‘Leading Theologically’ wraps up its season, taking a fond look back before glancing ahead

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LOUISVILLE — In the most recent edition of “Leading Theologically,” which can be viewed here, the Rev. Bill Davis and the Rev. Zoë Garry take a look back at the most recent season’s five broadcasts.

Davis is Senior Director for Theological Education Funds Development at the Presbyterian Foundation, and Garry is the Associate Director. Davis hosts “Leading Theologically,” which is released every other Monday. New episodes are planned after the new year.

“One thing that was so great about this season was the breadth of voices we got,” Garry said, noting that the first offering was Davis’ talk with the Co-Moderators of the 226th General Assembly, the Rev. Tony Larson and the Rev. CeCe Armstrong.

“You could tell they had such great energy together even from the very beginning,” Garry said. “I love to see that. It’s a great reminder that even with the breadth of experience we get, you can still enter into newness and have these opportunities and new relationships that we need to explore and learn about with our partners.”

Davis’ next guest was David LaMotte, the musician, author, speaker and activist. When LaMotte spoke to Davis, he was fresh off a viral TEDx Talk on the importance of committee work for effecting change.

“During that talk I could hear Presbyterians doing their own little wave for the love of committees,” Garry said with a grin. “Finally, somebody sees the Presbyterians!”

It’s a false narrative to believe we have to do things alone in this country and rely on a hero to swoop in dramatically to fix our biggest problems, LaMotte says during his talk. “I think that plays into our American culture of individualism, or even in the role our culture of American individualism has in our relationship with faith and God — it’s me and my relationship with God,” Garry said. But it’s more than that: “Me, my relationship with God and with God’s people — the church and the community, and all of that,” Garry said. “I really appreciated the way he painted our need for community and constantly being in relationship with each other. That’s actually where movement and progress happen — deeply in community and within those movements, and not in this individual hero ideal that we tell ourselves.”

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The week after the conversation with LaMotte dropped, Hurricane Helene struck Western North Carolina, where LaMotte lives. Davis then spoke live with Richard DuBose, president of Montreat Conference Center, and Carol Steele, Montreat’s vice president of programs. “We wanted to highlight how we can still be supporting our loved ones and colleagues in ministry in Western North Carolina,” Davis said. “Whether that’s supporting Montreat or the ministries of Black Mountain Presbyterian Church or Grace Covenant Presbyterian Church, there’s important rebuilding work that’s happening in Western North Carolina. That takes all of us.”

As part of Davis’ conversation with the Rev. Brady Radford, a pastor, counselor, coach and consultant, Garry took note of Radford’s “amazing insights on the way our church is changing. He said there’s no more carbon copy, cookie cutter ministry.” For years, many Presbyterians have subscribed to “a recipe that if we do this and this and this, then we’ll have a thriving church,” Garry said. “We really need that contextualization [that Radford spoke about] — in our churches, our communities, and even in our theological education. These invitations to creativity and reimagining, what ministry looks like in these different contexts, is really important.”

“One thing Brady said is all ministry is transitional,” Davis said. “We are going through a rapid, radical, hard transition — not just as a church, but as a nation, and it’s hard work to be a part of it. I want to acknowledge that as well.”

Davis had what he called “a fascinating conversation” with the Rev. Bethany Peerbolte “about the changing technologies in media that we use in ministry.”

“One thing I really appreciated about Bethany’s perspective is she talked about social media in a positive way,” Garry said. Davis said he appreciated how Peerbolte wonders “if TikTok videos are a new parable form. If parables are meant to inspire us to a deeper meaning of God’s kin-dom on Earth, what about those short videos subverts our cultural norms and expectations?”

Davis’ most recent conversation was with the Rev. Dr. José R. Irrizary, the president of Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, and the Rev. Dr. Victor Aloyo, the president of Columbia Theological Seminary.

“We need to understand the way our churches and our communities are shifting. The churches that are growing the most are not the traditional communities that we think of,” Garry said of Davis’ discussion with the two seminary presidents.

What struck Davis was “the stories of their growing up and the churches that formed them. Theological education doesn’t start when we walk onto a seminary campus. Theological education starts from the moment we are baptized into a community, or start worshiping together, or walk into an adult education class, or go on a mission trip together.”

“I think seminaries have a deep responsibility for spiritual formation, but most people don’t go to seminary,” Garry noted. “Most people go to church, and most people have friends — and that is how they see and experience God, through those places and these people.”

Davis said the early 2025 editions of “Leading Theologically” will focus on reconciliation. Conversation guides will accompany the new broadcasts. “That can be a tool for you to use in your ministry contexts as we wrestle with how God calls us to be one body in the world, witnessing to the light, love, grace and mercy of Jesus Christ,” he said. “We look forward to being together soon.”

Learn more about the Theological Education Fund here.