Theologies of Discernment: Call or Charism? We might faithfully do a great many things in our lives, including changing occupations. Because our lives are not monolithic, neither should our discernment be. The idea that God issues a single vocation to each of us does not seem consonant with the experience of most Christians
A Grace Peculiar: Toward a Theology of Vocation The peculiar Christlike shape that one’s life thus takes on is one’s vocation. And vocation is the outworking of grace in the life of a human being.
Lay Ministry as a Manifestation of Baptism In studying confirmation, though, I grew more and more certain of one truth: I had already received every gift and commissioning I needed for ministry in baptism.
Valuing the Vocation of Lay Ministers When someone asks me about priestly ordination, the underlying message is that the work that I am currently doing would be more valuable or whole if it were performed by a priest.
“Tend My Flock”: The Pastoral Core of Ordained Ministry I regularly hear fellow priests talk about how their principal responsibilities are to plan and execute Sunday worship. Lay people can visit the sick members of their parishes, they tell me. After all, priests are trained for other things.
Gifted, Willing, and Needed: Reframing Call Culture in the Episcopal Church We should understand a call as someone being gifted, willing, and needed.
