Igniting Imagination

This week, host Rev. Lisa Greenwood and co-host Rev. Kathi McShane speak with Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean and Rev. Dr. Michael Beck to explore the concept of "small boats," or small experiments that are giving us vision and hope for the church as we look to the future. Traditional leadership models are transitioning to leadership that empowers others in the community, fostering gifts and spiritual growth. Kenda and Michael discuss various themes integral to the evolving church, highlighting the significant role of trust-building and patient, deliberate leadership in fostering genuine community connections. 

Listen as Lisa, Kathi, Kenda, and Michael explore how small, nimble efforts within faith communities can achieve extraordinary impacts. 

Guests

Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean is an ordained pastor, professor, and author. She is Mary D. Synnott Professor of Youth, Church, and Culture at Princeton Theological Seminary. Her work has focused on building meaningful connections among youth, culture, and the church. She is the author of Innovating for Love. Kenda was named the 2024 Distinguished Locke Innovative Leader.

Rev. Dr. Michael Beck is a pastor, professor, coach, consultant, and author. Michael is the Director of Fresh Expressions for The United Methodist Church, Director of Fresh Expressions Florida, and Director of Fresh Expressions for The United Methodist Church. He serves as the co-pastor of Wildwood UMC, St. Marks UMC, and Compassion UMC with his wife, Jill. 

 Quotes

• “You can't do the vision God has given you without winning the trust of the people God has given you. That is something that's a slow walk of patience in a lot of cases. There are some risks that you take for sure, but you do a lot of really normal stuff, like just walking with people while they struggle." -Kenda Creasy Dean [26:16]

• “We're teaching what we think is the heart of the faith, which is union with Jesus. That is the goal here. It's not that you become a member of something or, you know, that you do all the religious service stuff, but that you experience deep union with Jesus. From doing that, you will change and you'll be a more compassionate kind of person.” -Michael Beck [45:55]

Episode Highlights  

• Small Boats: The concept emphasizes the substantial impact of numerous small, adaptable initiatives within the church.
• Trust and Patience: Building trust within communities and going at a pace that allows for real connection and leadership development.
• Innovative Models: Fresh Expressions demonstrates how integrating faith into everyday activities can make the church more accessible and relevant.
• Leader of Leaders: The need for modern clergy to be leaders who empower others, moving away from the "pastoral vending machine" model.
• Deep Formation: Ensuring new church movements incorporate deep spiritual and communal formation to sustain long-term impact.

Timestamps

(00:00) Exploring Small Boats and Innovation in the Future Church

(06:43) Small Boats Solving Big Problems: The Dunkirk Analogy

(09:43) Fresh Expressions and the Shift from Big Boats to Small Boats

(18:30) Reimagining Church Leadership and Mission

(21:47) Trust, Transformation, and Community in Church Leadership

(25:20) Building Trust and Leadership in Pastoral Training

(38:06) Integrating Faith into Everyday Life

(47:13) Future of the Mainline Church and Youth Ministry Innovations

Links

Visit our show’s website at www.ignitingimagination.org.

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days; we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

This week, host Rev. Lisa Greenwood and co-host Rev. Kathi McShane continue exploring themes that will be essential to the future church – and they are happening right now. Rev. Bill Lamar IV, Pastor of Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church, and Rev. Dr. Reginald Blount, Associate Professor of Formation, Leadership, and Culture at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, join Lisa and Kathi to discuss the power of place. This idea of ‘going local’ or the power of place in local, contextual ministry is a means of grace now and for the future flourishing of people, congregations, and communities.

Listen as they talk about the need for leaders to embrace the local stories and narratives of their communities while also advocating for the inclusion of younger generations in leading transformative change within the church.

Guests

Rev. William H. Lamar IV is the pastor of Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. He previously served Turner Memorial AME Church in Maryland and three churches in Florida. He is a former managing director at Leadership Education at Duke Divinity. Lamar is a graduate of Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and Duke Divinity School. He is the co-host of "Can These Bones," a faith and leadership podcast.

Rev. Dr. Reginald Blount serves on the faculty of Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary as Associate Professor of Formation, Leadership, and Culture and teaches in the area of Christian Education, Congregational Leadership, and Youth and Young Adult Ministry. He is the Program Director of the Garrett Young Adult Initiative and serves as an advisor for the Doctor of Ministry in Strategic Leadership in Black Congregations. Reggie is Co-Founder and Executive Director of The Oikos Institute, helping congregations harness the power of their assets to be a catalyst for communal transformation and economic renewal.

