Serene Jones at YDS Women’s Event: “For such a time as this …”

“This is not your mother’s church. This is not your grandmother’s church.” It is, rather, a church, and a moment, bearing profound challenges but also enormous opportunities for transformation and learning.

Such were the observations offered by Serene Jones ‘85 M.Div. in her keynote remarks March 6 at the third annual YDS Women’s Event. A former YDS faculty member and now president of Union Theological Seminary, Jones exhorted the large gathering of YDS students, faculty, alumni, and friends to address what she called a “crisis-ridden context” that cries out a theological response.

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Watch the video of Serene Jones’ remarks at YDS Women’s Event.

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In her talktitled “Women of Faith Committed to Justice: For Such a Time as This”Jones said Christianity is going through a period much like the Protestant Reformation of 500 years ago. The profound transformations are often difficult to see for those in the moment and only become apparent “on the other side,” she said. “We are incredibly lucky to be alive in this moment,” she declared, “equipped to do the work that YDS has trained (us) to do.”

The annual event was started by a group of students three years ago to create opportunities for YDS women to come together in a multi-generational gathering for mentoring, connection-building, and mutual support and encouragement.

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View photos from the third annual YDS Women’s Event.

March 9, 2017