Trees, leaves, and lakes Oh, My!

Yesterday, I got to experience the true beauty of an east coast autumn. This week is what is know as 'reading week' as it is the week before midterms. We get the whole week off from classes in order to study. A bunch of people came up with the idea that it would be fun to go on a one night camping trip. The idea became actuality and a group of ten of us went camping thursday night at Fahnestock state park in upstate New York. We arrived early enough in the day that we were able to go for a long walk through the woods and along the lake. It was a gooooorgeous day!

The evening was filled with sitting around the campfire, telling stories, debating theology, the Church and playing games (ex. mafia). It is great to play youth games with Graduate students the amount of rhetoric that is brought into the equation is amazing!

All in all we had a great time away from campus and our books, now back to studying.

Speech Class and Circumstance

One of the classes that you are required to take here at Princeton Seminary is speech. It is a one hour a week class that lasts the entire year. Some seem to think it is great because they perceive it as an easy 'A' course. Well I happen to dislike it with a burning passion. Not because I don't believe in training future public speakers but because it is a class that has so far achieved to teach me nothing other then the fact that I am short.

You are laughing aren't you? Thinking that I am just dwelling on my height deficiency. Truth is though speech class has actually taught me I am short. The second day of class you have to get up in front of the pulpit/podium and lead a mini church service, you have to call everyone to worship and read some scripture. While doing this you are recorded so that you can be forced to watch yourself later and pick apart what you need to work on. Well I got up to take my turn and (yes, what you are thinking is correct) I could barely see over the podium. The Professor offered to lower it, hahahahaha oh so funny given that fact that you can't actually do that. He then proceeded to tell me that pulpits in churches are generally quite large so I would just need to get used to it.

Thanks man, because I was unaware of the fact that pulpits are big and I am not and that that might be a problem!

But wait folks there is more!

Then during my conference to look over the tape of my presentation my Professor gave me a few suggestions.

1. "It would be great if you could look up more while you are reading, although given your circumstance I understand that might not be possible."

2. You might want to find a more natural place for your hands. I usually put mine on the pulpit, although given your circumstance that may be more awkward.

The advice was utterly invaluable! What I learned? The technical term for being short is "circumstance".

I have shared this story with my floor mates and it has become something to laugh about, but in honor of my circumstance my mates Chelsea and Elizabeth made this special step stool to help the next time I have to face the speech dragon and stand behind the pulpit.

Are You Old Enough To Be Here?

Conversation between me and the man who works at the campus mail room:

(Bold= Him, Italic= Me)

Hi. I need to pick up a package, box 307.

Ok. (Turns to look for the package) Are you sure you go here? You know the high school is down the road. (Turns to smile and laugh)

Yeah, I am pretty sure I go here.

(Hands me the medium size package) You sure you can handle carrying that? Sure you don't need any help?

Thanks, but I got it.

Conversation between me and the gentleman who swipes our cards in the cafeteria:

(Bold= Him, Italic= Me)

Good evening. There is something that I have wanted to ask you since I first saw you in here.

Yes?

How old are you? Because when I saw you I thought you were like 12.

Actually I just turned 22.

Wow, you definitely look young.

Thanks. Have a good evening.

Some day when I am grown up, I will know what the appropriate response is to situations like these because the response I would like to give most of the time I am sure is not appropriate for any young looking 12 year old like myself. :)

Thank You

Birthdays are what you make of them. For some they are important markers for self reflection for others it is about blessing their existence in this world. Either view or attitude seems perfectly reasonable to me. I think birthdays can be used for a little bit of both.

So by virtue of the topic of this post you have probably figured out that today is my birthday. 22 years ago today I was born. What I realized is that it has been 22 years full of people and moments that are distinct to me being who I am today and will continue to grow to be.

So forgive the sappiness while I say thank you to all those who have been a part of my life. Now, I have seven minutes more of my 22nd birthday to take advantage of what shall I do?... EAT PIE!

Thank You!

Amanda

My New Hair Style!

It has been over 2 1/2 years sense I have had short hair. Being in a new place and starting down a new path made me finally give into a decision that I had been contemplating for awhile. I have kept my hair long mostly because I thought that it helped me to look older ( which ultimately means it helps me look my age). I decided though with some gentle prodding from friends to go for it and cut it short! This was a big thing considering I have had the same person cut my hair for the last like 15 years. I scheduled an appointment and a friend from my hall went with me. She is much more hip and knowledgeable of things girly. I usually leave it all up to the person cutting to decide what is best. Well, this guy wanted to know what I wanted and he wanted specifics which is where my friend was very helpful. I was thinking cutting it up to my shoulders, well let me put it this way shoulders must mean ears in New Jersey. The advantage was that I got to donate my hair to Locks Of Love a group that uses the hair to make wigs for cancer patients. I was a little shocked at first, but have learned to adjust. People seem to think it makes me look more mature, which frankly I need all the help I can get.

Peace,

Amanda

My problem with the Holy Spirit

Here is my rant for the week (Ok at least the next couple of days). We are talking about the Trinity in my systematic theology class. Now the Trinity is probably one of thee if not the single most complicated and delicate subjects/concepts of Christianity. Explaining and defining the Trinity has been a task that has called forth multiple councils and stretched the minds of many a great theologian. Of particular difficulty has been the linguistic formula by which the Trinity is represented and understood.

