Oh, facebook quizzes. I normally have avoided them, but they seem to be very mindless when I have needed something to do to clear my mind for under what it would take me to watch an episode of "Sex and the City" or "Buffy" when I need to keep going. Its funny what some of these things can say about a person, and I am always fascinated by what people choose to put on their facebook walls. And well, there are many ways I am not too surprised, but there might be a result or two that I find pretty laughable. Maybe in the long hall, I like writing better as I can interact with this kind of material more in my own way. However, for something like facebook its fun that i can leave people guessing a little bit as to which ones of these are merely to distract my mind and which ones are pretty accurate. Yet anyone who has been following this blog might not be too surprised at some of the results I have had. I thought it would be fun to share these with you all:
Betsy completed the quiz "Are You A Fundamentalist?" with the result Liberal.
You are a liberal. You don't really believe anything except that God is love. The Bible is not really inspired, but is a cool book for stories. You think the Gospel is making sure that people have personal freedom to find their own way. Non-Christians like to be around you, but Christians think you are going to corrupt everything..
Betsy completed the quiz "The Political Idealogy Quiz" with the result Very Liberal.
You are very liberal. You are about as far left as you can be before heading into Stalin's backyard..
Betsy completed the quiz "Which 60's subculture would you belong to?" with the result HIPPIE.
Free Love! You belong to the Hippies. You likely hang out in the Haight and your friends are the Diggers and the Brotherhood of Eternal Love. Your motto is: Turn On, Tune In and Drop Out. Your heroes are people like Timothy Leary and Stephen Gaskin..
Betsy completed the quiz "Which book character are you?" with the result Jonas, The Giver.
You are the reciever! You like to learn new things and you are different from the others around you! You have a very senstivie personality and you care for people a lot! You are very modest and helping people is very important. You probably do some volunteer work in your free time and people appreciate what you are doing. You are very determined and heroic..
Betsy completed the quiz "What Disney Movie Song are You?" with the result "Colors of the Wind" from Pocahontas.
You are a creative person. You are a free spirit..
You Are New York
Source: www.blogthings.com
Cosmopolitan and sophisticated, you enjoy the best in food, art, and culture. You also appreciate a good amount of grit - and very little shocks you. You're competitive, driven, and very likely to succeed. Famous people from New York: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Tupac Shakur, Woody Allen
You Belong in London
Source: www.blogthings.com
A little old fashioned, and a little modern. A little traditional, and a little bit punk rock. A unique soul like you needs a city that offers everything. No wonder you and London will get along so well.
Betsy just took the Who Were You In A Past Life? quiz and got the result: Pablo Picasso..
Pablo Picasso: In your past life you were Pablo Picasso. In this life you continue to be revolutionary, stubborn, an active lover, enjoy breaking the rules, and reactly poorly to heartbreak.
Betsy took the Which San Francisco Neighborhood do you belong in? quiz and the result is You belong in SOMA!
Perhaps you are one of the people that did well during the dot-com boom. You are highly likely to own your residence - perhaps it's a small loft near the ballpark, but that baby is YOURS. You are familiar with all the super trendy restaurants South of Market, you might have a dog, jogging down the Embarcadero is a weekly (if not daily) ritual, and you know what the season schedule at the Ballpark it directly affects you.
Betsy completed the quiz "What breed of dog are you?" with the result Basset Hound.
The breed that best describes you is the Basset Hound. You are sweet and gentle. You are peaceful and enjoy relaxing often. You are a friendly person who enjoys being around others. You are a mild and calm and prefer to work things out rather than argue. You are often the person who will discourage a fight and calm someone down who is angry or upset. .
Betsy completed the quiz "Which Early Christian Heretic are you?" with the result Marcellus of Ancyra.
Marcellus of Ancyra (? - c. 374 C.E.) was one of the bishops present at the Councils of Ancyra and of Nicaea. He was a strong opponent of Arianism, but was accused of adopting the opposite extreme of modified Sabellianism. He was condemned by a council of his enemies and expelled from his see, though he was able to return there to live quietly with a small congregation in the last years of his life. He was accused of maintaining that the Trinity of persons in the Godhead was but a transitory dispensation. According to the surviving fragments, God was originally only One Being (hypostasis), but at the creation of the universe the Word or Logos went out from the Father and was God's Activity in the world. This Logos became incarnate in Christ and was thus constituted Image of God. The Holy Ghost likewise went forth as third Divine Personality from the Father and from Christ according to John 20:22. At the consummation of all things, however, Christ will return to the Father and the Godhead be again an absolute Unity..
Betsy completed the quiz "What Literary Time Period Are You?" with the result Medieval Period.
You resemble Chaucer, Dante, and several anonymous writers of epics. You're often read as conservative, as religious, as quaint and old-fashioned -- but you know better! Even on pilgrimages, you tell stories about chivalrous tournaments and fart jokes; your hell is cooler than your heaven, and your mystery plays double as sitcoms; and while purists quibble over the correct spelling of "judgment," you drop Latin, Greek, French, German, and more into your language, wholesale. Good job, Medieval Period! You are eormenþéod..
Betsy completed the quiz "What do your eyes say?" with the result Deep Thinker
You think deeply about things going on in the present, past, and sometimes even future. You often drift off during work or class and start thinking about other things. You always hide what your thoughts form your friends and it often takes a poke or a snap of the fingers to bring you back to reality. Your eyes often portray a different personality than you are. Your eyes are a different part of your soul..
Betsy completed the quiz "THE INNER NATIONALITY QUIZ: WHAT ARE YOU REALLY?" with the result You are German..
You are precise yet romantic, efficient yet dreamy, friendly yet somewhat suspicious of others. You rarely smile, but when you do it's very meaningful. You like it best when there is a group consensus, and yet you are easily annoyed by the slowness and/or stupidity of others. Sometimes you think that if only you could live on an island or move to some wonderful place far away where things are different, everything would be better, and if you can't realize this dream you often lose yourself in books/vacations/recipes/sports -- anything for an escape! All in all, however, you make your peace with life, and have many old friends. .
