Emerging Women

Hello all.

No weekly round-up this week. I think most of us are still in the post-christmas coma and have yet to truly venture back into the blogging world. I’m not quite ready to return to normal everyday life. I still have lots of cookies left over and we even called the city to find out exactly how long we could wait to take down the tree and still have the city cart it away for us… I haven’t let the panic set in that I have to actually fit into a bathing suit for my toddlers swim lessons which start next week (now who’s idiot idea was it to sign up for those right after the holidays!!!) – life is just on hold. I’ve been trying to work on the EW Midwest gathering stuff – so be expecting to hear more about that soon, but its still a slow, lazy week.

I have been in the mood for reflection on this past year. I wasted a lot of time cateloging on my blog all the books I read last year (here), so now I wanted to reflect on EW blog stuff.

Since the Emerging Women blog was created back in May we’ve had over 18,000 hits from over 40 countries. We have 48 members and this is post #218. I’m always interested in how people find this blog. There are the obvious links from other sites (thanks to everyone who links here!) and personal recommendations, but what are really fun are the google searches that land people here. Of course there are the fair share of searches for “women in the emerging church” or similar such phrases and the searches for topics that land people on particular posts (“mark driscoll controversy” gets us a lot of hits). Our recent holiday cookie post has received a ton of hits as people search for recipes – especially for “peanut (and penut) butter balls”. Other more “questionable/interesting” searches get us hits as well. Recent ones for “strip clubs” and “bahamas massage” have brought visitors. Jemila your “butt sex” topic has been a popular draw . Then there was the one for “large mature women with tails” that got us a hit – I really don’t even want to know. I often find the keyword analysis amusing, so I just thought I’d share.

Anyway – looking ahead. I’m still planning to switch over to the new blogger on Jan 1. So if things are a bit weird at first, just be patient as we work out the kinks. Our next book discussion will open on Jan. 15 and we will be discussing Sue Monk Kidd’s Dance of the Dissident Daughter. If you want to get your own copy, the reprint was just released this week so it now easier to find in retail bookstores. I read it a few years ago and am excited to reread it with you guys. And as I mentioned above more information and registration for the Midwest Emerging Women Gathering will be posted very soon – so be thinking about that.

As we end 2006 and move into a new year what is on your minds? Reflecting on this past year – what stands out? How did God work in your life? How did you serve in the Kingdom? How was your world/faith/theology expanded or challenged? If you want, share your resolutions and goals for 2007. How do you want to grow this year? What do you want to learn or achieve? What are your hopes and dreams?

I’m eager to hear where you all are at.

Blessings and Shalom for the New Year.

Julie
emergingwomen@gmail.com

(Painting is by an unknown artist, early 19th century)

Since many of us are probably quite involved with both church and family in the coming several days, I wanted to post a greeting to all the Emerging Women participants. May God bless you and make you a great blessing as we celebrate the birth of the Savior!

Peace,
Psalmist

As we are full swing into holiday prep, the EW blogworld is a bit slow, but I wanted to highlight a few posts this week.

Check out Kate’s latest entry in her series on forgiveness as she talks about emotional monotheism

Jemila blogs about her experience taking her family to a live nativity.

Read Kim’s reflections on the ongoing Katrina relief here.

Check out the reflections on what is church? over at Eternal Echos.

I blogged about Mary over at onehandclapping.

I want to wish everyone (in the northern hemisphere at least) a blessed winter solsitce today as we celebrate the return of the light.

Just wanted to pass this on to the women here -

You’re invited to a unique leadership event
designed especially for women.

Join our Midwest Conversation
May 7-9, 2007
The French Country Inn
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin

What is Conversations?
Conversations is a unique, three-day experience where women share their personal journeys as leaders in the Church, para-church ministries, business, academia, or the home. At Conversations, women meet in a relaxed and supportive context, guided and facilitated by Sally Morgenthaler – one of the Church’s most respected thinkers on culture and change. The goal is not only deep reflection and growth in individual leadership practices, but real community.

Why attend Conversations?
As women leaders, we experience unique struggles. Conversations was created so women of faith can come together and talk constructively about how to create change. Sue Monk Kidd points out, “Women will starve in silence until new stories are created which confer on them the power of naming themselves.” At Conversations, women of substance do just that. They name themselves: their gifts, the barriers they must cross, and the opportunities they have to make lasting impact. They also create new stories that are empowering and life-giving. Because creating community is so important at Conversations, we must limit the group to 18.

Who is Sally Morgenthaler?
Sally is an author, leadership consultant, and photographer. She has been facilitating Conversations for over two years with women throughout the country. Her vast experience with leadership and ministry makes her uniquely qualified to be our guide. As a “midwife” to the group, she comes with inspiration, encouragement, and a crucial view of postmodern culture. There is no lazy thinking at Conversations! You will be challenged. But you will also be blessed by new relationships, well-rested, and all the better for having let your hair down with other wild and wonderful women.

