The Wesley Journal

Editor's Note:

Moving Onward and Upward As We Reemerge to Continue the Mission and Navigate the Journey of 'The Call' Ahead.

The Wesley Student Journal has traditionally been a space of expression for graduate students to explore faith tensions, theological praxis and journal about the seminary journey. Over time and throughout a myriad of circumstances, disheartening events, and grief related to the pandemics of a global health emergency, ongoing social injustice and uprisings, and the uncertain state of the church, the Wesley Student Journal has transformed into a space of reflection for the Wesley community that includes collaborative efforts from seminarian students and faculty and writers across the globe.

The Wesley Student Journal’s reemergence intends to be a space for reflection for the Wesley Community to reveal the journey of “the call” from varied perspectives, including academia, worship, liturgy curation, and ponderings about traditional and non-traditional ministry, mental health matters and self-care. This issue focuses on the periods of reflection throughout the liturgical year from Advent to Easter. It explores sorrow, hope, and what it means to care for self-care and take seriously the concerns of others throughout the seasons as we navigate the ebbs and flows of life, recognizing the liturgical calendar. The WSJ reemergence issue also honors women’s sacred existence sharing how the Wesley community has celebrated women’s voices in myriad ways.

As the Wesley Student Journal reemerges, it is symbolic of the intentional fellowship and imaginative prophetic efforts of the Wesley Community sprinkling about our community. May the visuals of fellowship, words of encouragement, and reflections of our contributors offer encouragement along the seminary journey and urge imaginative, responsive hope as you navigate “the call”.

Amen and Ase,

Yasika Bigham

Reemerging Anew Issue April 2023

Inside this Issue

It's Time to Be and Not Do by Rev. Dr. Lisa Banks-Williams

In this season of Advent, we often focus on the liturgical themes of Hope, Joy Love and for this week it’s peace.

Isaiah called the coming Messiah Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Prince of Peace, Everlasting Father. There are over 400 references to peace in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament. We say, “Peace on earth and Goodwill towards mankind”. But, does this declaration include the peace we need for ourselves?

Jesus came to be the savior of the whole world. You did not, cannot, and should not attempt to do the assignment that Jesus came to fulfill. We are made in God’s, image. And as we have accepted the call to ministry, We are imbued with God’s power. But, sometimes we get overwhelmed, not just with the enormity of what is required of us; but with the wonder of being used by God. That power is weighty, it is exciting to be used by God to do the work of ministry. Unfortunately, we can become trapped in the mindset that we can and must do it all.

In this season of Advent, I encourage us to be intentional about seeking peace. The peace that comes when we really accept that we are saved by grace and not by our works. And sometimes peace comes, when we recognize that the things that we avoid the most, are the things that we need to embrace. Peace comes when instead of trying to be gracious, and compassionate to everyone else, we save some of that grace and compassion for ourselves.

Make this Advent season, a season of rest, relaxation, and reflection. Make this Advent season, a season of rest, relaxation, and reflection. One way to do this is to stop doing and just BE. It’s bad grammar, but good theology.

Here are some ways to practicing just

BE(ing):

Be intentional about the activities and the use of your time.

Be intentional about exercising self-care

Self-care is not self-indulgence.
Self-care is not selfish.
Self-care is not self-sufficiency.
Self-care is a survival skill.

Self-care means seeking the things that bring you peace. Self-care means trusting the spirit of God that lives within you to lead and guide you. Self-care entails learning to live with contentment when joy may be just out of reach. Self-care also means having self-compassion.

We must be willing to forgive ourselves when we fall short of our own expectations as well as the expectations of others.

Self-care means committing your goals wants and dreams to the Lord by putting those things into the only hands who can make them into realities.

Peace comes when we exercise self-compassion, it is time to give yourself the gift, you readily give to others-compassion. Peace comes from Being instead of doing.

In this season and from now on, take time to be and not just do.

Next semester we are going to be sharing information and strategies to help us be more intentional about self-care. Stay tuned for Self-care Survival Skills.

Rev. Dr. Lisa C. Banks-Williams, is the Wesley Program Coordinator for Student Care in the Office of Community Life.

Name That Thing by Rev. Olivia Tate

Chile, ain’t nothing wrong with me. I’m just tired as hell.” The combination of her words and body language as she spoke were all too familiar to me. I was a clinician in training, working as an intern at a mental health clinic. I had my Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM) on hand, and I was prepared to check off the criteria to make a diagnosis to describe her symptoms. “Keisha” had come into the clinic at the encouragement of her best friend, whom she stated was concerned about her. She insisted that there was “nothing wrong” with her, but that she’d promised her friend she would come in and get checked out.