Betsy completed the quiz "Which Shakespearean Character Would You Be?" with the result Viola.
You are Viola, the disguised young lover who rightly claims, "I am not what I am." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Alone in unfamiliar territory, believing all is lost, you are not the kind to give up...even if it means disguising yourself as the oppposite sex...even if it means taking a job wooing your own rival for the one you love. Witty and intelligent, you sorely feel the irony of your situation, but your honor compels you to carry through. Will true love conquer all? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shakespearean kindred spirits: Rosalind (As You Like It), Portia (the Merchant of Venice), Imogen, Perdita, Antipholus of Syracuse, Romeo, Juliet, Hamlet .
Betsy completed the quiz "Which decade are you?" with the result 1940s Glamorous Revolutionary.
You are quite the glamorous revolutionary! You have a sense of pride in everything that you take on, whether it's filling in to do a man's job during wartime or raise your daughters to step up to the challenge of helping to establish women's rights, you take things head on! You are a hard worker and are always looking out for others. Your style centers around clean lines and timeless designs. Women in the 40s had the same sense of pride in their bodies and dressed in a way that accentuated their figures! You are not one to stand by and let things happen to you, you go after what you want and you are respected and admired for it! .
Betsy took the What kind of historian are you? quiz and the result is Gender Historian
Learning about the past through facts and quantative data is all very well, but for you, like Catherine Hall, or Leonore Davidoff, the real stuff of history is to be found in relationships, and where better to start than the fundamental social relation: the battle of the sexes? Women have been written out of 'HIS-story' for centuries, and gender historians, following on from their polemicist predecessors, the feminist historians, attempt to balance the scales by stressing the importance of the relationship between the sexes, and how the one cannot be defined by the other. This is important work, but recently, many gender historians have taken a new direction in their work, choosing to embrace the tenets of post-structuralism in order to problematise the concept of gender as pre-set, choosing to present it instead as fluid and culturally defined. Have a look at the work of Judith Butler if you want to explore new concepts.
Betsy took the What State should i live in? quiz and the result is Florida
You like the sun all the time with slight rain you like the beach but not much monuments
Betsy completed the quiz "Which 80s movie defines you?" with the result Princess Bride.
It's as real as the feelings you feel. Take the quiz!
Betsy took Who Is Your Soulmate? quiz and the result is Belongs With Someone With Class
Your future lover should be someone with class. You belong with someone polite and never afraid to admit their mistakes. They will help you see the good in life and appreciate everything.
Which Buffy the Vampire Slayer Character Are You?
Buffy
You are a loyal person with tragic circumstances, but yet you still remain strong for others, a leader. In older times you would be known as a knight.
Which Sex and the City Character are You?
Carrie
You're quirky, witty, and every guy's perfect first date.
Betsy just took the "Which Desperate Housewife are you?" quiz and the result is Bree Van de Kamp Hodge.
Bree Van de Kamp Hodge may very well be suffering from obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, the character herself refers to her “quirks” in terms of anal retentiveness and not obsessive-compulsiveness. Bree is known for her cooking, cleaning, ironing, gardening, doing her lawn, and reupholstering her own furniture, on the level of Martha Stewart. She is also known for making gourmet meals and breakfast treats, including her pineapple bran muffins. Besides being a dedicated homemaker, she also is well-versed in regards to firearm training: she owns four guns and is a card-carrying member of the National Rifle Association.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Newsweek Article on Abortion
Here is an article on language, politics and abortion that I recently read. I think that the ideas are helpful in considering the perspective that I am struggling to find on homosexuality:
http://www.newsweek.com/id/194637
http://www.newsweek.com/id/194637
Reconciling In Christ
Its official: My seminary is now a reconciling in Christ seminary!
I do endorse a theology that struggles with viewing erotic love of any kind as sinful. I am an advocate for making sure that people feel welcomed and respected within a context of a church community. I do not think that people should be judged by the color of their skin, their sexual orientation, their gender their economic status, physical capabilities, age, etc. I also do not believe that people should be judged for their spiritual or religious beliefs either. I firmly believe in living out an ethic that Paul states in Galatians 3 that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave or free. Inclusion is a wonderful thing to practice and I think that I have been blessed to be a part of a very accepting community these past few years.
However, despite the fact that I am a huge advocate for what it means to be reconciling in christ, I do not feel like this title has any place at a seminary in the ELCA Lutheran church.
Currently, as a church whole, we are still living in a lot of division over the issue of homosexuality. Already, people who tend to have the same view point on homosexuality as I do tend to come to seminary in PLTS because it is a welcoming, accepting enviornment on this particular issue. However, within this, I have seen a large tendency to place people who do NOT hold this same opinion to be hateful and ignorant. In my time in really engaging people who disagree with me on this issue, however, I find the opposite to be true, as I have encountered a real sense of wanting to be loving and respectful of people who are homosexual, even if they find homosexuality itself to be wrong. Its almost as though the hatred that is perceived from people who have a more conservative stance on this issue is targeted towards any tendency toward conservatism in itself. In the end, if I had to choose I would much rather be an advocate for people who are gay and lesbian than for people who uphold a more conservative stance on homosexuality if it were that simple. But the truth is it is not that simple. And the other truth is that people from both extremes consists of where the church is currently at. To have a seminary that directly favors only one camp of thinking on this issue is only going to attract people who are more liberal on this issue, which is not going to adequately prepare people for the realities of the spectrum of attitudes that people truly do hold on hoomosexuality. Even though I have a liberal stance on homosexuality I am not in favor of a church split, and I fear that an RIC status may be the equivalent of seminex in my generation.
One of the other big reasons why I am opposed to PLTS being a Reconciling in Christ seminary is that I fear that it might automatically disqualify people who agree with this particular stance from serving in a more multicultural setting. We have been taught to be readers of our surrounding culture in addition to being a public voice in this context. In my time working at Resurrection Lutheran Church, I found that it was an amazing congregation in terms of dealing with the needs of this large African population that was there. It truly was concerned about addressing the real concerns about race and poverty in that particular neighborhood. However, as a large percentage of the congregation were immigrants from African countries, a more conservative stance on homosexuality was held. And to come out in strong favor of homosexuality right away would have been to alienate the people who this congregation was trying to serve. There was a similar sentiment at a church in LA that I visited that had a lot of immigrants from Mexico as well. Would we be taking away the possiblity of people serving in more multicultural settings BECAUSE we are a reconciling in christ seminary???
