Announcing Certificate in Multicultural Preaching biblical interpretation course preaching women in ministry May 23, 2024

We are excited to announce that Religion for Her is partnering with Portland Seminary and the Leadership Center to launch an all-expenses paid, yearlong Certificate in Biblical Foundations of Multicultural Preaching. This certificate program provides women in ministry with opportunities to:

  • build peer support networks
  • deepen their...
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Fruit of the Spirit: An Adventure in Ancient Manuscripts biblical interpretation curiosity new testament text criticism Jan 14, 2024

How Many Fruit Are there?

Are there twelve fruit of the Spirit or only nine? Most contemporary translations of Galatians 5: 22-23 list nine fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (NIV, for example). 

However, some older manuscripts of the Bible list more than nine...

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Celebrating Women as Creators and Curators of Cultural Artifacts of Awe Dec 30, 2023

Awe is a central facet of human experience, an emotion that grounds us and helps us feel connected to our aliveness, to others, to the world we inhabit, and to the divine. Women play a crucial role in recognizing and commemorating experiences of awe, both individual and collective. Dacher Keltner, who researches wonder and awe at the Greater...

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The Ongoing Complexity of Hope Dec 21, 2023

“On this last darkest day of the year,” sings Ann Reed, “let our hearts meet.”[1]

Tomorrow the days will start to lengthen. Today I am reflecting on the complexities of darkness and what this darkest day of the year might reveal about hope.

This time of year seems marked by both connection and isolation, despair and hope....

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Advent: An Implausible Peace advent faith Dec 01, 2023

The birth of Jesus is narrated as a wondrous spectacle full of supernatural events featuring a cast of implausibly interconnected characters from disparate social locations across a wide geographic span. Angels with shocking proclamations to a pregnant virgin and to shepherds! Wise men from the East following a mysterious star in the night sky!...

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Living Resistance: An Indigenous Vision for Seeking Wholeness Every Day by Kaitlin B. Curtice abundance communal faith leader indigenous voice living resistance resistance wholeness Nov 16, 2023

In her recent publication, Kaitlin B. Curtice explores how showing up as our authentic selves and questioning larger cultural norms is a lifelong path of resistance. Her work deeply resonated with me, as I am in a season of re-evaluating how I show up in the world. How has fear been my motivator instead of love and belonging? In what ways can I...

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Athaliah: When A Woman Ruled Judah embodied reading faith hebrew bible old testament Oct 12, 2023

“Joash remained hidden for six years while Athaliah ruled the land.” The Hebrew Bible records an astonishing thing: a woman ruled the southern kingdom of Judah for six years after her husband and son died (2 Kings 11 and 2 Chronicles 22-23). Athaliah is portrayed as something of a villain in these narratives, perhaps a counterfoil to...

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It Doesn't Have to Be Perfect To Be Wonderful expectations imperfection reconstruct remember wonderful May 16, 2023

With Mother’s Day this past weekend, I spent some time reminiscing on the last 22 years as a mother.

We all have certain expectations in life. We imagine things going a certain way, but often, circumstances turn out much differently than we imagine. This is pregnancy in a nutshell for me. I became pregnant with my first child five months...

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Melissa Ramos Guests on Two Testaments Podcast ancient isreal deuteronomy May 02, 2023

View the video of Melissa Ramos as a featured guest on The Two Testaments Podcast: Two Testaments.

Dr Ramos discusses the covenant ritual of Deuteronomy and the curses in chapters 27-29. In this video, she discusses:

the relationship with ancient Near Eastern rituals
the stones as witnesses to the covenant
the tribes’ roles in the...

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The Tabernacle: Bearing Witness to the Presence of God abrahamic religions acts of kindness bearing witness easter season high priest holy of holies tabernacle Apr 18, 2023

As we are in Easter Season (the seven weeks between Easter Sunday and Pentecost Sunday), I have been reflecting on the new covenant depicted in Hebrews 9-10 and its connection to the earthly tabernacle described in Exodus 25-31. In what ways does religious architecture mediate contact between the deity and the people? How do these passages bear...

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Bearing Witness: What Do We Do With What We See, Hear, and Understand? bearing witness deeplistening discernment lessonsfromtheexodus seeingandacting Apr 11, 2023

The past several months, I’ve been circling round and round the idea of bearing witness. What does it mean to bear witness? Do we only bear witness to sorrow and grief? Or do we bear witness to one another’s joys and longings and delights, too? What makes it possible for us to bear witness in some circumstances and not others? If...

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Bearing Witness: The Women of Easter embodied new testament whole-person engagement with scripture women interpreters Apr 04, 2023

Artwork by Harlem Renaissance painter, William Johnson


When we endure suffering, to have someone truly see, and to remain with us in the midst of it, is a powerful thing.

Life and living is a joyful thing, and we celebrate that during Holy Week. The season of Easter arrives in the midst of blooming flowers, the sparkle of the sun on raindrops...

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