The Making of Hinds Feet: Seminary Year 2
Donation protected
The Making of Hinds’ Feet: Support Caden’s Seminary Fund
“The High Places,” answered the Shepherd, “are the starting places for the journey down to the lowest place in the world. When you have hinds’ feet...you will be able, as I am, to run down from the heights in the gladdest self-giving and then go up to the mountains again. You will be able to mount to the High Places swifter than eagles, for it is only up on the High Places of Love that anyone can receive the power to pour themselves down in an utter abandonment of self-giving.” Hannah Hurnard, Hinds' Feet on High Places
Dear Friends,
It is with great excitement that Jennifer and I begin preparing for our second year at Seminary of the Southwest, where I will be working toward my Masters of Divinity as a postulant for Holy Orders in the Episcopal Church. This last year in seminary and in my hospital chaplaincy has been both wonderful and challenging. I have come to realize that my call to ministry as a priest is rooted in mutuality and spiritual caregiving. My hope is that in these next two years I will continue to learn and grow, and discern closely where God is calling me to serve.
Currently, I have qualified for a 100% tuition grant from the seminary, which will help relieve some of the financial burden, however there are still some miscellaneous costs that we will have to account for. In response to this need, our home parish, St. James’ Eureka Springs, has fundraised for the next two semesters, and Jennifer is hard at work in North Austin as a Medical-Coder, helping to cover our living expenses. I have applied for different scholarship opportunities and will continue work-study as a research assistant and a library assistant,but we will still need your help to keep our heads above the water.
Please Consider giving a gift with a significant number such as, $4.19 for Matthew 4:19, “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men,” or perhaps $14.90 for the 1,490 miles it would take to walk from SSW’s Chapel to the National Cathedral, or if you love Dawn French as much as I do, $648 for every minute of every single episode of “The Vicar of Dibley.” The possibilities are endless!
By making a gift today you will be helping to cover the cost of items such as:
A month of housing and utility expenses - $600
A semester of student services and activity fees - $513
The required textbooks for a single class - $200
A semester of seminary meals - $455.50
For those of you who may not know how we got here, I’ve included a bit of the story below. We are so grateful for your support!
Yours in Christ,
Caden
---------------
Genesis
A book of origin.
Sitting on the hill behind my Seattle apartment, I found myself feeling at a loss. It was 2014 and it had already been a year since I had graduated from college. My now wife, Jennifer and I had moved to Seattle to go to graduate school in Library Sciences but upon arriving decided that I didn’t actually want to go, I felt like I was being pulled in a different direction. So I promptly began work in a campaign office.
The decision to work in a campaign office wasn’t a stretch of the imagination by any means. In college I had studied conceptions of otherness, a topic that I was close to as a trans identified person and as an Episcopalian. There were times I felt alone in school, and perhaps it was this loneliness that made it easier to see the injustice around me. It became important to create a space where all felt welcome. And in the campaign work I was able to do some of this. There I gained further insight into workers’ rights, income inequality, sexism, racism, and xenophobia. Yet I still found myself pulled away. The long hours were difficult, I was tired and missed Jennifer, and was frustrated that I could not be active in the church. So there I was, sitting on that hill, entirely dejected.
Exodus
A book of freedom and journeys.
God had always played a significant role in my life. Growing up the child of two Episcopal priests church was a normal family affair - looking for lost collar buttons, singing in choir, youth group, and soup kitchens. My parents didn’t give lectures, they gave sermons. And it was through that formation that my understanding of God’s unconditional love became an anchor in my life.
I found myself going back to the same question I had been asking myself since childhood - “Am I being called to be a priest?” As a kid I had no hesitancy about this call. But, as I grew older and life became more complicated, I began to question my motives and the practicality of it. I was concerned that perhaps the only reason I felt called was because my parents were priests. Then there was the fact that I was trans - is there room for priests who are trans in the Church? And of course, in light of my flaws (of which there are plenty) the question of “But who am I?” However, for a moment on that hill, I set my doubts aside and imagined what this call could mean.