PLTS has been concerned with making sure that we are given a variety of ways to practice what it means to be readers of the culture that we are in. It has become very apparent to me that while the church could be more welcoming to homosexuals, I think that we have a longer way to go when it comes to things that are related to race and poverty. Perpetually, I find that it is well educated, white, middle class settings that are wanting to have statements about accepting homosexuality. And oddly enough it is the voices of people who are going hungry or are still oppressed by racism that are ignored if their rhetoric on homosexuality is one that the church does not want to embrace.
I am an advocate for congregations becoming reconciling in christ. This is because they are usually having a consensus about being RIC before they make the decision and this generally has a community with more continuity. But I am not an advocate for a seminary being reconcling in christ because 50% of the student body changes every year. I am not an advocate for a seminary being reconciling in christ because it only embodies one way of thinking about homosexuality when there is a wide spectrum of beliefs about this in the church.
However, I have not felt like this is a perspective that I would have been able to endorse publically this semester. For starters I think I would have said more at the beginning of my career in seminary than at the end as I would have felt more invested in what my community would say. Also, there has been a general consensus of enthusiasm of the seminary being Reconciling in Christ and to speak up too much on the issue would have been social suicide in a year that I have felt a little more isolated than usual already. And my work load I have from school work and internship prep has been intense enough that haven't had a lot of emotional energy left. I have been a big believer in choosing my battles wisely. It would have taken too long to describe to a lot of people why I beleive in what RIC stands for but I do not think that it has a place in a seminary. Yet that sounds like somehing I would do, have an unconventional third option in a land of black and white...
I do endorse a theology that struggles with viewing erotic love of any kind as sinful. I am an advocate for making sure that people feel welcomed and respected within a context of a church community. I do not think that people should be judged by the color of their skin, their sexual orientation, their gender their economic status, physical capabilities, age, etc. I also do not believe that people should be judged for their spiritual or religious beliefs either. I firmly believe in living out an ethic that Paul states in Galatians 3 that in Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave or free. Inclusion is a wonderful thing to practice and I think that I have been blessed to be a part of a very accepting community these past few years.
However, despite the fact that I am a huge advocate for what it means to be reconciling in christ, I do not feel like this title has any place at a seminary in the ELCA Lutheran church.
Currently, as a church whole, we are still living in a lot of division over the issue of homosexuality. Already, people who tend to have the same view point on homosexuality as I do tend to come to seminary in PLTS because it is a welcoming, accepting enviornment on this particular issue. However, within this, I have seen a large tendency to place people who do NOT hold this same opinion to be hateful and ignorant. In my time in really engaging people who disagree with me on this issue, however, I find the opposite to be true, as I have encountered a real sense of wanting to be loving and respectful of people who are homosexual, even if they find homosexuality itself to be wrong. Its almost as though the hatred that is perceived from people who have a more conservative stance on this issue is targeted towards any tendency toward conservatism in itself. In the end, if I had to choose I would much rather be an advocate for people who are gay and lesbian than for people who uphold a more conservative stance on homosexuality if it were that simple. But the truth is it is not that simple. And the other truth is that people from both extremes consists of where the church is currently at. To have a seminary that directly favors only one camp of thinking on this issue is only going to attract people who are more liberal on this issue, which is not going to adequately prepare people for the realities of the spectrum of attitudes that people truly do hold on hoomosexuality. Even though I have a liberal stance on homosexuality I am not in favor of a church split, and I fear that an RIC status may be the equivalent of seminex in my generation.
One of the other big reasons why I am opposed to PLTS being a Reconciling in Christ seminary is that I fear that it might automatically disqualify people who agree with this particular stance from serving in a more multicultural setting. We have been taught to be readers of our surrounding culture in addition to being a public voice in this context. In my time working at Resurrection Lutheran Church, I found that it was an amazing congregation in terms of dealing with the needs of this large African population that was there. It truly was concerned about addressing the real concerns about race and poverty in that particular neighborhood. However, as a large percentage of the congregation were immigrants from African countries, a more conservative stance on homosexuality was held. And to come out in strong favor of homosexuality right away would have been to alienate the people who this congregation was trying to serve. There was a similar sentiment at a church in LA that I visited that had a lot of immigrants from Mexico as well. Would we be taking away the possiblity of people serving in more multicultural settings BECAUSE we are a reconciling in christ seminary???
PLTS has been concerned with making sure that we are given a variety of ways to practice what it means to be readers of the culture that we are in. It has become very apparent to me that while the church could be more welcoming to homosexuals, I think that we have a longer way to go when it comes to things that are related to race and poverty. Perpetually, I find that it is well educated, white, middle class settings that are wanting to have statements about accepting homosexuality. And oddly enough it is the voices of people who are going hungry or are still oppressed by racism that are ignored if their rhetoric on homosexuality is one that the church does not want to embrace.
I am an advocate for congregations becoming reconciling in christ. This is because they are usually having a consensus about being RIC before they make the decision and this generally has a community with more continuity. But I am not an advocate for a seminary being reconcling in christ because 50% of the student body changes every year. I am not an advocate for a seminary being reconciling in christ because it only embodies one way of thinking about homosexuality when there is a wide spectrum of beliefs about this in the church.
However, I have not felt like this is a perspective that I would have been able to endorse publically this semester. For starters I think I would have said more at the beginning of my career in seminary than at the end as I would have felt more invested in what my community would say. Also, there has been a general consensus of enthusiasm of the seminary being Reconciling in Christ and to speak up too much on the issue would have been social suicide in a year that I have felt a little more isolated than usual already. And my work load I have from school work and internship prep has been intense enough that haven't had a lot of emotional energy left. I have been a big believer in choosing my battles wisely. It would have taken too long to describe to a lot of people why I beleive in what RIC stands for but I do not think that it has a place in a seminary. Yet that sounds like somehing I would do, have an unconventional third option in a land of black and white...
