Pastor of Youth &
FAmily Life
rev. Laura Jean TorgeRson
Pastor Laura Jean Torgerson became a minister at Cleveland Park in September 2006.
A graduate of Stanford University and the University of Chicago Divinity School, she has experience in both prison and hospital chaplaincy, as well as pastoral ministry in urban congregations in Chicago.
What I’m ReadinG
Cadences of Home
by Walter Brueggemann
Stardust
by Neil Gaiman
Prayer is a Place
by Phyllis Tickle
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Measuring Religiosity
I participated in an online study today that measures how religious Christians are in six different dimensions, described as follows:
"The authors of the Inclusive Christian Scale have found over the course of previous research studies that religiosity could be thought of in terms of the following six dimensions: evangelical, Christian conservative, activist, golden rule, community involvment, and mystic.
The Evangelical dimension refers to a particular focus on prayer, evangelism or
"The authors of the Inclusive Christian Scale have found over the course of previous research studies that religiosity could be thought of in terms of the following six dimensions: evangelical, Christian conservative, activist, golden rule, community involvment, and mystic.
The Evangelical dimension refers to a particular focus on prayer, evangelism or
Monday, February 25, 2008
Theology of Facebook?
So, this article raises some issues that everyone who uses Facebook (which seems to be pretty much everyone) should at least be aware of. It's scary how much information you give them, and to what uses it might be put.
Nonetheless, I really like Facebook. Part of it is the faces -- I get to see people I care about (or at least am curious about and have generally positive feelings towards) who I may not have seen in person in 10 years, or who live in far-flung areas of the country. Part of it
Nonetheless, I really like Facebook. Part of it is the faces -- I get to see people I care about (or at least am curious about and have generally positive feelings towards) who I may not have seen in person in 10 years, or who live in far-flung areas of the country. Part of it
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Sad and Sobering
I was sad to read this story about a young boy who was shot, presumably because he was gay. The hints as to what his short life might have been like add to the sadness; he was living at "a center for abused and neglected children in the foster care system."
The pastor mentioned comes off well; he seems to be referencing Psalm 139. It's essential, I think for a clergyperson in that situation to assert how God created and loved this boy whose life was cut short.
I wonder about the shooter.
The pastor mentioned comes off well; he seems to be referencing Psalm 139. It's essential, I think for a clergyperson in that situation to assert how God created and loved this boy whose life was cut short.
I wonder about the shooter.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Singleness of Purpose
Another Quinn-inspired (Quinspired?) musing today... at 3 months old, she has made noticeable gains in her manual dexterity. Her main use of said dexterity is grabbing things and putting them in her mouth (sometimes just getting her hands in is good enough). She seemingly never gets tired of the task of grabbing onto things and bringing them to her mouth -- she has an amazing amount of focus and determination when she is doing this, and it is very clearly the sole focus of all the energies of
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Prison Part 2
This will be brief -- I'm yet again running up to my (admittedly self-imposed) midnight deadline.
The thing about ministry to the incarcerated... well, there are a lot of things about it, but there is such an incredible need for it. Jail and prison are, perhaps on purpose, incredibly dehumanizing institutions, and it is an incredible thing to simply treat an inmate like a person.
Perhaps the most important thing my colleagues and I did as volunteer prison chaplains was to acknowledge that
The thing about ministry to the incarcerated... well, there are a lot of things about it, but there is such an incredible need for it. Jail and prison are, perhaps on purpose, incredibly dehumanizing institutions, and it is an incredible thing to simply treat an inmate like a person.
Perhaps the most important thing my colleagues and I did as volunteer prison chaplains was to acknowledge that
