St. Stephen's Episcopal Church
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Guest Speakers 2011-2012St. Stephen’s is known for the quality, breadth and depth of speakers who visit the parish, including renowned theologians, writers, poets, and monks. Our speakers series has become a resource not only for our own church but for the larger church and the community.
All events are open to the general public.
To register for an event, please go to the description for the speaker you want. If you'd like to be added to an email list to receive notices of upcoming events, please visit our email subscription page to see the various options.
You can read about past speakers here. You can read about Rector's Forum guest speakers here. You can read about previous speakers (2011- 12) here.
Upcoming speakers:
 Suggested donation: $20 ($10 students) | Register here(Please note: the ending time of this workshop is earlier than initially publicized)
In this morning workshop, Becca Stevens and a Thistle Farmer will inspire you with their testimony of healing, representing a community comprised of hundreds of women who have survived violence, prostitution, traumatic childhoods, prison and the streets. They will come to bear witness to the truth that love is the most powerful force for change in the world. They will talk about the way healing happens in community and even offer some of their great oil recipes for healing! During the morning they will share stories and scripture as we all seek that hallowed space in which the universal issues of violence are born on individual backs, and love heals. We will talk about how we can all join in a movement for women's freedom and find our own voice to speak our truth in love. It is a time set aside to rediscover the courage and humility of being a Thistle Farmer, where the world is our farm and the harvest is plenty, but the laborers are few. Thistle Farms began 15 years ago with a single home and invited five women to live free for two years. With no federal or state money, they have relied on individual gifts and grants and have grown into six homes. Thistle Farms currently employs 40 graduates and residents of Magdalene as they manufacture and distribute all-natural bath and body care products to 200 retail outlets. They have partnerships and sister programs scattered throughout the world and share this model with cities throughout this nation.
Becca also will speak in the Rector's Forum on Sunday, April 29. April 29: "Principles of Healing" Based on Magdalene's 24 Principals of Healing, Becca will talk about healing as a sacrament.
About Becca Stevens
The Rev. Becca Stevens is an Episcopal priest serving as Chaplain at St Augustine’s at Vanderbilt University, and founder of Magdalene & Thistle Farms, a community and social enterprise that stands with women recovering from violence, prostitution, addiction and life on the streets. Magdalene, the residential model, serves women for two years at no cost to residents. Thistle Farms employs 35 residents and graduates who manufacture, market and sell all natural bath and beauty products in over 200 retail stores across the globe. Stevens is the author of eight books and has been featured on NPR, PBS, CNN, Huffington Post, Southern Living, Christian Century, and Victoria Magazine. She was named “Nashvillian of the Year” and “Tennessean of the Year” by the Nashville Scene and The Tennessean respectively. In 2010, she became the youngest and first female recipient of The University of the South’s “Distinguished Alumnus” award. Most recently, Stevens was named by the White House as one of 15 ”Champions of Change.” She was named the 2011 Social Entrepreneur of the Year in Nashville and has received awards from the Frist Foundation and the Academy of Women of Achievement. To date, she has raised more than $13 million for the organizations she supports. Her latest books are Funeral for a Stranger and a walking Bible study series, The Path of Peace, Justice, and Love. Stevens lives in Nashville with her husband, Grammy-winning songwriter Marcus Hummon, and their three sons. Her blog is available at http://www.beccastevens.org.
See a Tedx presentation by Becca here. | Becca Stevens is honored by the White House as a Champion of Change. Read about it here.
Saturday, May 5 | Ana Hernández with Ruth Cunningham
Saturday Workshop, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m.: Open Your Mind, Open Your Heart Suggested donation: $25 ($15 students); lunch available for purchase ($7) or you may bring your own | Register online Explore practices of humming, toning and sacred chanting. As musical beings, we benefit from regular practices that support us and keep us clear in the work we do. An intentional practice will not only open up your singing voice, it will also help to ground and connect you to your spiritual center. Whether you are a singer, instrumentalist, nurse, doctor, priest, teacher, therapist, body worker, or hospice worker, the more you know yourself (and your own vibration) and connect to who you are in your heart, the more effective you are at staying grounded and bringing your wholeness into any situation. These practices are also good for your health: stress is reduced, endorphins are released, circulation improves, and clarity and focus are sharpened. Ana Hernández is our 2011-2012 Artist-in-Residence, and has been a regular visitor to St. Stephen’s and a collaborator with and mentor to the Virginia Girls Choir. Ruth Cunningham is a founding member of the renowned vocal group Anonymous 4. Together, Ana and Ruth are “HARC.”
The Rector’s Forum
Sundays during the academic year, 10:10 a.m. in the Large Fellowship Hall; no registration required As the name suggests, the Rector regularly speaks and teaches in the Forum, as do other members of our clergy staff and lay leaders. The Rector’s Forum is open to all, and no registration is required. Guest speakers this year include the following. (More about the Rector's Forum is here.) 2011
October 2 | Sara Miles November 13 | Marilyn McCord Adams December 4 | Frances Murchison 2012 January 22 | J. Philip Newell February 26 | Br. Kevin Hackett, Society of St. John the Evangelist March 25 | Kathleen Singh April 29 | Becca Stevens |
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