Thursday, April 23, 2009
GOING THROUGH THE MOTIONS
Will I stay this way forever, sleepwalk through my life's endeavor???? Because lately when it comes to my school work, I kind of feel like I am going through the motions.....
My studies just don't seem to penetrate my heart the same way these days....hence, this wonderful video of "Buffy"....
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
"Decade List"
On face book someone recently had a potential "note" you could write that involved the top ten things you want to do in the next ten years. As I started writing, I found myself going in reverse and I realized that I have accomplished ALOT in these past 10 years myself of things I wanted to do. And I guess that It seemed more appropriate to me to put this on my blog instead of facebook. (As my internship supervisors are both on face book I am kind of proceeding with a lot of caution right now. Also, I think that this is more of the audience that is legitimately interested in what I have to say than if I put it on face book where everyone can see this)
THINGS I HAVE ACCOMPLISHED IN THE PAST 10 YEARS
(one item for every year that I am alive...)
1) I have been proposed to three times, yet I am still single. I feel the night is longer when the lad’s not right! This does not mean I won't give someone a chance though nor does it mean I want to ultimately be alone, but I must have done something right to have had three proposals...
2) I have a bachelors degree from Luther College in sociology
3) I had always wanted to work at Good Earth Village in Spring Valley when I was a kid because I loved Bible Camp, and I worked there during the summers in college
4) At my time at Luther I managed to stay in the vocal music department while not being a music major my entire time there and I was elected to church council, which I realize were probably not as easy as they might have felt at the time
5) I survived a car accident that should have killed me. And I got back on my own two feet, able to live independently.
6) I bought a car after I got back on my own two feet instead of letting the experience paralyze me with fear and moved into an apartment with a friend
7) I used time on disability when I started to feel better to do things that I had wanted to do: I helped at a food shelf, I performed in community theater, self published a book and I helped out with a confirmation program.
8) I worked at Target again after all of this was over, and in missing community and church involvement, was pro-active and decided to go to seminary.
9) I moved all the way across the country to Berkeley California to go to grad school
10) I served as a chaplain at Mayo Clinic
11) I interned at a nonviolence organization called Pace e Bene
12) I served my contextual requirements in two vastly different congregations. While I did prefer one over the other, having both experiences was eye opening to me.
13) I have taken classes at the graduate theological union where I have been exposed to a variety of ways of thinking about Christianity and spirituality
14) I moved into my own apartment
15) I have learned how to cook most of my food from scratch
16) I have learned how to get rid of books and movies when I feel like I do not need them around anymore (although they still somehow seem to accumulate)
17) I have went from being a very messy person to being a bit of a neat freak
18) I have been wine tasting in Napa several times
19) I sang “Creature of the Night” at a karaoke bar
20) I have had interesting conversations with people walking down Telegraph in Berkeley on the weekend
21) I got a tattoo
22) I have spent an entire day at the Chicago Art Institute
23) I had a conversation with Barbara Ehernreicht at a workers justice conference.
24) As I referred to in #7 I self published a book this one deserves its own category
25) I managed to sucessfully drive my car all the way across the country after my first semester of Berkeley
26) I survived a whole year of New Testament Greek. (I can no longer say its greek to me all the time, although I wont pretend to be profiecent at it either)
27) I have learned that it is okay to prefer to watch "Buffy" or to do well on my schoolwork over going to a large party with my precious spare time
28) I have started to view looking young for my age as an asset instead of a liability
29)I am almost done with the academic component of my masters of divinity
I realize that I have had a very full life that God has blessed me with so much. I have learned that some of the best things are not necessarily planned, but it is still a good idea to have an idea of things you want to do in this life. So I could think of a few things for my own "decade" list:
1) Do a Spanish immersion trip so that I can say more than “habla no espanol” and so that I really can have a deeper understanding for south American culture.
2) Take dance classes…if I do this, I will be able to say that I have trained in voice, acting AND dance just because I wanted to.
3) Take acting classes again… honestly I have always been thrilled by every aspect of the theater for as long as I can remember, its just that I set it aside when I realized that I did not want to do this professionally. But I still dream of being in a musical and I do need some kind of hobby!
4) Live somewhere for at least 5 years! That’s long enough to provide continuous pastoral care and leadership to a congregation, to possibly buy a house, to really shop for furniture, to be open to being in a long term romantic relationship, to watch friends’ children grow up, to be involved in a variety of aspects of a community theater or music program. I guess that this is more than just one thing in this statement, but its very much a vision that I have for myself.
5) To take a trip to New York so that I can say that I have hung in every corner of the country. (I have already done Florida, Washington and I currently live in CA, seriously, I just need one more to say BINGO)
6) To go from living off of loans to paying off loans
7) Start working on a phD in sociology of religion
Maybe I will check many of these off my list in the next ten years, and I will probably also have a few things that I will add to the list as to what God has blessed me with in terms of experiences that I have had!!!
THINGS I HAVE ACCOMPLISHED IN THE PAST 10 YEARS
(one item for every year that I am alive...)
1) I have been proposed to three times, yet I am still single. I feel the night is longer when the lad’s not right! This does not mean I won't give someone a chance though nor does it mean I want to ultimately be alone, but I must have done something right to have had three proposals...
2) I have a bachelors degree from Luther College in sociology
3) I had always wanted to work at Good Earth Village in Spring Valley when I was a kid because I loved Bible Camp, and I worked there during the summers in college
4) At my time at Luther I managed to stay in the vocal music department while not being a music major my entire time there and I was elected to church council, which I realize were probably not as easy as they might have felt at the time
5) I survived a car accident that should have killed me. And I got back on my own two feet, able to live independently.
6) I bought a car after I got back on my own two feet instead of letting the experience paralyze me with fear and moved into an apartment with a friend
7) I used time on disability when I started to feel better to do things that I had wanted to do: I helped at a food shelf, I performed in community theater, self published a book and I helped out with a confirmation program.
