Kimberly Majeski | Anderson University (Indiana) (original) (raw)
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It beats inside our hearts, a rhythm like the rush of a rolling river. The thrum and hum of words... more It beats inside our hearts, a rhythm like the rush of a rolling river. The thrum and hum of words whirl and turn inside, attach themselves to images that are long held and known like the crevices of our own hand; the river is true and deep and wide. As children we sat at the feet of storytellers and saints and the ancient narratives caught our hearts, seeds planted and watered were nurtured to grow. We stood with Miriam in the reeds watching over the baby in the basket beside the shimmering cerulean Nile. We sat beneath the palm trees feet soaked in sun and sand and we heard the cries of our children, settled land disputes and listened for God's call on the wind holding hands with Deborah, prophet and judge of Yahweh's unfaithful bride. We knew a spiritual kindred, an eternal bond with Mary, this woman child who birthed forth the Word, we knew her, felt her heart, sensed her pain somewhere hidden and true. It is from this river that every preacher must draw, must reach down deep into that well of what she knows, into that current that is at the heart of her becoming to cradle the stories that have been her song to find her own voice, to know her own vessel unto the proclamation of good news. The pilgrimage of voice is a paramount process for every preacher. The labor of discovering one's own unique timbre lives somewhere beyond the work of exegesis and the historical critical method, far out past manuscript variations, textual and syntactical issues, at the end of Hebrew translation and reception history. On the edge of study and before the birth of proclamation lies the sacred task of giving voice to biblical truth, to emanate words from one's own story for the good of the community of faith assembled. Those who would prepare then, for the vocation of ministry, for the office of preacher, must do more than learn to mine the Christian texts and holy books. Those whose lives will be given as heralds of kerygma will also need to mine their own lives. Those who are called to the daunting task of preaching must not only be well versed in Biblical languages, Church history, and cultural relevancy, but must also find
In the pages of the Hebrew Bible we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of wome... more In the pages of the Hebrew Bible we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of women who have gone before us and left their mark. In the material known to us today as the Old Testament, we read of women who were prophets, military leaders, priests, wise women and wisdom personified. However, to study the lives of these women is no easy task. The reality is, the stories, as we have them are not handed down to us from the voices of the women themselves, rather what we have is an image rich narrative developed from a covenantal history, drawn upon the map of patriarchy. The narratives then, are primarily concerned with the public lives of men who are or are in some way related to the patriarchs and are connected to the emergence of the monarchy. It must also be stated that the narratives are also recorded, copied, edited and compiled by men who live many centuries after those women and men whose stories they are trying to convey.
Priestesses and Holy Women: In Search of St. Prisca ; A Submission to Society of Biblical Literature Midwest February, 2013
In the pages of the New Testament we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of wom... more In the pages of the New Testament we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of women who have gone before us and left their mark. As women, as historians, we hunger to know their stories, to wrap them in the flesh and blood of real people who lived in real time and space. We want to know these ancient women who forged a way through the bonds of patriarchy and male dominated society to be found at the feet of Jesus, in the shadow of the empty tomb and at the right hand of Paul. It is with such a prominent member of the Pauline circle and early church leader this paper is concerned, let us here commence our search for St. Prisca. This paper will draw from texts and tradition, archeology and ancient martyr stories in attempt to reconstruct a biography of this early church holy woman. While many noteworthy prior studies have focused on textual variants, the prominence of her name placement, and plural subjects and singular verbs, this paper seeks to collect known remnants, connect the dots and present a portrait, to tell the story of Prisca that might at once inspire and challenge the Church.
Most of us who were formed in the Holiness tradition need not delve too far into our personal and... more Most of us who were formed in the Holiness tradition need not delve too far into our personal and collective histories to regale stories of aunts who left fellowship over the wearing of pants in church, board meetings held to discuss whether or not the youth group could wear shorts to the amusement park and the always timely sermon on Christian modesty. In our era when the Kardashians and the Real Housewives set fashion trends, notions of modesty of appropriate dress become more and more difficult to discern against the backdrop of our culture and the admonitions of scripture such that conversations about holiness and fashion become more and more relevant.