Quotes

• “Not only do human beings have personhood, but objects, too. Objects are to be respected, and objects are to be learned from and to be revered. And the church itself, I mean, there is an energy to the place that teaches the one who would listen. And so what I share with people who come is that architecture is a form of rhetoric. Any sign, symbol or language that communicates is rhetorical." -Rev. William H. Lamar IV [20:35]

• “Humanity can learn what it means to be human. Every culture offers that from within its own particularity. So if we take that theological principle and understand that God is particularly, radically, offensively involved in the local, in the particular and the infinitesimal of human granular life, then we realize the church exists symbiotically with what surrounds what I think about this.” -Rev. Dr. Reginald Blount [31:36]

Episode Highlights  

• The Role of Place in Formation: Both guests underscore how deeply the places we inhabit inform our spiritual and communal lives.
• AME Tradition and Community: The African Methodist Episcopal Church’s emphasis on community engagement offers profound lessons in living out faith in local contexts.
• Innovative Local Ministry: Successful ministry innovation is deeply rooted in understanding and engaging the local community, fostering both spiritual and physical well-being.
• Theological Anthropology: Understanding God's relationship with humanity is essential for nurturing inclusive and neighborly relations within communities.
• Empowering Youth: The significance of allowing young people to lead and shape the future direction of the church is key to its vitality and relevance.

Timestamps

(01:30) Exploring The Power Of Place In Ministry

(07:15) The Influence of Place on Identity and Ministry

(11:44) The Spiritual and Cultural Significance of Place in AME Tradition

(24:16) Revitalizing Neighborhoods Through Church Collaboration and Social Capital

(30:00) The Sanctity and Importance of Local Pastoral Work

(37:11) Theological Anthropology and Its Impact on Community Engagement

(47:52) Youth Leadership as the Future of the Church

Links

Visit our show’s website at www.ignitingimagination.org.

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days; we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

What is the role of power in the new spiritual landscape emerging today? This season, we are exploring the themes we believe are glimpses of what will be critical guideposts for the future church.

This week, host Rev. Lisa Greenwood and co-host Rev. Kathi McShane speak with Vipin Thekk and Rabbi Elan Babchuck. Vipin Thekk, Founder of the Changemaker Communities initiative, is an experienced facilitator, coach, design consultant, public speaker, and serial entrepreneur. Rabbi Elan Babchuck is co-author of Picking Up the Pieces: Leadership After Empire and serves as the Founding Executive Director of Glean Network and Executive Vice President at Clal, the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. Listen as Lisa, Kathi, Vipin, and Elan explore how relational power can emerge from trust-based collaboration, slowing down, and togetherness practices while transforming leadership and faith communities.

Guests

Vipin Thekk is an experienced facilitator, coach, design consultant, public speaker, and serial entrepreneur. He is the founder of the Changemaker Communities initiative, which weaves together influential institutions in cities to support the next generation of changemakers. He is constantly creating new programs that help people connect and bring their whole selves to their work and discover their power to become changemakers. His most recent, incredible contribution to the world is the Togetherness Practice.

Rabbi Elan Babchuck is the co-author of Picking Up the Pieces: Leadership After Empire. He is committed to leaving behind a world that is more compassionate and connected than the one he found. In pursuit of that commitment, he serves as the Executive Vice President at Clal, the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, and the Founding Executive Director of Glean Network, an incubator and network for entrepreneurs who are building new models of faith in action.

 Quotes

• “The more that we speak about the aspirational model of shared power publicly, honestly, vulnerably, and using terms like this is how I aspire to lead in the world, the better that our community, those who we hold in power and love, can invite us to live into those values, to live into that vision." -Vipin Thekk [17:23]

• “I was asking people essentially, to trade in the things, the engagements they already had in their lives for something that was really about my project in the world, which was the institution of the church. When we as leaders of the church, need to question that. How can the church help people do things with a different character as a person of faith, becoming a compassion-driven change maker like Jesus?” -Rev. Kathi McShane [24:33]

Episode Highlights  

• Relational Power: Power is found and formed between individuals, manifesting through relationships, trust, and collaboration rather than hierarchical structures.
• Shared Leadership: Emerging spiritual landscapes are moving away from lone leadership towards collaborative and shared leadership models.
• Formation and Practice: Leadership in the future church involves deep personal and spiritual formation, often cultivated through practices like Vipin’s Togetherness Practice.
• Vulnerability and Trust: Effective leadership and power dynamics depend heavily on vulnerability, trust, and authenticity within relationships.
• Cultural Observations: Examples from popular culture, such as Taylor Swift’s fanbase, can provide insights into new forms of collective power and relational dynamics.

