Traveling Minute

This is my traveling minute from Freedom Friends Church for the upcoming trip. Among Quakers/Friends, a traveling minute serves as a way of introduction and authentication for someone in ministry as they travel to places in which they may not be known.  I am grateful to Freedom Friends for writing this one on my behalf.

March 28, 2011


To Friends gathered in Europe and everywhere,

This letter is a traveling minute on behalf of Sarah Katreen Hoggatt. Sarah is a member of Freedom Friends Church in good standing and we support her in her public ministry. She is a beloved member of our community and is a bright, creative, f/Friend who carries concerns for writing about one’s spiritual journey, supporting a diverse array of voices, and living in a loving relationship with God.

Sarah is traveling to Europe as a member of the editorial board for Spirit Rising: Young Quaker Voices, to speak about the book and writing in general at the annual Quakers Uniting in Publications conference in Birmingham, England, the Europe and Middle East Young Adult Friends Annual Spring Gathering in Herzberg, Switzerland, and Friends meetings throughout Europe in April and May of 2011.

We commend Sarah to you, knowing you may trust the testimony she brings you, and entrust that she will encourage and inspire the people with whom she interacts. Please care for her tenderly and encourage her heart. We request you receive this traveling minute on her behalf and document her service among you under this concern. She will hand carry this minute back to us and report on her experiences. Thank you!

Blessings of peace, love, and joy to you all in Christ Jesus,
Ashley Wilcox
Presiding Clerk, Freedom Friends Church

Submission and the Imago Dei - Part 1

I have always found it ironic I am the go-to person for dating advice. Yes, ask the one who is not in a relationship advice on how to make one better. Over a year ago, when writing our church's Faith and Practice, Peggy and Mike assigned to me the section on "Care of Marriages". I protested, reminding them I was not married and they both were. They both replied, "Exactly. That is why you are the person to write it, you have an objective perspective." So, keeping in mind the section on marriage already written and what our committee discussed, I voiced in words the heart of our church on caring for marriages.

This is the marriage section I looked at and really like:
"Freedom Friends Church recognizes and supports marriage. We do not believe that there is more merit in a married life than in unmarried life, but we recognize the stability and blessing that marriage may bring into our lives. We are inclusive in our marriage practices, believing that any two adults can make a spirit-led, long-term commitment based on love before God and the community. We believe that the two people give themselves to each other, and that the community, including the pastor, is witness to, not makers of, this sacred event.

We believe in equality in marriage, and that married life is based on mutual respect, love, friendship, and devotion. We believe that marriage is an equal partnership, and we promote marriages that are free from violence and abuse of any kind. As with all things, we seek the will of the Spirit in our marital relations. We wish to support all marriages in our midst: those that are made in our presence, as well as those that arrive already made."

This is what I wrote:
"We believe marriage needs to be cared for and supported by both the individuals who make and sustain the commitment, and by the faith community surrounding them. We hold the marriages among us in love and respect, believing the couples themselves knows what they need. We will not step in to intervene in a marriage unless asked by the couple or under dire circumstances such as abuse or addiction. When care has been requested, Ministry and Oversight will provide prayer, referrals for counseling, and guidance in a confidential and honoring manner."

Having an objective perspective, it is easy to see things and tell it like it is. That is one of the best qualities about a spiritual director: having someone who is objective yet cares about you to talk with and to voice your questions in front of when struggling with God. Whether it is dating or in faith, and in actuality, you can't really separate the two, I have loved being this objective party who gets to stand with someone in matters close to the heart and journey alongside them.

But lately, God has been poking at my objectivity and I have come to realize there is an area of relationships I really struggle with. Through conversations with friends, family, and what we are studying in Ecclesia, the idea of submission has kept coming up. It is like the old adage, "When a student is ready to learn, God provides the teacher." (My paraphrase.) Being well aware this struggle of mine could get in the way of my ministry and distort how I can listen with my directees to God, not to mention my own relationships with God and others, I want to do a series on this topic here on my blog. I know it will help me work through this issue and from past experience, I know it's the honest and personal posts that have spoken to you the most as well. So we are going to open up this dark closet I haven't liked to look at and explore it together. Together, we'll clear the air.