For more information about Sally Morgenthaler, see her recent interview in New Wineskins Magazine. Her next book project is The Emergent Manifesto of Hope with Doug Pagitt and Tony Jones.

How do I register?
The cost of Conversations is $350.00. This includes all lodging, two meals, snacks, wine, chocolate and other necessities! One afternoon will be spent enjoying the town of Lake Geneva with meals and expenses (there is a lovely day spa!) not included.

Contact Shayne Moore to reserve your spot at our Midwest Conversations.
brayne@comcast.net
Mail and make out checks to:
SJM Management Co., Inc
7661 S. Wellington Street, Centennial, CO 80122

To all Emerging Women and Friends of Emerging Women –

Just a few blog housekeeping items.

As of Jan. 1, 2007 I will be switching the Emerging Women blog over to the new version of Blogger (also called blogger beta). Why? Well they have a lot of new features like labels, categories and stuff that will make navigating the blog easier. Also eventually the old blogger will be phased out, so the stitch will have to occur.

But that means that if you are a member of EW blog and wish to remain a member you will need to switch over as well. I’ve heard it is really easy to switch over (but I haven’t tried it yet since I wanted to give y’all some warning) and that Blogger has now opened it up to anyone to switch over. Here’s what blogger help says about switching team blogs over -

Team members who have not yet switched to the new version will still see the blog on their dashboards, but it will be grayed out and inaccessible. Once those members move their own accounts to the new version of Blogger, they will be able to access the blog as before. If they can’t yet switch, or don’t wish to, they can ask the owner of the blog for a new invitation to join the blog on the new version. They can then accept that invitation by logging in to or creating a Google Account to post to that blog. (Later on, when they do switch their Blogger account to the new version, they’ll have an option to merge it with this account.)
If a team member of a blog switches their account to the new version of Blogger before the blog owner does, then the team blog is not converted. It will appear on the team member’s converted dashboard, but clicking on it will lead back to the old version of Blogger. Thus, the blog will still be usable, but without the new features of Blogger (e.g. Labels, Layouts, etc.).

So just wanted to let everyone know. If you have issues switching over let me know. Also if you aren’t a member and wish to be added as a member or are currently a member and wish to be removed from the blog, let me know as well. I hope this all goes smoothly – I guess we will all find out Jan. 1.

And fyi – we now have a non-blogger url – http://emergingwomen.us
For now it just links to the blog. But it is easier to type, more official, and not blocked by institutional computers (so I’ve heard). I thinks its pretty spiffy.

Thanks for your support and involvement!
Julie Clawson
emergingwomen@gmail.com

In England, (and maybe in this country, in some parts,) “merry” refers to being slightly and good-naturedly drunk. It got me to wondering about the drinking habits of emergent women on this blog. Will we all be having a MERRY Christmas….

I’m curious, so here’s the official question: Do you ladies drink? If so, how often, and how much? Think of it as an informal survey.

Happy Holidays!
or Cheers! as the case may be.

So perhaps December 15 is not the best time to officially kick off our Emerging Women book discussion. We are all busy and try as we might some of us have not actually finished reading the book yet. But this was the day we chose, so let’s go for it.

So we are going to dive right in and ignore all rules of polite conversation by talking about religion and politics. God’s Politics by Jim Wallis has taken the country by storm. He has hit a nerve and has finally voiced ideas that many have been thinking. Many of us are tired of the bipartisan system and think that neither side represents our beliefs. Wallis has put into words the hope that there is another way. A way that does not bow at the alter of a certain party’s agenda, but instead looks to scripture and the values of Jesus. For many this book was a breath of fresh air, but others saw it as mere repackaging of liberalism. So I’m interested to hear your thoughts on the whole thing.

We’ve never done an official book discussion before, so I’m willing to see what works. We can experiment with different forms and approaches. I’ll post a few broad questions. Respond to those or pose some of your own. Interact with each other, engage with the ideas. You are welcome to participate even if you haven’t read (or finished) the book. Debate is welcomed, but I ask that we respect each other and affirm the validity of opinions. And while the book was a very American centered book, I think some of the basic principles can and do apply in other contexts. So our international readers are encouraged to join in as well. I understand that at this time of year the conversation might be slow. That’s okay – this conversation can continue for as log as we like. I’ll post a permanent link on the sidebar so it’s easy to find. Happy discussing and here goes-

Questions for Discussion

What did you like/dislike about the book? What was one thing you learned from the book? How did the book change you?

What is the difference between “God’s politics” and using God to justify our politics? How are God’s politics different from ours?

How does the “politics of Jesus” offer an alternative to the political and economic agenda of the religious Right? What are the “politics of Jesus”?

Polling results after the 2004 election emphasized “moral values” as a deciding factor, but differed on what that meant. What is your definition of moral values? Did that influence your choice of who to vote for? What do you think are the most important moral values in politics?

What does it mean to change society by “changing the wind?” How can people of faith become “wind changers?”