Timestamps

(00:10) Exploring Power Dynamics in the Emerging Spiritual Landscape

(05:48) The Role of Power in Leadership After Empire

(23:14) Shifting Church Leadership Toward Collaborative Spiritual Innovation

(28:09) The Shadow Dimension of Leadership and Personal Roles in Drama

(31:48) Becoming More of Yourself in Leadership

(34:19) The Togetherness Practice: A Framework for Changemakers

(37:45) Transformational Change Through Relational Spaces and Togetherness Practice

(41:53) Courageous Leadership and the Importance of Relational Focus

(47:37) Finding Gifts in Every Room and Within Ourselves

(50:47) Small Boats and the Future of the Church

Links

Visit our show’s website at www.ignitingimagination.org.

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days; we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

What are we seeing right around the corner from where the church is today? Around the corner is closer than we think. The Spirit is up to something and the invitation is to get close to what is happening right now, to pay attention, to notice, and to wonder. 

This week hosts Lisa Greenwood and Kathi McShane speak with Rev. Alicia Forde, a pastor, poet, and organizer, and Tamice Spencer-Helms, a published author, speaker, and theologian. They explore the role of hospitality in what is emerging in the spiritual landscape today, not just as a friendly gesture but as a profound spiritual and proactive action that aligns with the justice and love of God. Listen as Lisa, Kathi, Alicia, and Tamice explore how we can expand our conventional understanding of hospitality, cultivating intentionality, letting go of control, and allowing space for authentic human connection.

Guests

Rev. Alicia Forde is the newest member of the Learning and Innovation Team at Wesleyan Impact Partners, serving as our Director of Formation…we could not be more thrilled to welcome Alicia this fall and we are sure this is the first of what will be more podcast conversations with Alicia. Alicia is a pastor, poet, and organizer and most recently served for the UUA, as the International Office Director.

Tamice Spencer-Helms is a published author, speaker, and theologian based in Richmond, Virginia. After 16 years of full-time ministry, she founded Sub: Culture Incorporated, a nonprofit that provides holistic support and crisis relief for Black College Students. Her book released in 2023 is Faith Unleavened: The Wilderness Between Trayvon Martin & George Floyd. 

 Quotes

• “I think about, like the hospitality industry. I think about the food industry. People come to these establishments with an amount of vulnerability already because they're coming to rest, they're coming to enjoy a meal. I think there is something really powerful about crafting and curating a space and being entrusted with a space that would enable someone to rest or enjoy their family or mourn the loss of a loved one or celebrate some sort of milestone." -Tamice Spencer-Helms [16:11]

• “A congregation is more than just a building. It's more than just those four walls. It becomes about being attuned to the world outside your doors and who you’re in relationship with, and solidarity with those folks, because they too are part of God's kingdom and the community that you serve. It takes missional clarity to understand that your world is bigger than this beautiful space that you inhabit, and it flows out, and that the call is to be in relationship with the most marginal, vulnerable who exist right outside the door.” -Rev. Alicia Forde [27:40]

Episode Highlights  

• Proactive Hospitality: True hospitality is proactive, involves aesthetics, authenticity, and attunement, and goes beyond simple friendliness.
• Justice and Love: Effective hospitality integrates justice, attuned to the needs and stories of the marginalized, embodying God's love.
• Vulnerability and Belonging: Spaces of hospitality must prioritize vulnerability and authenticity to foster a sense of belonging.
• Attunement to Community: Congregational hospitality involves being attuned to the broader community, not just those within church walls.
• Contemplative Practice: Slowing down and practicing contemplation can enhance the ability of spiritual communities to offer genuine hospitality.

Timestamps

(00:40) What is Around the Corner for the Church

(03:16) Mosaic Leadership and the Role of Hospitality

(05:48) Exploring Hospitality Through Intentionality and Letting Go

(11:36) The Intersection of Hospitality, Vulnerability, and Self-Love

(20:10) The Call for Faith Communities to Embrace Everyone Equally

(29:31) A Missed Opportunity for Compassion Outside Church

(33:07) Justice, Love, and Hospitality: A Path to Liberation

(39:09) Cultivating Radical Hospitality in Christian Communities

(50:24) Imagining the Future Church Through Small Boats and Big Impacts

Links

Visit our show’s website at www.ignitingimagination.org.

