Barnabas File

Pam Durso of Baptist Women in Ministry Many friends in local African-American churches participated in special Martin Luther King Day events this weekend.  They were not simply celebrating the life of this courageous leader, they were affirming the message that he preached and committing themselves to continuing to pursue his dream.  For these folks, remembering the work of Dr. King and others who continue to fight to overcome discrimination is part of their DNA.  If only Euro-Americans in progressive Baptist churches were as committed to the cause of ending ministerial discrimination against women!  Baptist Women in Ministry promotes Martha Stearns Marshall Month in February, asking churches to invite a woman to preach one Sunday in recognition of those women who are called to ministry and affirming a particular woman minister.  Too often when this is suggested to the pastor, the worship committee, or the denominational relations committee, the respon...

During a recent road trip, I listened to two audio books.  On the surface, the books would appear to be quite different.  One was the unabridged audio version of Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook. The other was an abridged version of It’s Your Ship:  Management Techniques from the Best Damn Shipin the Navy by Captain D. Michael Abrashoff.  I found, however, that both books had several themes in common. So how could there possibly be a convergence between a self-professed geek, mother, and female executive of an internet company and an Annapolis graduate who commanded a guided missile frigate in the United States Navy?  Although the styles are quite different (Sandberg’s book is part memoir, part motivational tract; Abrashoff’s is more of a management manual), the points at which they converge can be summarized in three words:  retention, relationships and reform. Bot...