What words do we use to express the nature and relationship of the Trinity? My systematics class was looking at this question and specifically the constraints and consequences of using certain terms in describing the Trinity. Of specific issue was the use of masculine language (father, son). There was of course the issue raised whether such language limits one's understanding of the Trinity and makes it a patriarchal representation that oppresses women.

The first response to this question was by a gentleman who argued that language does not influence/constrain our understanding of the Trinity and so therefore it doesn't matter that we use the terms father/son. Now I am not sure if he was unclear of what he actually said or of he well knowingly tossed out such a statement, but what I do know is to say that words and language have no influence on our conceptions of the world around us is well frankly wrong, or at least insufficient. Words and language are the very foundation upon which much of our understandings of the world are based, not to mention specifically God, it is the Word of God that we are supposed to be studying.

I was frustrated by this guys remark and then I was frustrated by the fact that we were debating over the father/son aspect of the Trinity and not paying any attention to the Holy Spirit aspect of the Trinity. I think that the Holy Spirit and our conception of it in terms of the Trinity is even more problematic then the father/son dynamic because while the father/son terminology of the Trinity is conspicuously problematic in terms of gender the Holy Spirit is inconspicuously problematic.

The use of father/son sets up a masculine some would argue patriarchal system which makes it difficult for women to conceive of themselves in relation to the Trinity. At least though we acknowledge that the language used to describe those aspects of the Trinity is masculine, the problem with the Holy Spirit is that by its very nature as the fluid, and non-solid, it is defined in terms of the feminine which is problematic because in its position as feminine among the father/son relationship it gets put into a position of subordination (Take a look at the Nicene Creed).

Now I am not saying that we should invert the binary and start referring to everything in the feminine that clearly would achieve nothing. What I am saying is that the Holy Spirit deserves a little more respect and should not be used as the token feminine in Christianity to appease all of us women.

The picture my professor posted at the top of his lecture out line was a depiction of the Trinity and it had the father and the son holding the female Holy Spirit between them. I was highly bothered by such a depiction. The problem it seems though is that language only operates in terms of binaries so that there is no way out of father/son/holy spirit terminology.

Sometimes words seem so constraining, oh, but wait! Words don't influence us, or do they?

Foot Steps

To finish the moment, to find the journey's end in every step of the road, to live the greatest number of good hours, is wisdom. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

There is a lot of following that goes on at seminary. You watch and follow your older classmates, heeding their advice. You follow as you file into chapel, and sing and partake of communion. You follow as your professor recites Hebrew and important theological and historical facts. Some people in going to seminary are following in the foot steps of parents, others in those of friends and mentors. We follow God, Calvin, Knox and Luther and that other dude what was his name? Oh, Jesus. Sometimes it almost seems like one giant game of follow the leader.

So the question then becomes, how far do you follow? When do u break the repetition and take a step all your own? Is it in chapel when you clap while all the other good protestants are standing in their very proper reformed manner singing? Do you break family tradition and choose a profession all your own? Do you look at Calvin and say " You were a smart man, but I am going to have to check some of your theology at the door because frankly you weren't very nice to women?

I just received a card from my Grandmother and in it she enclosed a postcard with a picture of Keuka College the institution she attended ( It's located in NY). In the letter she commented that she had wished that she had pushed me further about attending there, she thinks that I would have really enjoyed it. While I know it is out of the love and kindness of her heart that she says this, I have to say that I am glad that I didn't because I think there are only so many people's foot steps I can attempt to follow in.

I think that is one of the harder parts of seminary, separating your steps from those of others. It seems really easy to get so used to following that you forget that you aren't meant to be a copy. That as much as you may admirer your mentors, friends, cohorts, and the admirals of history, you are not them. Finding what that means for you though is the second hardest part of seminary. (or perhaps life?)

Happy Friday!

Amanda

Mistakes, Blunders, and Miscalculation

I think the first mistake is always the hardest to make. (Kinda like that Cat Steven's song, Oh wait! Just kidding that is "The First Cut is the Deepest") Not only is it the hardest but it more often then not is the one you end up remembering. Now there are big mistakes and little ones, mistakes that turn into a hilarious story down the line and those, well that would rather just be forgotten.

Like most people I am not a big fan of mistakes, I try to avoid making them, but I have discovered that even against my best efforts mistakes happen. ( I know, profound thought?) Why all the discussion of mistakes? There is this glorious thing that you are given when you start at a new school in a new program, it is pristine, it is called a transcript. Every time you start over working towards a new degree it's like you get to hit the reset button, you again can have the perfect transcript and the perfect GPA. For some the transcript and GPA remain in perfect condition while for others it loses some of it's shine. For me it is inevitable it will lose some of its shine.

I am not a 4.0 student never was, never will be, and to be clear I am OK with that. To each their own. What makes it hard though is accepting making that first mistake, accepting the first mark that will alter the transcript forever. Its like in art class when you have to make the first mark on the paper. Without making the mark nothing beautiful can come out of it, but if you don't make the mark nothing can ruin the perfect piece of paper.

So Hebrew is my first mark on the paper (Shhh! Don't tell the CPM*) . Now I know that it would be argued by many that the term 'mistake' is a bit harsh when discussing grades, and transcripts. So here are a bunch of synonyms for the same thing, error, fault, inaccuracy, blunder, slip, miscalculation, oversight, gaffe, the list could continue. Perhaps 'mistake' is a bit harsh, but whatever you chose to call it, the first blunder one must make is always the most difficult.

From here on out though I haven't got much to lose. The paper is already marked on might as well finish the picture.

*CPM- Committee on Preparation for Ministry

Amanda