Much of what I have already learned about this topic I have learned from Katie Skurja of Imago Dei Ministries in Portland, Oregon. I have taken her workshops on these topics and talked with her a lot about them and will be quoting her as well as using some of her diagrams in upcoming posts. If you are interested in learning more about what I talk about, she and her ministry team are holding a workshop during the day on Friday and Saturday, April 30th-May 1st which I would HIGHLY recommend. I am excited to go myself, it's been several years since I've gone and I'm looking forward to hearing the truths she teaches. This summary is taken from their brochure on the workshop:

"We will explore the Trinity Model to gain deeper understanding of what it means to have freedom in Christ. The Trinity Model principles are a means for facilitating revelation and healing for the whole person - Spirit, Soul and Body—that we might follow the path of Christ and live “as though God were making his appeal through us” (II Cor. 5:20)

The workshop is first of all for personal application. We believe that experience is the best teacher, therefore we will be actively applying aspects of the model during the workshop. The principles you will learn have broad applications for your own life and relationships, as well as discipleship, prayer ministry, education and any other facet of ministry you may be involved in. We highly recommend that you attend both days of the workshop to gain the most benefit from the teaching and experiential sections.

The Imago Dei Ministries team has a passion to see the Body of Christ living the abundant life God gives us as we learn to abide in right relationship with God, self, and others. You are welcome to join us!"

You can find more information on their website.

Before we get into submission, though, there are some building blocks I would like to put in place to help us get there, some groundwork we need to cover to help us understand what submission means, not to mention they are important things to look at in themselves. These teachings are one of the cores of what has helped me heal in my life the most so I am looking forward to sharing them with all of you. They are the truths I live out of. I would love to hear your questions and comments as we have this conversation and will include my responses in what I post. I am looking forward to sharing this journey with you.

Traveling Minute Report

This is the report I read during our monthly business meeting at church last Sunday about my trip to Kenya:

Freedom Friends Church
Traveling Minute Report
Kenya 2009

January 9, 2010

Dear Friends,

Since returning home from Kenya, I have had many people ask me about what being in Kenya was like and what it is like for me to return home. It’s a hard question to respond to as there are so many mixed up emotions, questions, and images within me that are involved in the answer. I find it difficult to describe the changes that took place, how the things I saw, heard, and did changed who I am, how I see the world, my own culture, and myself. But I did change, what I think of the world is changed and now I am left with the question, “How am I to integrate what I learned in Kenya into how I live my life and how I relate to the people and places around me?” My view of the world is much larger than it was before, my sense of the important issues people face is much more realistic, and I now have a better sense of what life, and my place within it, is really like.

The main focus of my trip was the three speaking opportunities I had at two Quaker conferences in the western provinces, one talk on “Women in Ministry” and another on the Quaker Youth Book Project both for the Young Quaker Christian Association of Africa gathering and the third on “Youth in Ministry” which I gave at the youth gathering of East Africa Yearly Meeting (North). All of the talks went extremely well. For the “Women in Ministry” talk, a pastor from the western provinces joined me in order to discuss her experience in ministry and some of the difficulties women face in obeying their call. I was also grateful for the presence of Eden Grace who was there as a support to me but who also added to the conversation during our question and answer period by giving concrete examples of supportive husbands within Kenya. It was very important to me to speak to the women from within their cultural context so I was very grateful for these two women in addition to all the teaching Eden gave our delegation about Kenya beforehand.

For the interest group on the Quaker Youth Book Project which John Lomuria and I presented together, we discussed what the book project is, the process we’re going through, what our experiences working as a board have been like, and where we are going from here. One of the attendees asked us to read one of the pieces going into the book so we read and discussed one of the board member’s stories on membership in a meeting. As a result, we had exactly the kind of conversation we would like the book to inspire, a perfect and very practical example of how the book can be used after its release. I was also very glad to be able to give John some emotional support as he has always before been on his own in Kenya while working on our project which was well received.

The third talk on “Youth in Ministry” took place in front of a large gathering of youth and young adults from East Africa Yearly Meeting (North). For my Biblical text I used the Joseph story as well as sharing some of my own history before encouraging them to obey the calls God had placed on their lives, to listen to what God is saying and to not let anyone silence who they are. For me personally, it was one of the highlights of my trip as the words I spoke became as true for me as it was for them; that I too, need to listen to God’s call on my life and to not let anyone silence me, others or even myself. After the talk, I received good feedback from both the Kenyans and the three women accompanying me. While to me, God’s feedback is most important, I know it can also come from those around me and so what they said was therefore precious to me.