Then, I asked her to describe how she was feeling, and she was able to describe an internal warfare that was taking place in her mind and body. She talked about how she had lost interest in some of the things she loved, and that her motivation to do simple tasks was nonexistent. She had not missed work, nor was she sleeping excessively because those were not viable options for her. As a Black woman, she felt obligated to continued showing up in all the ways, because that what she was expected to do. That was all she knew to do.

Keisha was so tethered to the Strong Black Woman trope of self-sacrificing and toxic independence that she did not realize how these behaviors were negatively impacting her. She acknowledged that she had been feeling “off,” but she couldn’t really put her finger on what the problem was. Besides, the religious culture in which she had been indoctrinated in, did not make space for non-medical, or non-tangible illnesses. The tension between her faith and the emotional crisis that she was experiencing added to her distress, so she insisted that there was not anything wrong with her. She did not exhibit many of the external signs that the DSM suggests are normative for patients diagnosed with Major or Persistent Depressive Disorder (MDD/PDD), but the internal conflicts that this sister was battling was undeniable.

The reality is, there is a very thin line between saying things that are not as though they are, and flat out lying. A thin line. Indeed, there is power in speaking over yourself and believing God for supernatural healing. There is also power in acknowledging our reality and trusting our Creator to show up in creative ways. What might it look like, if we were honest with ourselves and called a thing, a thing? As a student clinician, I was tethered to the DSM to diagnose and treat clients living with mental illnesses.

As a Black woman, I had some lived experiences paired with a gift of discernment that allowed me to look beyond the clinical presentation of this client and see her. For the first time in her life, she had a name for the cycles that she had been experiencing since childhood. She reflected on how there was a common thread of what was deemed “moodiness” among several of her family members. It ran in the family, and now, it had a name. There is power in the naming.

In the first story of creation, found in Genesis 1, God assigned Adam the task of naming all the animals. God had already created the animals of the earth, but they remained unnamed. It was important to label each animal, so that each creature could be addressed individually. As they roamed the earth, it became necessary to be able to distinguish between the goat and the turtle. The distinction between the eagle and the camel was necessary, because their purpose was different. When we name a thing, we can speak directly to the thing. Once Adam named the four-legged, hump-back creature “camel,” he was able to call out to the camel and give directives. Otherwise, when he called out and said “come,” several creatures would likely show up.

When we name our experiences and symptoms, we gain the power to address them directly. Refusing to name or acknowledge the existence of these things, do not make the thing cease to exist. Instead, the thing becomes larger, stronger, and more persistent. It holds the power until we face it and call it by its name. Let’s reclaim our power, sis.

While there are different types of depression, and it can show up a myriad of ways, particularly for Black women, here are a few tips for riding the waves:

Embrace the power of naming and acknowledging your experience.
Have your doctor rule out any medical conditions or hormonal deficiencies.
Engage your village, granting them the opportunity to show up for you.
Change up your daily routine, engage a new activity.
Fuel your body regularly with lots of water and life-giving food.
Explore creative ways to move your body - learn a new dance, start kickboxing, play basketball, etc.
Protect your ear gates and eye gates. Be mindful of your media intake, as well as energy zappers in your circle.
Consider meeting with a clinical therapist that looks like you.

Reverend Olivia Tate, is the Director and a licensed psychotherapist for Flowing Well Therapy Center. As a certified trauma specialist, Olivia incorporates her knowledge to curate safe spaces for individual therapy sessions to assist people with various mental and emotional challenges. Reverend Tate is also the creator of The Well Black Woman Collective, a wellness group that centers the lived experiences of Black Women; it is a space designed for Black women to process the overwhelming weight of just being. Through sacred safe space practice in individual and group work, Olivia’s work and ultimate desire are for Black women to heal and thrive.

Previous Issues of The Wesley Journal

The Wesley Journal

Read the Full Issue here.

Volume 69, Issue 2, March 2021

Volume 69, Issue 1, December 2020

Volume 68, Issue 1, February 2020

Volume 67, Issue 5, 9 May 2019

Volume 67, Issue 4, 21 March 2019

Volume 67, Issue 3, 19 January 2019

Volume 67, Issue 2, 5 December 2018

Volume 67, Issue 1, 22 October 2018

2017-2018 Graduation Edition