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days; we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean reminds us in her new book, Innovating for Love, that we don’t create new things for the sake of change, for innovation’s sake, but rather so that we can love better. We are always finding new ways to love our neighbors in the ways Jesus calls us to love. Carlos Huerta, the Executive Director of the Center for Community Transformation in Fresno, certainly embodies Kenda’s notion. A California-based entrepreneur who turned his attention and life’s work to loving people well – listening to their stories and sharing his own, giving space for building connections, community, and voice. Carlos reminds us that innovation begins with paying attention. Wow! Could it be that simple? What might that look like in our own congregations, families, neighborhoods? What are we paying attention to? What are we noticing? Who might we partner with in our community to love better? We hope Carlos’ story sparks a new conversation and perhaps a new idea for you as you lean into God’s call for this season of your life and ministry. Please share with friends and colleagues and leave us a review. Thanks for listening!

In this conversation, you’ll hear:

• Carlos’ rootedness in Fresno and his inspired journey that led him to become the Executive Director for the Center for Community Transformation.
• Why “doing life together” is so central to innovation.
• How the theology of imago dei has shaped Carlos’ leadership.

About Carlos Huerta

Carlos is the executive director of the Center for Community Transformation, overseeing programs in entrepreneurship, financial literacy, ministry leadership training for Spanish-speaking leaders and soft-skills job-training. Carlos holds a bachelor's degree in social work from Fresno Pacific University, a master's degree in Organizational Leadership from Michigan State University, and an MBA from Fresno Pacific University.

Read about Carlos’ organization, the Center for Community Transformation: https://www.fresno.edu/departments/center-community-transformation

Read all about the Locke Innovative Leader Award on our website: https://wesleyanimpactpartners.org/locke-leaders

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional related resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days, we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts / iTunes?

Pastah J, as his friends and parishioners affectionately call him, is a remarkable testament to the notion that innovating is what happens when you love the people you are with. We often make innovation out to be the next, big, creative, tech, cool thing when really it's about figuring out how to love our neighbors better and how to more deeply and faithfully root ourselves in Jesus' call. It's ministry. It's courageously saying YES. It's never going it alone. It's tenaciously pursuing possibilities. It's being a neighbor and loving the neighborhood. We pray this conversation sparks a new idea or even a new courage in you and your ministry. If it does, please share with friends and colleagues and leave us a review. Thanks for listening!

In this conversation, you’ll hear:

• Pastah J’s relational approach to ministry with the Englewood and Lawndale communities in Chicago.
• How Pastah J organized bringing Whole Foods into the neighborhood on the neighborhood’s terms.
• Pastah J’s vision is to destroy Saviorism in congregations and reclaim neighboring neglected neighborhoods.
• Discussion of the quote from Benjamin Mays, “The love of God and love of humanity is one love” and why it beautifully articulates Pastah J’s ministry.

About Jonathan Brooks 

Rev. Jonathan Brooks, or Pastah J, as he is affectionately known, is a lifelong resident of Chicago, IL, and serves as the lead pastor at Lawndale Christian Community Church in the North Lawndale Neighborhood. He is also the board chair of the Parish Collective. He previously served as the senior pastor at Canaan Community Church in the West Englewood neighborhood for fifteen years. As an educator on many different levels and a firm believer in investing in your local community, Jonathan has a deep desire to impress this virtue on the students and young people in his congregation, classroom, and community. His ministry focuses on youth development, holistic health, college scholarships, art and music training as well as restorative justice practices and care for the incarcerated and their families.

Pastah J is a sought-after speaker, writer, artist, and community activist. He has contributed to numerous blogs, articles and books, and his most recent book is Church Forsaken: PracticingPresence in Neglected Neighborhoods.

For more information about Jonathan “Pastah J” Brooks, visit: pastahj.com.

Pastah J is the Lead Pastor of Lawndale Christian Community Church in Chicago: http://www.lawndalechurch.org/

Read all about the Locke Innovative Leader Award on our website: https://wesleyanimpactpartners.org/locke-leaders

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional related resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days, we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts / iTunes?