8) I worked at Target again after all of this was over, and in missing community and church involvement, was pro-active and decided to go to seminary.
9) I moved all the way across the country to Berkeley California to go to grad school
10) I served as a chaplain at Mayo Clinic
11) I interned at a nonviolence organization called Pace e Bene
12) I served my contextual requirements in two vastly different congregations. While I did prefer one over the other, having both experiences was eye opening to me.
13) I have taken classes at the graduate theological union where I have been exposed to a variety of ways of thinking about Christianity and spirituality
14) I moved into my own apartment
15) I have learned how to cook most of my food from scratch
16) I have learned how to get rid of books and movies when I feel like I do not need them around anymore (although they still somehow seem to accumulate)
17) I have went from being a very messy person to being a bit of a neat freak
18) I have been wine tasting in Napa several times
19) I sang “Creature of the Night” at a karaoke bar
20) I have had interesting conversations with people walking down Telegraph in Berkeley on the weekend
21) I got a tattoo
22) I have spent an entire day at the Chicago Art Institute
23) I had a conversation with Barbara Ehernreicht at a workers justice conference.
24) As I referred to in #7 I self published a book this one deserves its own category
25) I managed to sucessfully drive my car all the way across the country after my first semester of Berkeley
26) I survived a whole year of New Testament Greek. (I can no longer say its greek to me all the time, although I wont pretend to be profiecent at it either)
27) I have learned that it is okay to prefer to watch "Buffy" or to do well on my schoolwork over going to a large party with my precious spare time
28) I have started to view looking young for my age as an asset instead of a liability
29)I am almost done with the academic component of my masters of divinity
I realize that I have had a very full life that God has blessed me with so much. I have learned that some of the best things are not necessarily planned, but it is still a good idea to have an idea of things you want to do in this life. So I could think of a few things for my own "decade" list:
1) Do a Spanish immersion trip so that I can say more than “habla no espanol” and so that I really can have a deeper understanding for south American culture.
2) Take dance classes…if I do this, I will be able to say that I have trained in voice, acting AND dance just because I wanted to.
3) Take acting classes again… honestly I have always been thrilled by every aspect of the theater for as long as I can remember, its just that I set it aside when I realized that I did not want to do this professionally. But I still dream of being in a musical and I do need some kind of hobby!
4) Live somewhere for at least 5 years! That’s long enough to provide continuous pastoral care and leadership to a congregation, to possibly buy a house, to really shop for furniture, to be open to being in a long term romantic relationship, to watch friends’ children grow up, to be involved in a variety of aspects of a community theater or music program. I guess that this is more than just one thing in this statement, but its very much a vision that I have for myself.
5) To take a trip to New York so that I can say that I have hung in every corner of the country. (I have already done Florida, Washington and I currently live in CA, seriously, I just need one more to say BINGO)
6) To go from living off of loans to paying off loans
7) Start working on a phD in sociology of religion
Maybe I will check many of these off my list in the next ten years, and I will probably also have a few things that I will add to the list as to what God has blessed me with in terms of experiences that I have had!!!
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Power
I am the one with the power.
I am the one with the power who choose whether or not I interact with a person on the street.
I am the one with the power to decide whether or not they seem like a safe or an unsafe person when I choose to interact with them.
I am the one with the power when I avoid a person in order to stay safe because my hunch tells me to.
I am the one with the power to give them money or to not give them money when someone asks for it.
I am the one with the power who decides not to give a person money when I have a hunch that they will use it for alcohol or drugs.
I am the one with the power who decides how much money to give to a person when they ask for it whether I give them a dime from my wallet or a dollar bill.
I am the one with the power who decides whether or not to give that money to a person or to walk down the street further to buy a beer for myself.
I am the one with the power to be able to go into the bookstore and buying something used and still have enough money to eat
I am the one with the power when I realize that I have limitations on how I can and can not help someone
I am the one with the power when I realize that we are all children of God regardless of how much or how little money we have.
I am the one with the power when I act out of love that does not care about economic status.
I am the one with the power when I ask God for forgiveness when I realize that I avoided someone else’s needs.
I am the one with the power.
I am the one with the power who choose whether or not I interact with a person on the street.
I am the one with the power to decide whether or not they seem like a safe or an unsafe person when I choose to interact with them.
I am the one with the power when I avoid a person in order to stay safe because my hunch tells me to.
I am the one with the power to give them money or to not give them money when someone asks for it.
I am the one with the power who decides not to give a person money when I have a hunch that they will use it for alcohol or drugs.
I am the one with the power who decides how much money to give to a person when they ask for it whether I give them a dime from my wallet or a dollar bill.
I am the one with the power who decides whether or not to give that money to a person or to walk down the street further to buy a beer for myself.
I am the one with the power to be able to go into the bookstore and buying something used and still have enough money to eat
I am the one with the power when I realize that I have limitations on how I can and can not help someone
I am the one with the power when I realize that we are all children of God regardless of how much or how little money we have.
I am the one with the power when I act out of love that does not care about economic status.
I am the one with the power when I ask God for forgiveness when I realize that I avoided someone else’s needs.
I am the one with the power.
It's The End Of The World As We Know It
I am in the homestretch of my semester. Right now, it is in the midst of the final project craziness that I haven't necessarily gotten to yet in the midst of things like internship prep and self care. However, I must admit that in realizing that this is my last semester being a full time student in Berkeley, I can not help but think of this particular song. Yes, its kind of the end of the world as I know it in terms of managing life to fit around the multiple demands of student-hood. Yet, lately, the more I have been thinking about it, I realize that I actually feel fine about this. I am excited to embark on the new adventure of full time ministry. It won't always be easy, but I am ready for the new adventure. I realize that I might make some different choices in the life of internship on how i spend my time and money than i do right now. But the truth is that I feel fine with the fact that I am reaching the end of my time in Berkeley....
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Ironically, I am posting this on the internet.....