It beats inside our hearts, a rhythm like the rush of a rolling river. The thrum and hum of words... more It beats inside our hearts, a rhythm like the rush of a rolling river. The thrum and hum of words whirl and turn inside, attach themselves to images that are long held and known like the crevices of our own hand; the river is true and deep and wide. As children we sat at the feet of storytellers and saints and the ancient narratives caught our hearts, seeds planted and watered were nurtured to grow. We stood with Miriam in the reeds watching over the baby in the basket beside the shimmering cerulean Nile. We sat beneath the palm trees feet soaked in sun and sand and we heard the cries of our children, settled land disputes and listened for God's call on the wind holding hands with Deborah, prophet and judge of Yahweh's unfaithful bride. We knew a spiritual kindred, an eternal bond with Mary, this woman child who birthed forth the Word, we knew her, felt her heart, sensed her pain somewhere hidden and true. It is from this river that every preacher must draw, must reach down deep into that well of what she knows, into that current that is at the heart of her becoming to cradle the stories that have been her song to find her own voice, to know her own vessel unto the proclamation of good news. The pilgrimage of voice is a paramount process for every preacher. The labor of discovering one's own unique timbre lives somewhere beyond the work of exegesis and the historical critical method, far out past manuscript variations, textual and syntactical issues, at the end of Hebrew translation and reception history. On the edge of study and before the birth of proclamation lies the sacred task of giving voice to biblical truth, to emanate words from one's own story for the good of the community of faith assembled. Those who would prepare then, for the vocation of ministry, for the office of preacher, must do more than learn to mine the Christian texts and holy books. Those whose lives will be given as heralds of kerygma will also need to mine their own lives. Those who are called to the daunting task of preaching must not only be well versed in Biblical languages, Church history, and cultural relevancy, but must also find
In the pages of the Hebrew Bible we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of wome... more In the pages of the Hebrew Bible we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of women who have gone before us and left their mark. In the material known to us today as the Old Testament, we read of women who were prophets, military leaders, priests, wise women and wisdom personified. However, to study the lives of these women is no easy task. The reality is, the stories, as we have them are not handed down to us from the voices of the women themselves, rather what we have is an image rich narrative developed from a covenantal history, drawn upon the map of patriarchy. The narratives then, are primarily concerned with the public lives of men who are or are in some way related to the patriarchs and are connected to the emergence of the monarchy. It must also be stated that the narratives are also recorded, copied, edited and compiled by men who live many centuries after those women and men whose stories they are trying to convey.
Priestesses and Holy Women: In Search of St. Prisca ; A Submission to Society of Biblical Literature Midwest February, 2013
In the pages of the New Testament we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of wom... more In the pages of the New Testament we find beautiful imagery and noble typography, contours of women who have gone before us and left their mark. As women, as historians, we hunger to know their stories, to wrap them in the flesh and blood of real people who lived in real time and space. We want to know these ancient women who forged a way through the bonds of patriarchy and male dominated society to be found at the feet of Jesus, in the shadow of the empty tomb and at the right hand of Paul. It is with such a prominent member of the Pauline circle and early church leader this paper is concerned, let us here commence our search for St. Prisca. This paper will draw from texts and tradition, archeology and ancient martyr stories in attempt to reconstruct a biography of this early church holy woman. While many noteworthy prior studies have focused on textual variants, the prominence of her name placement, and plural subjects and singular verbs, this paper seeks to collect known remnants, connect the dots and present a portrait, to tell the story of Prisca that might at once inspire and challenge the Church.
Most of us who were formed in the Holiness tradition need not delve too far into our personal and... more Most of us who were formed in the Holiness tradition need not delve too far into our personal and collective histories to regale stories of aunts who left fellowship over the wearing of pants in church, board meetings held to discuss whether or not the youth group could wear shorts to the amusement park and the always timely sermon on Christian modesty. In our era when the Kardashians and the Real Housewives set fashion trends, notions of modesty of appropriate dress become more and more difficult to discern against the backdrop of our culture and the admonitions of scripture such that conversations about holiness and fashion become more and more relevant.