In addition to speaking, I was also part of a delegation from the U.S., the Netherlands, and Britain who visited ministries around Kenya such as the Friends International Center in Nairobi, Lugulu Hospital, an orphanage in Turkana just finishing the process of closing due to lack of funds, and the monthly meeting in Lodwar. Each time we went somewhere, the people we visited with were very grateful we were there. For them, having someone come to visit, to see the ministries with their own eyes, is far more valuable and precious to them than receiving a check in the mail, as important as that also is. It taught our delegation that the most important gift we can give to each other is our time and loving attention.

Even though I am now home, the images of Kenya are still with me. I am learning how to live my life from the point of view I now look out from, to make decisions based on the growth I experienced while there, and to hear the voice of God in my soul in a new way. What this will all look like will be a continual unfolding, one I am excited to see. I pray my time in Kenya was a blessing to many. I am sure I will never know the full extent of that blessing or the ripple effects it might hold, but I trust God’s work and I am grateful to have been a part of it.

Thank you all for your support and encouragement in both my ministry in Kenya and as I continue to minister wherever God leads. I am grateful to have been blessed with a church that holds me in prayer as I go to spread God’s love.

Your fellow Friend,
Sarah Katreen Hoggatt

All Truth is God's Truth

I belong to two churches, one Quaker and one not (it's Christian). In one I have a great base from which to minister, the Quaker church, and in the other, I get a place to be ministered to in the forms of great discussions and time with young adult friends, Ecclesia. Now in both, there is some degree of each but that is their emphasis and I treasure both. In addition to these two churches, I also treasure my time at the Jewish temple as it speaks to places in me Christianity never has. I'll have to think more about what those places are so I can share them with you sometime. Perhaps I'll write that post for Purim.

Ecclesia, on the other hand, is what you would call a house church, started by a group of young adults who worked odd hours and needed a spiritual community. They started a Bible study and after some time, realized they had a church on their hands complete with a pastor. On Sunday, we celebrate our third birthday complete with cards to the church, writing out what we appreciate. I found the group some time ago and have delighted in them more and more ever since as they are great people I love being with and I really needed a group of friends my age to hang out with throughout the week and with whom to share in the love of God.

So on my blog when I say church, it could mean either one but probably means Ecclesia most of the time. I will try to clarify which one I mean. It's important to me to have a couple different sources of spiritual nourishment whether through churches, friendships, and time alone with God. It's unhealthy to get stuck in the ways of one denomination when there is so much truth and richness in others as well. It helps us all be loving children of God when we appreciate and lift up other ways to worship that also echo within us and even those that don't. But no matter what group we participate in, we need to keep remembering and practicing the gift that all truth is God's truth.

Last night at Ecclesia we were talking about praise. To praise someone we tell them, ourselves, and others how great they are, their wonderful qualities, and what they've done. Jordan invited us to say specifically, not in general terms, what God has done for us. For example, when I stretch myself too far like in the last few weeks or I get sick like in the last two days, God "handles" me. He will clear my schedule and give me space when I need it or when I'm not feeling well, he makes sure I get calm substituting jobs where I can stay inside and not move around a lot like in passroom or an office. Tomorrow I get an elementary school library which is my favorite type of job. Putting books away is meditative for me. When I am exhausted and feeling ill, I just lay on the "floor" and God picks me up in his arms and takes me to a place where I can rest under his ministrations. We stay there until I am feeling better which I must admit, I probably prolong a bit as it is so calming and peaceful to just lay down beside where he's sitting and let him lay his hand on my forehead. I don't think he minds me wanting to stay. I am so glad and grateful to know he is there for me. That he is there taking care of me in a very real way and that it is at these times when I can't take care of what I need myself I most sense his presence.

Thank you God for being there holding my hand. There are times in my day when my craving for you flows over me like a downpour of warm rain and I just stand there, soaking that need in knowing you will fulfill it. I love you.

(It feels really weird not numbering my posts for the blog challenge anymore.)

Community Part 1

So I'm at it again. I'm speaking tomorrow to a group of 40-50 junior highers and high schoolers from two churches. Talk about Daniel facing the lions. Subject? Romans 12, Community, more or less. I could also easily revamp and respeak my will of God talk, which I may do yet. It would fit for the high schoolers but I'm not so sure about the junior highers. Finding the will of God for their lives isn't exactly what I think is on their minds.