Sometimes I feel a little apathetic for the fact that I can not process things as well as I feel like I should when I am reading it on an internet page. I have spent a lot of money on printer paper this semester as I have had professors trying to be earth friendly and placing readings on the internet, because I just can not focus the way I need to when I am reading something off a computer screen. If my mind is about to start wandering, facebook, my netflix account, my email and youtube is only just a click away. And its easy for me to want to look at links that are similar when I am actually very interested in what I am reading, and so as a result, I wind up spending too much time trying to find as many resources as I can and not enough time really trying to comprehend.
I kind of became aware of these habits, and I have advocated for a push AWAY from the computer whenever possible for getting work done. Its a useful tool, but I want to use it, and I do not want it to use me. I find that I need to take a sabbath from the internet.I find some things on there very convienent and useful.
However, I will never forget this semester when my computer needed to be taken to the computer emergency room, actually feeling RELEIVED. Well, it was annoying with the work that I actually needed to get done on the internet. However, I found myself going to the library to print out the things that I needed printed out. I just sat down at the end of the day and watched "Buffy" on DVD which is what I really wanted to do with my spare time anyway. The next day, while I did have to run errands, I went on a walk. In an odd way, I felt a lot better for all of this. I tried to bring up some questions with people about the way we let the internet rule our lives. Are we not really processing the information? How are we really spending our time? Are we really being creative and engaged in the world? I got a lot of resistance on some of these ideas that I found myself questioning, telling me that we live in a digital age, and that I need to accept this, especially if I am going to be a pastor in this day and age.
I am not one to be completely against the use of the internet, but I do have a level of skepticism with the effects that it has on me. Last summer, I read this article in a PRINT version of the Atlantic:
http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=32924989978&h=BbrwA&u=vP-zg&ref=mf
I think that it brings up some interesting points in the way people process information in our digitial age. Maybe it scares me just a little bit, because if I ever have kids, I would want them to love to read Shakespeare just as much as I do. And I feel ironic posting this on my blog, but I have always made an effort to really be honest about what my thought process is on here...
I kind of became aware of these habits, and I have advocated for a push AWAY from the computer whenever possible for getting work done. Its a useful tool, but I want to use it, and I do not want it to use me. I find that I need to take a sabbath from the internet.I find some things on there very convienent and useful.
However, I will never forget this semester when my computer needed to be taken to the computer emergency room, actually feeling RELEIVED. Well, it was annoying with the work that I actually needed to get done on the internet. However, I found myself going to the library to print out the things that I needed printed out. I just sat down at the end of the day and watched "Buffy" on DVD which is what I really wanted to do with my spare time anyway. The next day, while I did have to run errands, I went on a walk. In an odd way, I felt a lot better for all of this. I tried to bring up some questions with people about the way we let the internet rule our lives. Are we not really processing the information? How are we really spending our time? Are we really being creative and engaged in the world? I got a lot of resistance on some of these ideas that I found myself questioning, telling me that we live in a digital age, and that I need to accept this, especially if I am going to be a pastor in this day and age.
I am not one to be completely against the use of the internet, but I do have a level of skepticism with the effects that it has on me. Last summer, I read this article in a PRINT version of the Atlantic:
http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=32924989978&h=BbrwA&u=vP-zg&ref=mf
I think that it brings up some interesting points in the way people process information in our digitial age. Maybe it scares me just a little bit, because if I ever have kids, I would want them to love to read Shakespeare just as much as I do. And I feel ironic posting this on my blog, but I have always made an effort to really be honest about what my thought process is on here...
Monday, April 13, 2009
Simpsons Don't Make Fun of Grad Students
Saw this posted on facebook by someone and it is probably the most I have laughed in a long time. Figured that this is something that would be appreciated by this crowd
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
INTERNSHIP ASSIGNMENT
Hey friends. I thought that I would let you know that I got my internship assignment today. And...I am going to be at the North Dakota State University in conjunction with doing parish ministry at Elim Lutheran Church in Fargo, North Dakota!!!
Honestly, my initial reaction was to kind of cry a little bit. I am NOT looking forward to facing winter full time again by any means, and my main driving phobia remains to be driving in snow and ice. And I am a little worried that I might be prone to being a little sore with all the broken bones that I have had during the winter months as well.
Also, I realized that my heart was set on NOT going back to the mid-west but in living somewhere completely different. However, I felt like I needed to get past geography and look at the kinds of ministries that I could be a part of, and the idea of doing joint campus ministry and parish ministry seemed very appealing to me because I want the chance to actually work in a real parish setting, but I also like the idea quite a bit of working with college students.
However, I am honestly looking forward to doing the work quite a bit. For my mission impossible class, I am actually doing my final project on Lutheran mission to young adults, which strikes me as maybe fitting quite a bit for me.
Its funny, because I have been playing this what if game with myself these days about what my life would have been if I made different choices. I remain fully convinced that had I known I was going to go to seminary eventually I often have thought that I probably would have attended a university to get an undergraduate degree in creative writing or in musical theater along with a degree in peace studies or women's studies. Because I realized that the main reason why I did not pursue these kinds of studies in my undergraduate degree was not a lack of interest in them as much as it was wanting to do something other than wait tables, and I wanted to be able to support myself.
I also struggled quite a bit in running in campus ministry circles when I was in college as I realized that I really wanted to be in christian community but that piety regarding alcohol and sexuality I found stifling as my morality tended to be based more on economic justice and our globalized world. (and the ways i did live up to this had more to do with my busy schedule than with piety...) But I wanted to be a part of christian community so badly, and I stuck with it and I found it formulative in other ways. And honestly, I think it was encouragement from campus pastors that probably made me feel like I should consider seminary in the first place.
I came at this quite honestly in my interview, and actually, I think that the honest assessment of this and not looking at college and college ministries in particular with rosy colored glasses is one of the big things that got me this particular placement. I think I got along well with the supervisors well and I felt that I would enjoy working with them but that they would challenge me as well.
However, the more I think about all of this, the more I am feeling quite excited as well too. I think that I would enjoy and benefit from working in a university setting. I have been thinking a lot lately about taking theater and/or dance classes and read things because they sound interesting to me, not just because they are assigned. I have been wanting to hang out with non-church people these days. I think that I might have more of these kinds of resources at my finger tips in a university setting.
