Gaia Scholarship Questions

1) What is your purpose? (25 words or less.) If you had to describe your calling in life, what would you say? What are you here to do? What gift is yours to give to the world?

The spiritual development of teenagers is my passion and my joy: my call.  Spiritual nurture and love gives them more to sustain them through life.

2) What do you love, and how do (or will) your actions demonstrate this? (250 words or less.) We at Gaia believe that following your heart is the best way to help the whole planet. What do you care about, and what do you most enjoy doing?

I am a learner, and by extension, a teacher.  My happiest moments have one consistent thing in common: new spiritual insights.  Whether it’s an exciting dialogue with somebody who practices a different faith or curled up with coffee and a new book of theology, the stimulation of the mind and the spirit is my greatest joy.

I discovered this when I entered the seminary at the age of 21.  I took a leap of faith when I started a seminary course of study.  I had never taken a religion or philosophy class, and was answering the promptings of my inner self when I enrolled.  I was wise to listen.  I found my bliss, and I followed it.

There are two courses you can follow on the seminary tract: academia and ministry.  Many who know of my love of theology and biblical interpretation have encouraged me to take the academic route, and I am greatly tempted to spend my life in study of the spiritual.  However, I am a woman of action, and the inspiration I receive from my studies demands that I do not stand still.  There is a world out there in desperate need of spiritual education, and I intend to do something about it.  I will teach the life of the spirit as an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ.  I’m specifically called to youth ministry because most spiritual wounds are inflicted during the turbulent and unstable time of adolescence.  After all, how many of us wish we’d known then what we know now?  If young people are fortunate enough to encounter a spiritual teacher while they are in a period of great questioning then they can be guided to a divinity of their understanding in a time when they most need that kind of ontological support.  If they do not receive this instruction then they may spend years as adults trying to unlearn dogma and doctrine on their path to true spiritual fulfillment.  The path of spiritual knowledge will not be a burden, but a joy.  This is the gift my passion can give to the world.

More and more evidence is coming to light that the health of the spirit is vital to the health of the body.  Spiritual practice reduces stress and relaxes the muscles.  People with faith handle changes and crisis in life better than those without faith.  Belief is good for you.  I can attest to these claims with personal experience as well as documented evidence from scientific studies.  I have come before the Divine in many ways: with my arms open and on my knees, in blazing defiance and with joyful abundance, and in structured ritual and total abandon.  There is a phrase I’ve heard among several faith traditions: Prayer changes things.  Everyone means something different by this phrase, but I testify that what prayer changes is you.

3) Write your ideal job description. (250 words or less.) Forget about job titles like 'doctor' or 'artist' or 'lawyer.' If you could get paid just to live, how would you spend your time? What would you devote your life to? What would your days be like?

I would spend my life dedicated to the life of the spirit.  My mornings would be my own.  This is the time I could spend focusing on my own research, writing and spiritual discipline.  It would probably include at least an hour sitting in a coffee shop and reading an amazing book like Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza’s Wisdom Ways.  I would want to spend the rest of the day teaching.  My afternoon classes would be for teenagers, teaching them about the Divine and the manifold ways the Divine is expressed, and helping them work through the tough questions about God and life.  Evening classes would be for adults who are on the same journey.  I would have time between classes for special conversations with those who are struggling with particular obstacles, or just do not have time for class.  I would have different classes for different journeys, such as Rediscovering Christianity, She Who Is: The Goddess in contemporary times, and other such classes based on my knowledge and experience.  For those subjects I may not be able to teach, I’d have a network of fellow spiritual teachers who I could refer students to, based on their needs.  Ideally, the funding would come about in a way that guaranteed I could take any student who needed the class, regardless of income.  Of course, I will have time to volunteer and put all these spiritual convictions into practice.  Talk without actions is a hollow faith.