I'm not sure what to say. The church I go to has a high value on acceptance no matter who you are. I got teased a lot when I was in junior high and high school so that is something I also value. Todd, the pastor, told me questions work well. I like the idea of making this more into a discussion than a talk, a guided forum if you will. So the trick is finding questions junior highers and high schoolers will respond to instead of looking at me with a blank face. My preaching professor taught me to find the one point you want them to take away and then build on that.

The point I want them to take away is unity in diversity, that our differences is what can make us a community.

My wallpaper on my laptop is a great example. It's a photo of ten people, including me at Haw River State Park in North Carolina. What you can't easily tell from the photo is we come from five different countries, four continents and nearly all of us had never met before. But there we were, flown in from all over the world to start work on a project that would unite us for several years. How well the project comes out depends partly on well we got along together, then and in the future. Besides country, we also had differences of culture, language, gender, family, and personalities. Though we all spoke English, we often had to stop and explain the meaning of a word or phrase we were used to using in one country that someone else didn't understand. I and many of the other members of this group were also a little nervous about meeting as we later confessed to one another for we were a little intimidated by each others bio's. But that soon disapeared as we laughed, enjoying each others company, and found a common passion for writing and encouraging the voices of young adults all around the world. Our gifts and talents complimented each other, we each were a piece of the larger picture and we came to appreciate our unity in diversity. I am hoping the book we're producing will be an expression of what we found together, that voices seas apart can be different, perhaps in agreement, perhaps with opposing views, but that they can come together and find strength in their diversity to speak to those who need to hear and be encouraged.

My own church is based on the idea of unity in diversity, that diversity can be a gift to build up and be a light of God's love beautifully illustrated here on earth including all our faults and gifts. We as a group, are about as different as the editorial board. We span the spectrum of culture, economic status, education, gender, background, health, sexuality, age, and theology. By all reckoning and most people's judgement, this should not work. We should not be able to sit down Sunday after Sunday together and worship God. But I have learned through this group that our difference don't have to divide us but can instead bring us what we're missing in our need to live a fuller life. Our Faith and Practice, what we believe and what we do, is what we call our campfire, as individuals, we don't all agree on it but we do agree to sit around it, some people sit farther away, some people sit closer, and certainly we are on all sides. I think the thing that does unite is our belief that whatever theological hairs we split doesn't really matter. We can no sooner have a perfect theology than we can count the stars in the sky. So what does it really matter? We may not all be walking the exact same path but we are walking together.

More when I get bacl from tap class...

Words of the Peggster-

Okay, not the greatest title, but it made my roommate and I laugh a lot more than the others we came up with.

For the first time today, I finally heard my pastor speak. I've been going to the church for nearly a year now but I just tend to tune her out. I'm kidding, she actually doesn't give sermons like many pastors do in other churches I've known. Our meeting/church is what we call semi-programmed. We sing, we share our joy and what is weighing on our hearts, then as Peggy says, "We do the radical thing by shutting up and listening to God." If an individual feels God has a message for them to share, they speak up and do so. The messages are about all different types of things, some meetings have more "ministry", or messages, than others, some are more ministries of silence.

Since I've known Peggy, I've strongly suspected she was a good speaker. She's quite radical, she doesn't give out the classic Christian agenda and I like that. She's not afraid of contradicting things like our fear based culture as she discusses our responsibility to ourselves and others. She kicks my growing edges out quite a bit and she has definitely been a challenge. I've read her writing on her blog, http://www.sillypoorgospel.blogspot.com/, and I have thoroughly enjoyed it, but still, have never heard her speak, one of the things I understand she is quite known for.

But today, just for fun, I googled her name. This came in handy when I first met her to make sure she wasn't some crazed religious nut that would come after me with a 10 volume Bible commentary in one hand and a bloody knife of "truth" in the other, but new stuff comes up all the time on the Internet and I wanted to be sure she was still "safe", as safe as Peggy could ever be anyway. On the first page of results, there was an audio blog podcast of someone who used her talk at the Pacific Northwest Quaker Women's Theology Conference in 2006 as most of the post. It was great, I felt challenged, I felt taught, I felt my eyes had been opened to a new perspective on our culture and how I am to live true to the freedom of God, not the fear pressed upon us by the culture.