I felt filled with such a sense of joy. The more I allowed myself to think “maybe this is real” the happier I became. My experience with God had always felt so personal, so individual, but suddenly I was finding that my experience of God and my desire to ensure that all persons feel welcome went hand in hand. The administration of the sacraments - that experience of the Radical Hospitality of Christ each Sunday - is where I believe I am being called to serve.
With the decision to discern this potential call more closely, we made the move back to Arkansas a year later. There I explored different ministries, and the more I did the more excited I became. I continued working in positions with a focus on justice, becoming the stewardship writer for a wildlife refuge. Not only did I grow more in my stewardship toward God’s creatures there, but also, I witnessed the vulnerability, joy, and dedication of those living out their true vocations.
After meeting with the Bishop, my discernment committee was formed. This committee met once a month to discern vocation together. Never have I felt so fully engaged or at moments felt such a sense of clarity. It was through this process that I became more capable of vocalizing my experience of faith, of God, my flaws and spiritual gifts, and the journey that has brought me to this point.
Leviticus
A book of rules, paperwork, and red-tape.
Not long after I met with the Commission on Ministry did I hear that my discernment process was moving forward. Seminary is just another step in this discernment process - a step that involves a lot of study and forms to fill out. The word discernment comes from the Latin word meaning "to sift apart." You and your faith community are sifting apart and determining where God may be calling you to serve (See gallery photo #2, photo credit - Diocese of Fort Worth). Over three years, I will be working towards a masters degree and on my spiritual formation. Spiritual formation at Seminary of the Southwest takes shape by way of: Being, Knowing, and Doing. Being meaning to be present and to be who you are, knowing as in understanding the tradition, and doing - going out into the world with who you are and what you know to spread the love of Christ, fight for equality and justice, and truly live the Gospel. I have a feeling that it is going to be quite the adventure.
“The High Places,” answered the Shepherd, “are the starting places for the journey down to the lowest place in the world. When you have hinds’ feet...you will be able, as I am, to run down from the heights in the gladdest self-giving and then go up to the mountains again. You will be able to mount to the High Places swifter than eagles, for it is only up on the High Places of Love that anyone can receive the power to pour themselves down in an utter abandonment of self-giving.” Hannah Hurnard, Hinds' Feet on High Places
Dear Friends,
It is with great excitement that Jennifer and I begin preparing for our second year at Seminary of the Southwest, where I will be working toward my Masters of Divinity as a postulant for Holy Orders in the Episcopal Church. This last year in seminary and in my hospital chaplaincy has been both wonderful and challenging. I have come to realize that my call to ministry as a priest is rooted in mutuality and spiritual caregiving. My hope is that in these next two years I will continue to learn and grow, and discern closely where God is calling me to serve.
Currently, I have qualified for a 100% tuition grant from the seminary, which will help relieve some of the financial burden, however there are still some miscellaneous costs that we will have to account for. In response to this need, our home parish, St. James’ Eureka Springs, has fundraised for the next two semesters, and Jennifer is hard at work in North Austin as a Medical-Coder, helping to cover our living expenses. I have applied for different scholarship opportunities and will continue work-study as a research assistant and a library assistant,but we will still need your help to keep our heads above the water.
Please Consider giving a gift with a significant number such as, $4.19 for Matthew 4:19, “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men,” or perhaps $14.90 for the 1,490 miles it would take to walk from SSW’s Chapel to the National Cathedral, or if you love Dawn French as much as I do, $648 for every minute of every single episode of “The Vicar of Dibley.” The possibilities are endless!
By making a gift today you will be helping to cover the cost of items such as:
A month of housing and utility expenses - $600
A semester of student services and activity fees - $513
The required textbooks for a single class - $200
A semester of seminary meals - $455.50
For those of you who may not know how we got here, I’ve included a bit of the story below. We are so grateful for your support!