Our Locke Innovative Leaders offer a powerful picture of what is possible for the church. They don’t just see a need, they see great potential that exists in that need, and they respond with the next faithful step, always gathering others to help create and build. It’s remarkably consistent. Moy Mendez, a pastor in Chicago and the Executive Director of the Hope Center in Blue Island, is a great example – he didn’t just see the needs of his community; he saw the potential, and he leaned in, offering a platform for the giftedness of his neighbors. Today, Hope Center employs, engages, and trains neighbors in agriculture, auto mechanics, technology, and the arts, building a culture of hope and well-being. Lives are being transformed! We can’t wait for you to meet Moy and hear his story! We pray it sparks an imagination in you for what is possible and if it does, please share with friends and colleagues and leave us a review. Thanks for listening!

In this conversation, you’ll hear: 

• Co-host Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean describe what it means to her to be named an innovative leader.
• Moy Mendez share his calling to create a platform to empower people
• Why Moy believes the Hope Center is the ‘modern look of evangelism’  
• How Moy experienced “innovating for love” as a child and how he innovates for love today. 

About Moy Mendez

Moy Mendez is a dedicated and visionary leader, serving as the Executive Director of the Hope Center, a dynamic non-profit organization committed to catalyzing community economic development. His journey is a testament to the transformative power of faith, education, and a deep-seated commitment to giving back to the community that shaped him.

Born and raised in a close-knit community, Moy's early years instilled a profound sense of responsibility and a genuine desire to make a positive impact. His unwavering belief in the potential of individuals to create change led him to establish the Hope Center—a platform aimed at equipping the next generation of entrepreneurs in diverse fields, including agriculture, technology, and auto mechanics.

Moy's faith has been a guiding force throughout his life, serving as the cornerstone of his personal values and professional pursuits. Grounded in his strong convictions, he has seamlessly intertwined his spiritual beliefs with his career aspirations. This harmonious blend has not only enriched his journey but has also inspired those around him to find purpose and fulfillment in their own endeavors.

Education has been a cornerstone of Moy's personal growth and professional success. He holds an Associates Degree in Computer Programming from Moraine Valley Community College, a Bachelor's Degree in Theology from Christian Life College, and a Master's Degree in Philosophy of Religion from Trinity International University. Moy enjoys traveling with his wife Eva and dog Oreo in his free time to state parks and beach fronts.

For more information about Hope Center, visit: https://hopecenter.tv/

Read all about the Locke Innovative Leader Award on our website: https://wesleyanimpactpartners.org/locke-leaders

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional related resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days, we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts / iTunes?

We are so excited about this season of the Igniting Imagination Podcast as Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean and Rev. Lisa Greenwood have conversations with four exceptional, innovative faith leaders who are profoundly influencing the way we think about the church’s mission and witness. It’s stunning and inspiring! Our guest this week is Rev. Dr. Heber Brown, III. Heber’s story, the story of how the Black church he served in Baltimore birthed a network of hundreds of churches and black farmers to feed thousands of people with healthy, fresh food, is remarkable. Truly. Nothing short of the powerful work of God! We pray Heber’s story will ignite a new conversation, a new way of thinking, a new imagination in you.

In this conversation, you’ll hear:

• Co-host Rev. Dr. Kenda Creasy Dean shares the qualities of innovative leaders she’s observed.
• Heber’s God-sized vision for a small plot of land on his church property.
• How networking allowed something small to have an outsized impact.
• Heber’s call to a mission, not a church.

About Rev. Dr. Heber Brown, III

Rev. Dr. Heber M. Brown, III has been a catalyst for personal transformation and social change for more than 20 years. For nearly 14 years, he served as pastor of a Baptist church in Baltimore, where he saw and personally experienced the impacts of food apartheid. This helped to inspire him to launch the Black Church Food Security Network which advances food security and food sovereignty by co-creating Black food ecosystems anchored by nearly 250 Black congregations in partnership with Black farmers and other food justice stakeholders. He serves on the board of Bread for the World and has garnered numerous awards including an Ashoka Fellowship. He is the author of the forthcoming book Nothing More Sacred: Radical Stories of Black Church Faith, Food and Freedom.

For more information about Rev. Dr. Brown, visit his website: https://www.heberbrown.com/

For more information about the Black Church Food Security Network, visit: https://blackchurchfoodsecurity.net/

Read all about the Locke Innovative Leader Award on our website: https://wesleyanimpactpartners.org/locke-leaders

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional related resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days, we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts / iTunes?

