Hooray! It's a book launch!

It's a great day to celebrate! There's A Woman in the Pulpit: Christian Clergywomen Share Their Hard Days, Holy Moments and the Healing Power of Humor has just been released! The book is a project of RevGalBlogPals, an online community of clergywomen and others who support the ordination of women and it's edited by the incomparable Martha Spong, a United Church of Christ pastor from Pennsylvania who also serves as the Executive Director of RevGalBlog Pals. The essays are by members of the blogging community that was the genesis of the group back in 2005. The stories in the book are transparent tales of the joys and the hurdles of ministry. Some of the stories reflect upon the unique challenges clergywomen face; others are about poignant or celebrative times in the lives of individuals and their faith communities. I found my way to RevGalBlogPals in 2009, when I began blogging, and while I blog less frequently these days, I am very actively involved in the Facebook community that has grown up around RevGalBlogPals and has more than 2500 members! I serve as one of the "matriarchs" for a Thursday column on the RevGalBlogPals' website called "Ask the Matriarch", where clergy and others can pose ministry questions that a team of clergywomen who have been ordained for a decade or more will respond. It's a good fit for this old shoe... I also serve on the Admin Team for the Facebook Group, which is just a pleasure. I'm very honored to have an essay included about a very special baptism, once upon a time. What a gift the community of RevGalBlogPals is to those who participate in it. We've heard that it's been a godsend to some at challenging moments, professionally and personally. I can remember the loneliness of ministry in some isolated places... What a gift the new book is to those who will read it in any of its forms. It's available in regular and e-book form. There's something for everybody in There's a Woman in the Pulpit. The book is published by Skylight Press. You can read more about it or purchase it here. It's also available on Amazon and potentially from your local bookseller. I hope you'll order it and read it and tell me what you think!