Yours in Christ,
Caden
---------------
Genesis
A book of origin.
Sitting on the hill behind my Seattle apartment, I found myself feeling at a loss. It was 2014 and it had already been a year since I had graduated from college. My now wife, Jennifer and I had moved to Seattle to go to graduate school in Library Sciences but upon arriving decided that I didn’t actually want to go, I felt like I was being pulled in a different direction. So I promptly began work in a campaign office.
The decision to work in a campaign office wasn’t a stretch of the imagination by any means. In college I had studied conceptions of otherness, a topic that I was close to as a trans identified person and as an Episcopalian. There were times I felt alone in school, and perhaps it was this loneliness that made it easier to see the injustice around me. It became important to create a space where all felt welcome. And in the campaign work I was able to do some of this. There I gained further insight into workers’ rights, income inequality, sexism, racism, and xenophobia. Yet I still found myself pulled away. The long hours were difficult, I was tired and missed Jennifer, and was frustrated that I could not be active in the church. So there I was, sitting on that hill, entirely dejected.
Exodus
A book of freedom and journeys.
God had always played a significant role in my life. Growing up the child of two Episcopal priests church was a normal family affair - looking for lost collar buttons, singing in choir, youth group, and soup kitchens. My parents didn’t give lectures, they gave sermons. And it was through that formation that my understanding of God’s unconditional love became an anchor in my life.
I found myself going back to the same question I had been asking myself since childhood - “Am I being called to be a priest?” As a kid I had no hesitancy about this call. But, as I grew older and life became more complicated, I began to question my motives and the practicality of it. I was concerned that perhaps the only reason I felt called was because my parents were priests. Then there was the fact that I was trans - is there room for priests who are trans in the Church? And of course, in light of my flaws (of which there are plenty) the question of “But who am I?” However, for a moment on that hill, I set my doubts aside and imagined what this call could mean.
I felt filled with such a sense of joy. The more I allowed myself to think “maybe this is real” the happier I became. My experience with God had always felt so personal, so individual, but suddenly I was finding that my experience of God and my desire to ensure that all persons feel welcome went hand in hand. The administration of the sacraments - that experience of the Radical Hospitality of Christ each Sunday - is where I believe I am being called to serve.
With the decision to discern this potential call more closely, we made the move back to Arkansas a year later. There I explored different ministries, and the more I did the more excited I became. I continued working in positions with a focus on justice, becoming the stewardship writer for a wildlife refuge. Not only did I grow more in my stewardship toward God’s creatures there, but also, I witnessed the vulnerability, joy, and dedication of those living out their true vocations.
After meeting with the Bishop, my discernment committee was formed. This committee met once a month to discern vocation together. Never have I felt so fully engaged or at moments felt such a sense of clarity. It was through this process that I became more capable of vocalizing my experience of faith, of God, my flaws and spiritual gifts, and the journey that has brought me to this point.
Leviticus
A book of rules, paperwork, and red-tape.
Not long after I met with the Commission on Ministry did I hear that my discernment process was moving forward. Seminary is just another step in this discernment process - a step that involves a lot of study and forms to fill out. The word discernment comes from the Latin word meaning "to sift apart." You and your faith community are sifting apart and determining where God may be calling you to serve (See gallery photo #2, photo credit - Diocese of Fort Worth). Over three years, I will be working towards a masters degree and on my spiritual formation. Spiritual formation at Seminary of the Southwest takes shape by way of: Being, Knowing, and Doing. Being meaning to be present and to be who you are, knowing as in understanding the tradition, and doing - going out into the world with who you are and what you know to spread the love of Christ, fight for equality and justice, and truly live the Gospel. I have a feeling that it is going to be quite the adventure.
Organizer
Caden Bosmyer Campbell
Organizer
Eureka Springs, AR