So please, give it a listen. Her talks are rarely heard in these parts and worth your time. It was definitely worth mine. I feel grateful to have her as a part of my life and to be a part of Freedom Friends Church. And, if you're ever in the Salem area, stop by and experience our meeting for yourself. Though Peggy doesn't speak, God does, and he is pretty good as well.

Beppepodcast #60 - Peggy Senger Parsons and the Idol of Safety


-Thanks goes to my roommate, Katie, for helping me with the DEFINITELY wonderful spelling help, (see I learned!), and the advice on wording and transitions. She no longer thinks Peggy is as much of a heretic as she did before.

I'm Leaving on a Jet Plane!!!

In early March I received an e-mail with such contents as made me drool all over my laptop. It was quite embarrassing. But at the moment I did not care for my focus was entirely fixated on this incredible opportunity the e-mail link described. As soon as I knew what it was, I wanted to be a part of it- A LOT. It was everything I could want rolled up into one perfect project – the Quaker Youth Book Project. It’s a book filled with non-fiction, poetry, art, and photography written and produced by young adult Quakers, ages 15-30 and the organization, Quakers United in Publishing, was conducting an international search for the editorial board also made up of young adults who would be putting this book together. They wanted people experienced and/or a calling in writing, publishing, art, youth and young adults, and ecumenicalism- many of my favorite things. I requested letters of recommendation from two trusted mentors, wrote a long cover letter answering the application’s list of questions, and e-mailed it off to the project coordinator with everything I could cross, crossed. And much prayer.

The next week an e-mail came into my inbox saying, “I’m pleased to be able to tell you that QUIP has accepted your application to the Quaker Youth Book Project.” I squealed, I jumped up and down, and I made phone calls to the people who “knew you were going to get it.” The next day, the projector coordinator, Angelina, booked my flight to North Carolina for our first meeting along with the flights for the eight other board members. There are nine of us in all from countries including Kenya, Bolivia, Great Britain, Canada, and several from the United States. I am looking forward to meeting them all.

These last few weeks I have been so EXCITED for this trip to Greensboro, North Carolina. I haven’t been further east in the U.S. than Colorado so this is a pretty big deal for me. Not only do I get to meet new people I am sure I will love, but I get to travel to a new place as well. I will be arriving there tomorrow night, on Friday. Saturday we will be with the people of Quakers United in Publishing (how cool is that to meet them!) at their business meeting, then a tour of Guilford College where we’ll have dinner, and then we as a board will speak on a panel before heading back to the state park where we’ll be staying. On Sunday and Monday we’re meeting to discuss all aspects of the book with an evening out on the town on Sunday. Tuesday I fly home in time for tap dancing class. (Anyone want to buy a ticket to our recital?)

All I have left to do tonight is pack and update a webpage or two. I promised Peggy I would blog while there if I could. We shall see. If I get time with someone’s laptop, I will. If not, I will certainly do so when I get home. WITH PICTURES!!! I know I have many people’s good wishes going along with me and I can sense their pride under those airplane’s wings. I cannot tell you in simple words how much this means to me. At dinner with my dad tonight, he gave me a care package of snacks my step-mom put together for my trip. I love parents. Thank you Dad and Mom! And thank you Peggy, and Stacey, and the folks at Freedom Friends Church among many others too many to name for believing in me and being just about as happy as I am that I get to do this. Your joy is making all the difference in the world.

The other night I had a dream of being in that airplane taking off from the tarmac and it felt very much but a little different like a time almost seven years ago when God asked, “Do you trust me?” and I said “yes” and at that very moment, the plane started barreling down the runway and taking off, taking me half-way around the world to an experience I will never forget, one that was both pain and joy filled yet I think, incredibly transforming. I feel like God and I have another of those markers before us, another turn in the road that is going to bring things to a place very different than what they were before. In the dream I felt God with me not asking if I trust Him/Her, because I do, but there will me, enjoying the journey, excited, my sole traveling companion going to a place I’ve never been, to where I do not know anybody, and with the challenge of getting myself there on my own. I think some journeys you just have to take alone and trust that God goes with you. I know He/She does. I am excited to see how this will change my life because I am quite certain that it will in ways I can only now imagine. I am looking forward to sharing it with you in my next post. If you want to pray for something, please pray my bags go with me and do not get lost. I would really appreciate that. Thank you again everyone for believing in me, your love and support is giving my heart the wings I have needed. Ta ta for now!