And my gifts IN ministry are things that I think would go well in a college setting as I encourage the exploration of difficult questions, as I really like to push on finding links between church and society. I think that college students are busy but they would not have the kind of commitments that would prevent them from taking a moral stance against the school of americas or in considering going and doing a service trip on their time off in a way that I have observed is not always easy to do once one has children, a spouse and/or a full time job.
Also, college is a VERY exciting time in terms of personal development which I think can be synonmous with one's understanding of spirituality. This is when people start to think about what they want to accept or reject from the worldview that they grew up with. Its actually a life long process, but this is when it truly begins. This is also whe people generally start thinking seriously about what they really want to do in this world versus what they do not want to do and what they would do for fun. These questions are truly exciting and the way they effect one's religious journey could be fascinating.
The fact that I would be doing parish ministry as well is exciting too. I will be more exposed more to things that go on in the life of an actual congregation in the capacity of my own pastoral identity which is exciting to me as well.
The more I thought about all of this, honestly even if they were not my first choice initially, I have a hunch that i was their first choice. And it kind of hit me that college ministries is probably a little more competitive to get into than general parish ministry and I landed the opportunity to do this on my INTERNSHIP. I realize that I am excited about the ministry, but I am not thrilled about the geography of North Dakota.
However the truth in the matter is that I may need to get over my driving in snow phobia for a lot of locations for doing ministry. Even if it is a place with good public transportation, ministry is very relational and entails being able to visit people in their homes as well as being able to visit someone unexpectedly in the emergency room one minute before heading to the gym or a rehearsal of some sort for my own sanity before I have that dinner that I was invited to. As a result, getting over my driving in snow phobia might do wonders for what I can accomplish in ordained ministry.
The other truth is that Fargo, North Dakota is a lot closer to the Twin Cities, and its the point of realization that some of my dearest friends and the best theater I have ever seen are in a drivable proximity from Fargo as well!
The other thing is that I was having anxieties about what I was going to do before internship and since its a very drivable distance from MN, I can keep things at my parents apartments and borrow less money from my parents in the short interim time that I will have, as I honestly won't have enough time off to find much for work, especially in this economy.
And I can honestly say....God is good, I am excited, and its all going to turn out for the best. Now I just need to finish my semester sucessfully!
Honestly, my initial reaction was to kind of cry a little bit. I am NOT looking forward to facing winter full time again by any means, and my main driving phobia remains to be driving in snow and ice. And I am a little worried that I might be prone to being a little sore with all the broken bones that I have had during the winter months as well.
Also, I realized that my heart was set on NOT going back to the mid-west but in living somewhere completely different. However, I felt like I needed to get past geography and look at the kinds of ministries that I could be a part of, and the idea of doing joint campus ministry and parish ministry seemed very appealing to me because I want the chance to actually work in a real parish setting, but I also like the idea quite a bit of working with college students.
However, I am honestly looking forward to doing the work quite a bit. For my mission impossible class, I am actually doing my final project on Lutheran mission to young adults, which strikes me as maybe fitting quite a bit for me.
Its funny, because I have been playing this what if game with myself these days about what my life would have been if I made different choices. I remain fully convinced that had I known I was going to go to seminary eventually I often have thought that I probably would have attended a university to get an undergraduate degree in creative writing or in musical theater along with a degree in peace studies or women's studies. Because I realized that the main reason why I did not pursue these kinds of studies in my undergraduate degree was not a lack of interest in them as much as it was wanting to do something other than wait tables, and I wanted to be able to support myself.
I also struggled quite a bit in running in campus ministry circles when I was in college as I realized that I really wanted to be in christian community but that piety regarding alcohol and sexuality I found stifling as my morality tended to be based more on economic justice and our globalized world. (and the ways i did live up to this had more to do with my busy schedule than with piety...) But I wanted to be a part of christian community so badly, and I stuck with it and I found it formulative in other ways. And honestly, I think it was encouragement from campus pastors that probably made me feel like I should consider seminary in the first place.
I came at this quite honestly in my interview, and actually, I think that the honest assessment of this and not looking at college and college ministries in particular with rosy colored glasses is one of the big things that got me this particular placement. I think I got along well with the supervisors well and I felt that I would enjoy working with them but that they would challenge me as well.
However, the more I think about all of this, the more I am feeling quite excited as well too. I think that I would enjoy and benefit from working in a university setting. I have been thinking a lot lately about taking theater and/or dance classes and read things because they sound interesting to me, not just because they are assigned. I have been wanting to hang out with non-church people these days. I think that I might have more of these kinds of resources at my finger tips in a university setting.
And my gifts IN ministry are things that I think would go well in a college setting as I encourage the exploration of difficult questions, as I really like to push on finding links between church and society. I think that college students are busy but they would not have the kind of commitments that would prevent them from taking a moral stance against the school of americas or in considering going and doing a service trip on their time off in a way that I have observed is not always easy to do once one has children, a spouse and/or a full time job.
Also, college is a VERY exciting time in terms of personal development which I think can be synonmous with one's understanding of spirituality. This is when people start to think about what they want to accept or reject from the worldview that they grew up with. Its actually a life long process, but this is when it truly begins. This is also whe people generally start thinking seriously about what they really want to do in this world versus what they do not want to do and what they would do for fun. These questions are truly exciting and the way they effect one's religious journey could be fascinating.
The fact that I would be doing parish ministry as well is exciting too. I will be more exposed more to things that go on in the life of an actual congregation in the capacity of my own pastoral identity which is exciting to me as well.
The more I thought about all of this, honestly even if they were not my first choice initially, I have a hunch that i was their first choice. And it kind of hit me that college ministries is probably a little more competitive to get into than general parish ministry and I landed the opportunity to do this on my INTERNSHIP. I realize that I am excited about the ministry, but I am not thrilled about the geography of North Dakota.
