A Conversation on Becoming Real and Thriving in Ministry with Special Guest Dr. Sandra Montes

08/04/20 • 31 min

In this episode, Dr. Meeks sits down with Dr. Sandra Montes and has a conversation centered on becoming real and thriving in ministry based on Dr. Montes's new book.
Dr. Sandra Montes has been singing since she can speak. She has a doctorate in education and is presently Interim Director of Worship at Union Theological Seminary where she plans and leads multi-sensory worship experiences for the diverse population of Union. Her book, Becoming REAL and Thriving in Ministry talks about her experiences in evangelism, welcoming “the other” and church growth (spiritually and in numbers).

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A Conversation on Respect and Dignity with Special Guest Dr. Beth-Sarah Wright

In this episode, Dr. Meeks sits down with Dr. Beth-Sarah Wright and has a conversation around respect and dignity based on her new book Dignity. In the Episcopal Church, we often speak of dignity. We especially speak of it when we renew our Baptismal Covenant in that we recommit ourselves to respecting the dignity of every human being. While we strive for this, sometimes we fall short. Listen in for the full conversation on dignity, the stories, and the challenges of living into this call as followers of Jesus.
Atlanta-based inspirational writer and speaker, Dr. Beth-Sarah Wright tackles issues of authentic living as an observer and ethnographer, advocate for mental health and as an institutional strategist. She is the author of five books, Me? Depressed? A Story of Depression from Denial to Discovery, Ten Things I Wish I Knew About Depression Before It Almost Took My Life, a spiritual novel, Weeping May Endure for a Night, a book of poetry and spiritual reflections on the Nicene Creed, Becoming Who I Am: Reflections on Wholeness and Embracing Our Divine Stories and DIGNITY: Seven Strategies for Creating Authentic Community. She holds a PhD in Performance Studies from New York University, an MPhil in Anthropology from Cambridge University and a BA (magna cum laude) from Princeton University in Sociology and Afro-American studies. A former college professor at NYU and Spelman College, she currently serves as the Director of Enrollment Management at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School and an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Emory School of Medicine. Dr. Wright is originally from Jamaica and has lived and studied worldwide, from Edinburgh, Scotland to San Juan, Puerto Rico. She is married to Robert C. Wright, the Episcopal Bishop of Atlanta and they are parents to 5 children: Jordan, Emmanuel, Selah, Noah and Moses-Daniel.

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A Conversation with Special Guest The Rev. Canon Nan Arrington Peete

In this episode, Dr. Meeks sits down with the Rev. Canon Nan Arlington Peete. This episode was recorded in Atlanta in November 2019 at the unveiling of the Barbara Harris Justice Center.
An Episcopalian priest, she was born on August 19, 1938, in Chicago, Illinois. She graduated from the University of Chicago Laboratory School in 1955.
Prior to entering the seminary, Peete was a management consultant with Coopers and Lybrand Accounting Firm, where she was an expert in organizational management and financial analysis. After her ordination in 1984, Peete was the curate at St. Mark's Church in Upland, California, and in 1985 became rector of All Saints Church in Indianapolis. Working with the Indianapolis Episcopal Metro Council, she involved the parish in housing the homeless in the nave of the church, which eventually led to the development of the Dayspring family shelter ministry. From 1989 to 1994, Peete served in the Diocese of Atlanta as Canon to the Ordinary. In this assignment, she was responsible for the ordination process of priests, the Training-in-Ministry program, and the deployment of clergy for congregations seeking clergy.
In 1988, Peete was invited by the Archbishop of Canterbury to be a consultant for the Lambeth Conference, a conference of Bishops representing Dioceses around the world. She was the first ordained woman to address this body, which meets every ten years in Canterbury, England. She faced opposition but also received tremendous support as she made her case in the speech she gave. The speech was well-received, and resulted in an international policy change and the ordination of many women priests and the subsequent ordination of women as Bishops of the Episcopal Church. She was also a speaker at the pre-Lambeth meeting of the Afro-Anglican Bishops, held in Cambridge, England. She has been invited to speak and preach at a number of international and national meetings, conventions and assemblies.
From 1994 to 1999, Peete served on the staff at Trinity Church Wall Street as the associate for Pastoral and Outreach ministries, and as the Canon for Ministry in the Diocese of Southern Ohio from 1999 to 2003. She became Canon for Deployment and Ordination for the Diocese of Washington in March 2003. Nan retired in 2005 but continues to be active in the church.