Have you enjoyed Season 10 of our Igniting Imagination Podcast as much as we have?! We started with Margaret Wheatley and we are ending the season with two remarkable innovative leaders, who also happen to be part of our leadership learning and innovation team, Rev. Kathi McShane and Derrick Scott, III. If you haven’t been listening, this conversation can guide you toward the episodes that most speak to you – it’s a great place to start! If you’ve been listening along the way, we hope you’ll find it helpful to pull on the threads that name the realities we are facing today and how we claim our leadership in the midst. It’s not an easy season, but I’m convinced we have an opportunity to lead in new ways that get us a bit closer to the world that God imagines. 

In this conversation, you’ll hear:

• Leading in a time of polarization.
• The importance of naming and understanding ambiguous loss.
• More responses to Wheatley’s “addicted to hope”.

Derrick Scott, III is the associate director of learning and innovation for Wesleyan Impact Partners. Derrick has been leading ministry in the collegiate and young adult context for over 20 years.

In addition to his work with Wesleyan Impact Partners, Derrick currently serves as the creative producer of Studio Wesley, a ministry that’s exploring how to serve college-aged young adults in the digital space. He is also the co-lay leader of the Florida Conference of the UMC. He is passionate about empowering a new generation of leaders and laborers who will live as disciples of Jesus Christ to transform the world.

He has an undergraduate degree in history, is a Cicerone Certified Beer Server, and is a textbook introvert. He loves eating sushi, flying on Delta, and pouring craft beer. He lives in Jacksonville, Florida with his Chihuahua-mix dog Winston and Bengal cat Julian. Most importantly, he hates mayonnaise.

Rev. Kathleen McShane is the director of learning and innovation for Wesleyan Impact Partners. Kathi retired from active ministry as an ordained Elder in the California-Nevada Conference of the United Methodist Church in 2022. She led four congregations and served for eight years as the vice president for Institutional Advancement at Pacific School of Religion. Before attending seminary and beginning her life in ministry, she was a civil litigator, practicing law in the San Francisco Bay Area.

In her final appointment in Los Altos, California, Kathi co-founded the Changemaker Initiative, which is a small national movement of churches committed to empowering lay people to become compassion-driven changemakers like Jesus. That work has led her toward multiple projects that are re-imagining leadership for the church of the future. She is the co-author, with Rabbi Elan Babchuck, of Picking Up the Pieces: Leadership after Empire.

Kathi lives on a vineyard on the Central Coast of California.

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional related resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days, we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts / iTunes?

In this week’s episode of the Igniting Imagination Podcast, we talk with professor Eric Barreto who invites us into a biblical imagination for our work together. We love how he reminds us to keep coming back to the good news of Jesus. Yes! That is what inspires us, forms us, equips and animates us! We hope this conversation gives you a new imagination for what’s possible and if it does, please share with friends and leave us a review! Thank you for listening!

In this conversation, you’ll hear:

• How childhood experiences shaped Eric’s understanding of faith and the church.
• The value of a seminary education today.
• Biblical wisdom for this time of polarization.
• The gift of Hispanic and Latino perspectives in biblical and theological studies.

About Eric Barreto

Dr. Eric D. Barreto is the Weyerhaeuser Associate Professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary. He holds a BA in religion from Oklahoma Baptist University, an MDiv from Princeton Seminary, and a PhD in New Testament from Emory University. Prior to coming to Princeton Theological Seminary, he served as associate professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary, and also taught as an adjunct professor at the Candler School of Theology and McAfee School of Theology.

As a Baptist minister, Barreto has pursued scholarship for the sake of the church, and he regularly writes for and teaches in faith communities around the country. He has also been a leader in the Hispanic Theological Initiative Consortium, a national, ecumenical, and inter-constitutional consortium comprised of some of the top seminaries, theological schools, and religion departments in the country. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the National Association of Baptist Professors of Religion.

Visit Eric’s website at: https://www.ericbarreto.com/

To view videos of podcast episodes, please go to the Igniting Imagination YouTube.

Subscribe to our Learning and Innovation emails here. We send emails about each episode and include additional related resources related to the episode’s topic. We know your inbox is inundated these days, we aim to send you content that is inspiring, innovative, and impactful for your life and ministry.

If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts / iTunes?