RevGalBlogPals continues a “carnival” of blog posts… so if you are female and a Rev or a Pal of a female Rev, you qualify to play along! 🙂

Teri asks us this question:

What’s the most surprising connection you’ve made through RevGalBlogPals? Or the most surprising or helpful thing you’ve learned/experienced through this galship of friends?

Well, I stumbled on to RevGals when I googled the phrase “women pastors” or something similar. I hadn’t started seminary yet, but I was in process. (It was only a broken dream at that point, one I was struggling to revive.) They were real. They were funny. They brought insight and perspective into this path I was heading down that both scared and excited me. They shared honestly and with great sensitivity. I read every post. Then I began to read from afar about RevGals in the path of Hurricane Katrina, and met via their blogs some of the RevGalPetPals who blogged. That inspired our cats to blog! (Though it’s a bit less these days… I’ll have to talk to them about their slacker ways!)

I made connections all over the place…

• Buckeye fans
• Cat/dog people
• Women who had lost a parent
• Chaplains
• Women who were struggling through seminary
• Pastor-parents

Most of the women were from traditional denominations, and I was not. But I was still welcomed, despite the fact that preaching the Lectionary was not something I had done personally. I took it as a challenge to read, reflect and blog on the Lectionary this year. (So far, I’m only batting about 50% on that, but nevertheless, it’s been a good practice.)

There was acceptance. For example, though I won’t ever get on a BE Cruise, (it’s a phobia… just can’t do it),  I’m still a part of the group.

What surprised me the most, though, was the outpouring of encouragement and support when I hit sticking points in my seminary studies and in my career. Gals and Pals whom I’ve never met offered up prayers. Parenting worries were understood and the advice given was not condemning nor in a manner of superiority. In so many places in the world, the tendency we all have is one-up’ing each other. Not so on RevGals.

And that, perhaps, has been the most refreshing part of all.