However the truth in the matter is that I may need to get over my driving in snow phobia for a lot of locations for doing ministry. Even if it is a place with good public transportation, ministry is very relational and entails being able to visit people in their homes as well as being able to visit someone unexpectedly in the emergency room one minute before heading to the gym or a rehearsal of some sort for my own sanity before I have that dinner that I was invited to. As a result, getting over my driving in snow phobia might do wonders for what I can accomplish in ordained ministry.
The other truth is that Fargo, North Dakota is a lot closer to the Twin Cities, and its the point of realization that some of my dearest friends and the best theater I have ever seen are in a drivable proximity from Fargo as well!
The other thing is that I was having anxieties about what I was going to do before internship and since its a very drivable distance from MN, I can keep things at my parents apartments and borrow less money from my parents in the short interim time that I will have, as I honestly won't have enough time off to find much for work, especially in this economy.
And I can honestly say....God is good, I am excited, and its all going to turn out for the best. Now I just need to finish my semester sucessfully!
Friday, April 3, 2009
Senioritis
I have really enjoyed being a student, but I have found myself craving to put the books down a little bit. It is Friday, which is always the day that I always set aside for my mental clarity; but that generally consists of taking care of things in my apartment and watching DVDs. Then, if I feel like it I go to social gatherings.
I have been really good at being responsible and dedicated as a student and developing some healthy habits, however, I find myself craving some of the things that I put aside to be a successful student. I miss doing theater; I am aware that worship has a lot of theatrical qualities to it, however I guess I have come to miss the process of putting a play together. I have thought about taking acting or dance classes while I am on internship as a means to start to get back into it again and to meet non church people. I miss reading for fun; I enjoy what I am reading for my classes, but I miss having more freedom to read what I want to when I come home from work the way I did when I worked at Target. I also feel really behind in being attentive to current events; as it feels like my classes seem to take up much of my mental energy. I also feel like my social world in Berkeley is kind of limited to the seminary people and while in some regards it has been kind of nice knowing that I do share a certain level of ideological ground with people, I kind of miss having more diversity in my social circle.
I totally anticipate internship and ordained ministry as things that might be emotionally draining for me at times and that I will still need days like today. (ultimately, my sabbath) However, I am looking forward to picking these other aspects of myself up again that I have put on the shelf to be a successful student. I have been reflecting on this a little bit lately in light of a dream that I had over my spring break. I honestly think that I have done everything I have needed to do to be a healthy, sucessful student. I realize a lot of the things that I voiced interest in can be used within the context of the church, but I guess I want activities that are not explictly church activities as well. So in that regard I feel very ready to be more in the "real world" than in the world of student ville.
The other thing is I have loved being academically driven in my studies. My first few years here I found myself very eager to be engaged in these discussions in a classroom. I do find my classes enjoyable and pertinent to what I want and need to know as a future minister. However, I find myself wondering what people who may not have a theological education might think about these things, whether they are in the church or outside of the church. But in a funny sense, I think that the minute that I started to be interested in these kinds of questions, that is when I knew that I am ready to go on internship next year as well. I guess to me that is an indication that I really do care about the needs of the world, and not just having conversations comfortably with other people who have made studying theology a priority as well. However, the fact that it seems to take more effort for me to crack open the books these days I think is an indication of senioritis.
I find out about internship next week. I am feeling both excited and scared when I think of this next step, as I deliberate out what it is going to mean for me, as a single woman in ministry whose ministry seems to lean a lot more for prophetic/social justice type of work and whose outside interests are in the arts. I realize that there is a lot of who I am that I am ready to tap into in multiple ways. However, right now the future kind of seems blank, which breeds uncertainty and excitement. I have accomplished a lot and I have come a long way. However, right now I think that I would diagnose myself with a case of senioritis.
I have been really good at being responsible and dedicated as a student and developing some healthy habits, however, I find myself craving some of the things that I put aside to be a successful student. I miss doing theater; I am aware that worship has a lot of theatrical qualities to it, however I guess I have come to miss the process of putting a play together. I have thought about taking acting or dance classes while I am on internship as a means to start to get back into it again and to meet non church people. I miss reading for fun; I enjoy what I am reading for my classes, but I miss having more freedom to read what I want to when I come home from work the way I did when I worked at Target. I also feel really behind in being attentive to current events; as it feels like my classes seem to take up much of my mental energy. I also feel like my social world in Berkeley is kind of limited to the seminary people and while in some regards it has been kind of nice knowing that I do share a certain level of ideological ground with people, I kind of miss having more diversity in my social circle.
I totally anticipate internship and ordained ministry as things that might be emotionally draining for me at times and that I will still need days like today. (ultimately, my sabbath) However, I am looking forward to picking these other aspects of myself up again that I have put on the shelf to be a successful student. I have been reflecting on this a little bit lately in light of a dream that I had over my spring break. I honestly think that I have done everything I have needed to do to be a healthy, sucessful student. I realize a lot of the things that I voiced interest in can be used within the context of the church, but I guess I want activities that are not explictly church activities as well. So in that regard I feel very ready to be more in the "real world" than in the world of student ville.
The other thing is I have loved being academically driven in my studies. My first few years here I found myself very eager to be engaged in these discussions in a classroom. I do find my classes enjoyable and pertinent to what I want and need to know as a future minister. However, I find myself wondering what people who may not have a theological education might think about these things, whether they are in the church or outside of the church. But in a funny sense, I think that the minute that I started to be interested in these kinds of questions, that is when I knew that I am ready to go on internship next year as well. I guess to me that is an indication that I really do care about the needs of the world, and not just having conversations comfortably with other people who have made studying theology a priority as well. However, the fact that it seems to take more effort for me to crack open the books these days I think is an indication of senioritis.
I find out about internship next week. I am feeling both excited and scared when I think of this next step, as I deliberate out what it is going to mean for me, as a single woman in ministry whose ministry seems to lean a lot more for prophetic/social justice type of work and whose outside interests are in the arts. I realize that there is a lot of who I am that I am ready to tap into in multiple ways. However, right now the future kind of seems blank, which breeds uncertainty and excitement. I have accomplished a lot and I have come a long way. However, right now I think that I would diagnose myself with a case of senioritis.
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