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

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

I’m not sure if everyone is aware, but blogger will, at some point, require every blog to switch over to beta. Just fyi

I also wanted to give a heads up that I am shutting down in his courts (long story, maybe I’ll share some day) and so I’d like to pick up my blogging here. I’ll probably connect my user name with thethinplaces.blogspot.com since I’ll be blogging poetry and such there.

thanks

So having lurked on a few blogs that link here, (thank you technorati) I have read in a couple of places of women who have visited this blog and decided that they want nothing to do with us. The reasons vary from our spelling being poor, to our using terms people find inappropriate, to our being unwelcoming. That critism was presented in that the visiter didn’t find others who agreed with her opinions here and therefore branded us as unwelcoming.

I understand that we are who we are. This is a group blog and its tone is made up by whoever decides to add their voice here. So it’s up to the general blog public to decide what this blog is about and what perspectives get discussed. Obviously we can’t be all things to all people.

I asked some of the women who had issues to bring them up here, but have had no responses so far. But I want to bring it up. Are we welcoming here? What has been your experience (feel free to share whatever you want)? How can we sustain diversity of opinion and still be welcoming? How can we improve discussions so that lone voices are heard? Or is that something that is necessary for us to even strive to do? Do we need to change who we are or curtail discussion because someone somewhere might disagree? Or is there a healthy balance?

I’m interested in your thoughts, your experiences, your ideas.

I’ve created a space where women can explore feminine sensuality and sex in the context of Christian spiritual practice; A place where we set the parameters and ambience of the conversation, where the goal is affirmation, playfulness, support, creativity and fun! I believe sex is not first about avoiding sin; IT’S ABOUT CREATING LIFE AND JOY AND PLAY — and it’s a poignant form of love, healthy mischief and yes, worship of our AWESOME creator. So come check it out. Join the conversation where it’s about God and women’s sensuality.

www.spiritualsensuality.blogspot.com

Let’s get together and explore ideas. Emerging Women are coming together online for a virtual book discussion. Through our blog we can discuss new ideas, explore theology and culture, grow in faith and understanding, and learn more about ourselves and others as we delve into a book a month.

From your suggestions a book will be chosen for each month’s discussion. Some of the books will be mainly theological, some philosophical, some historical, and others spiritual (or a combination thereof). Some books will be comfortable and others will force us to stretch our understanding and consider new ideas and fresh perspectives. The discussion will open on the 15th of each month and will be easily accessible through a sidebar link. (update – We will post on every Tuesday of the month)

We encourage everyone who can to participate. Try to read the book, but feel free to join in the discussion no matter how much you managed to read. We ask that everyone engage respectfully and be aware that there are diverse voices represented here.

If you have suggestions for books to be discussed, please email Jemila at jemilakmonroe@yahoo.com. Also feel free to post reviews/comment on other books you are reading. If there is a book (or chapter even) that you think other emerging women could learn from, tell us about it! Engage us with your thoughts and share with us what you are learning.

So find the books and start reading! Enjoy.

I’d like to suggest the creation of an Emerging Women’s Book Club — open to both genders, facilitated by emerging women. I sense the need for a female-oriented structure to keep our thinking and practices fresh and enhanced by scholarship and community, and to provide a venue for reflection that could serve as a rigorous, but more collaborative alternative to the tet-a-tet swordsmen style of debate that tends to prevail almost exclusively in emerging theology spheres dominated by men. Our discussions could include healthy debate and sharpening of each other’s ideas, but in a context marked by collaboration, building on each other’s thoughts as well as providing thoughtful critiques and further questions, seeking third alternatives, rather than polarization, responses in didactic, as well as story and poetic form, and the welcoming Mystery to the table.

Anyone interested?