Boldly Going into the RevGal Future

Once there were a group of women and men, gathered around the idea that God was doing something new in order to communicate promises that had been made and kept (by God) throughout history. This new thing, God enfleshed in Jesus, was a BIG Event. The women and men involved only had an inkling of what was in store for them.

Likewise, in 2005, a group of clergy women and their supporters kept close care of one another through blogging and over the wires. They decided to form a group - a network of support - that supported and empowered women clergy (including lay leaders and vocational religious) and their fellow travelers. They also had Big Events. The women (and some men) involved only had an inkling of what was in store for them.

Okay, maybe one of these stories isn’t EXACTLY like the other one. You can’t believe everything you read on the Internet. However, today’s RevGals and Pals are carried by the faithful action of both stories. We live in and around the church of the first disciples and we are connecting in Internet communion through our first blogging apostles.

the pheeto that was the inspiration for our logo!

Since 2005, our group has grown and expanded to include more than 450 blogging women and men. Some RGBP-ers blog with discipline (every day!) and some blog without obligation (when the fancy strikes). Some are only on Facebook, others only here on our main site. We share joys, deep griefs, book recommendations, and “just-say-no” warnings. We are multi-denominational, multinational, and multicultural. Gay, lesbian, straight, bi-sexual, questioning, transgendered, and cisgendered. We garden and knit, watch television and geocache, drink and abstain, write letters and send text messages.

Some of us have strong local support networks and some of us depend on Teh Interwebz for friendship and collegiality. As RevGalBlogPals has expanded from a webring into a non-profit with a board (for some direction and legal ease), our needs as a community have changed. Our one yearly Big Event is not the only way we might be able to meet or to answer the growing desire the board has heard for more meetings and opportunities for collaboration and inspiration.

Over the past several months the board has been praying and discerning the best way forward as this ministry continues to grow. We long to offer a wide range of opportunities, resources, and connections, and have been constrained by time and other commitments.

Therefore it is with great excitement that we share with you a vision of a way forward! The board has discerned a need for a Director of RevGalBlogPals. This position is designed to support the ministry our organization offers now, to enhance our community through better online interaction and through increased face-to-face opportunities, and to create the future of this ministry through financial and social development.

The Director will be tasked with revamping our web presence, facilitating and moderating various new channels of community-building, study, and communication, and creating, organizing, and hosting multiple regional events. The board also anticipates that the Director will attend some denominational or other gatherings and reach out to women clergy and their supporters, offering fellowship and extending the reach of the ministry of RevGalBlogPals.

we have t-shirts--we have arrived!

The board is grateful that Martha Spong (often known as RevSongbird), who has long RevGal history and an even longer vision, will be the first Director of RevGalBlogPals. Her gifts and skills of creativity, networking, technology, and encouraging others will serve her well in this position. Martha has stepped down from the board in order to serve in this capacity, and we look forward to walking into the future of the RGBP community with her.

We know this is a big change--it's never easy to move from an all-volunteer organization to one with a staff member. We hope you will continue to pray for the ministry of RevGalBlogPals, for the women and men who are touched by the community created here, for the board, and for our new Director as she begins to live into this new and developing role. If you have questions, if you're interested in more about how this decision came about, or if you'd like to be involved in the leadership of RGBP, please contact one of the board members (the links below take you to their blog, Facebook, or both). We would be happy to talk with you directly.

Mary Beth Butler, treasurer and chair pro-tem
Chrysanne Timm, secretary
Sally-Lodge Teel, vice president
Sarah Miller
Teri Peterson
Julia Seymour
Stacey Simpson Duke
Sharon Temple