” In Hebrew the phrase would be translated literally, “places of the holy.” This implies a slightly different meaning. The place itself is not holy. It is a place where the holy is encountered. Without God’s presence, or without the interaction between God and person, […]
It Is Well
Hebrew… The gift that keeps on giving… I love it when that happens! Last week in church, we sang “It Is Well”–all three verses. Singing “My sin, not in part but the whole / Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,” I was deeply moved and thought back to my discussion […]
transgressions
Today in Hebrew, we read in Gen. 50 where Joseph’s brothers tell him that God commands him to “lift up the transgression of your brothers.” I mistranslated it; and this led my professor and me into a discussion of the fact that sacrifices could be offered for sins but not for transgressions (rebellions). The only […]
Through
When I saw what lay before me, “Lord,” I cried, “what will I do?” I thought He would just remove it, but He gently led me through. Without fire there’s no refining; without pain, no relief. Without flood there’s no rescue; without testing, no belief. –Gloria Gaither, “Through” This song always tears me up when […]
image of God
In my Sunday school class, we are discussing [[[The Shack]]]. Someone asked me about my image of God, whether I thought of God as male and white. This is an intriguing question for me. When I was growing up, I experienced audible voices when I had my own thoughts and also when I prayed and […]