Christmas

Christmas is here. I had a great year, especially the summer travel to Turkey on a Friendship Tour sponsored by a Muslim Dialogue group, to a Missionary Training session in Brazil, sponsored by The Mission Society where I interviewed missionary women and did some teaching, and then to Budapest to present a paper on the theological and theoretical uses of biography for mission studies at the International Association of Mission Studies quadrennial conference. It was received well.

Fall saw Terry and I back at our seminaries, teaching, serving on committees, getting to know new faculty, and enjoying our academic life in Louisville.

This January we go to South Africa with 12 students to explore reconciliation and human rights. We'll also do some AIDS ministry and visit churches.

That's the short version. Little bumps in the road like having only three weeks at the cabin but having enough time to break two boat motors, and a car accident in November that totaled my car but left me with a renewed sense of gratefullness for God's grace in my life are probably worth mentioning as well. (I hate those newsletters that make other people's lives sound so terriffic while mine is pretty ordinary.)

Our six children are all thriving in their own ways. We'll visit the Austin crew over Christmas.

"How lovely are the feet of those that bring the gospel of peace." So many have brought that to me this year. Thank you all.

Frances

Summer Events

Terry and I are having a wonderful and unusual summer. Since arriving at Wood Hill in northern Wisconsin, we spent the first half of June working on writing projects. My goal is to get a rough draft of my new book Graceful Evangelism finished by September, and then work on editing and rewriting during the fall semester. Terry is writing sample articles for his new Dictionary of World Religions and an article for the Asbury Journal.

Of course being at the cabin also means taking care of business--a broken water heater, a fallen tree on the woodshed, a heating problem. Then there is pruning and fertilizing the fruit trees, which I haven't gotten to yet. We've also had some visitors during the last week--Terry's sister Brenda and their family.

Next week the real fun begins. We have three international trips this summer. We participate in a friendship tour of Eastern Turkey, June 19-July 3. A group of Sufi Muslims have invited us to come to their country, see some of the sights, and talk with them about religion and world peace. We will have an opportunity to visit some families in their own homes. We fell very privileged to be able to go on this peace seeking journey.

In July (12-31), we travel to Brazil where Terry will be doing some teaching at a missionary training center near Rio. From there we'll travel to a couple of seminaries to see what is happening with theological education, especially in regards to economic development.

Then in August (13-29) we go to Budapest where I will deliver a paper entitled, Why Biography? Contributions of Biographies to Mission Theory and Theology at the 12th International Association of Mission Studies Quadralennial Meeting.

And then, quite suddenly and sadly the summer will be over. While we are in Mercer we will be doing pulpit supply for the Hurley Christian Community Church. But it won't be as frequent a service as usual. We will miss worshipping regularly with our wonderful friends there. We'll share our adventures with them though which will be fun.

South Africa Mission Trip

We are planning a mission trip to South Africa for next January. LPTS Professor Johnny Hill and Terry and I will lead a group of LPTS students in a truth and reconciliation journey. We'll focus on how reconciliation and human rights are integral to Christian mission. We'll see how inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue can further the cause of reconciliation in the world. We'll bring those insights back home with us and contribute to our own seminary's vision of forming an international and inter-racial community of equals--reconciled to Christ and to one another.
Please visit our blog to find out more and see how you can become part of this endeavor.
Go to http://lptssouthafrica.blogspot.com.
Email me and tell me what you think--fadeney@lpts.edu.

3rd Annual Katie Cannon Lecture

On Sunday and Monday the Women's Center sponsored the Katie Cannon Lectures. It was a good event, complete with reception, silent auction, lectures and workshops.
I had the privilege of introducing the Women's Center so thought I'd post my introduction so that you could see what kind of group this is.
You can find out more about the Women's Center on our blog at www.lpts.edu.

Introducing the Women’s Center
Katie Cannon Lecture III
March 30, 2008

Tonight it is my privilege to introduce the Women’s Center, sponsor of the Katie Cannon Lecture Series.
The Women’s Center at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary was founded fifteen years ago with a three-fold purpose: support, education and advocacy of women in Christian ministry.
The Women’s Center supports women by providing a place to be—a place to read, do crafts, meet for conversation. We support women by affirming each one’s call to the ministry of the church. Mentoring and mutual sharing somehow happen when women gather at the Center. We hear and respect difference; we search for and find commonalities. We support each other.
Through our programs, the Women’s Center, in conjunction with the Gender and Ministry Committee of the seminary, facilitates the study of issues that affect women socially, economically, and religiously. Gender dynamics, AIDS, healthcare issues, issues of sexuality, and violence against women are a few of the topics that affect the lives of women on a daily basis. Church leadership, ordination, and gender issues in the church are also studied. Finally, we celebrate women’s talents, bringing the affective and artistic dimensions of life into Women’s Center activities.
Our third goal is advocacy—bringing the voices of women from the margins to the center. This goal takes us beyond the seminary into public ministry. We advocate the equality of women in all areas of life through modeling, through practicing equality, and through announcing women’s equality to the world. This lecture series is a prime example of our advocacy work in the larger community.
At its founding fifteen years ago, this ministry for Christian women was crucial for Seminary women in the male-oriented fields of theological study and church leadership. It is still crucial today. Louisville Presbyterian Seminary provides a prophetic service as the only Presbyterian seminary to have a Women’s Center.
The years since our founding have seen a flourishing of programs and advocacy efforts. In 2003 we took a great leap forward, both in program development and financial backing. Two years Johanna Bos took on the heavy task of acting director to support our expanding programs. This year Heather Theissen has taken on that important role, overseeing the move into our expanded space in White Hall, so graciously provided by the seminary.
So here we are tonight—a vibrant and expanding ministry celebrating a highlight of our academic year, the annual Katie Cannon Lecture. We appreciate having Dr. Floyd-Thomas with us and look forward to the wisdom she will bring to our gathering. Her lecture will bring together our three goals: support, education, and advocacy for Christian women in ministry. Her presence with us is no accident. It is predicated on fifteen years of Women’s Center work to fulfill our three goals, none of which could be reached without the support of each one of you. Thank you.

Frances S. Adeney
Chair, Gender and Ministry Committee

Clinton in Louisville

Today I went to my first political rally! Terry and I heard Hillary Clinton give a great talk right here in Louisville. She is running on a solid populist platform that also includes a bid for the U.S. to work with other nations to insure world peace. Sounds reasonable to me.

Here's a phone photo--you get the gist!

Respond to My Blog

I wondered if I should have you respond directly to my blog. I decided that this might clutter things up a bit--with wise comments I'm sure! But I decided I'd prefer it if you would respond via email--that way your remarks are kept personal and the blog is kept informational. So please do respond to any of my posts either at my seminary email: fadeney@lpts.edu or at my personal email franamk@msn.com.
Hope to hear from you soon.

Integration

I've been thinking about this new blog venture. I wondered if integrating personal/family and professional/career would work. After all, it's "just not done." But I decided to do it anyway because, I'm not just a professor, I'm a wife and a mom, and a grandma. I'm not just a tree-hugger and gardener, I'm a sociologist and a missiologist. I'm not just a teacher, I'm a student of piano, photography and yoga.
So why not? What's stopping me from putting it out there where friends and family, and professional colleagues can see what I'm up to. The labels are there--colleagues can skip the family stuff, family can skip the publications lists and conference announcements.
So there you are. Hope you like it. I do.