Lionel Richie Shares Hilarious Tale of Writing 'We Are the World' With Michael Jackson

From the "Who Would Have Guessed Department"-

Richie met his Commodore bandmates while a freshman at Tuskegee Institute and he revealed how their first gig, at a freshman talent show, changed his life. “The most amazing thing happened,” he said. “Girls started screaming [as I performed]. I was going to be an Episcopal priest, but that girl screamed on the front row and I called the bishop and said I didn’t think I was cut out for the cloth.”

By the time he was a senior,  The Commodores were opening for the Jackson 5 and each band member was pulling down at least $200,000 per year. What followed was more than a decade of massive hits, including “Easy,” “Three Times A Lady,” “Brickhouse,” and “Lady (You Bring Me Up).” 

More here-

http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/grammys/6874792/kevin-spacey-lionel-richie-musicares-grammy

How This Introverted Priest Found Her Calling

From Huffington-

I grew up in a very Catholic family. We observed all the holy days and ate fish on Fridays, and I attended an all-girls’ Catholic high school. Being Catholic was part of my family’s culture.

So when as an adult, for various reasons, I began attending an Episcopal church—a church whose weekly services are very similar to the Catholic mass—I was a bit startled by a few of the differences. For one, priests are allowed to marry. For another, they’re allowed to be women.

About a year ago, I had the opportunity to attend the ordination of a woman priest. As I sat in the pews, watching the ceremony, I couldn’t help but get a bit emotional: here was this woman—married and pregnant—about to be welcomed to the priesthood. The feminist in me was thrilled, and I said as much to the newly ordained priest after the ceremony was over. She grinned conspiratorially, thanked me, and said, “I think it’s pretty cool too!”

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/how-this-introverted-priest-found-her-calling_56255858e4b0bce34701ccfd

Catholic priests spread thin as numbers dwindle

From The Pittsburgh Trib-

The newly ordained Rev. Michael Ackerman had a challenging first assignment last summer: Serving more than 3,500 families on a three-priest team across four Catholic churches near the Ohio border in New Castle.

On a typical weekend, Ackerman would celebrate a Mass or two at one church, preside over baptisms and a wedding at another and then drive to a third location for an evening youth group.

“You'd use the commuting time to pray and to think through things,” said Ackerman, 31, a former Riverview School District teacher who grew up in Aspinwall. “You had to be creative.”

In contrast, the Rev. Kenneth Marlovits — ordained into the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh last June alongside Ackerman and two other men — is part of a three-priest team focused on one parish of about 3,000 families, St. Bernard in Mt. Lebanon.
More here-

http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/8458823-74/priests-parishes-catholic#axzz3cU85QSmv

‘‘If God can come down in human form, I can change from being a lawyer.’’

From Louisiana-

When Sharon A. Alexander was growing up in Edinburg, Texas, she played golf or tennis on Sundays. She never imagined she’d someday be an Episcopal priest.

An eighth generation Texan and the oldest daughter of a lawyer who didn’t attend church, Alexander wanted to be an astronaut. She never flew into space but did log more than a million miles flying from the Far East to Eastern Europe as a high-powered attorney working international bankruptcy cases.

“I was married to my job,” said Alexander, 55, who is single. “I know what the Apostle Paul meant when he said we put the wrong things at the center of our lives.”

Her life took a dramatic turn in 2003. She was flying back from a church mission trip to a Bolivian orphanage.

More here-

http://theadvocate.com/news/acadiana/11497869-123/if-god-can-come-down

New East Windsor priest boasts background in rock ’n’ roll, meditation

From Connecticut-

A former rock ’n’ roll drummer with a background in medicine is the new priest at St. John’s Episcopal Church.

“Life as a priest uses every single bit of my formation and my odd talents,” the Rev. Julia Fritts said. “Every single bit of that is not only OK, but necessary.”

Prior to becoming ordained, Fritts, 58, worked as a professional musician. She said she lived the dream for a while as a drummer, recording and touring with her Celtic rock band, Jane and Julia.
“I grew up assuming I would be an artist or a musician,” Fritts said. “Music is a service to the world. Beautiful music is really necessary.”

But the prevalence of ego and a self-absorbed existence were what turned her off to the lifestyle of a musician, she said.

More here-

http://www.journalinquirer.com/page_one/new-east-windsor-priest-boasts-background-in-rock-n-roll/article_c5a5048a-a255-11e4-9701-0f7c6f4b7686.html

The Tyranny of Orthodoxy

From Huffington-

Advent is dangerous. In my case I commenced my personal discernment to leave formation to become a Roman Catholic priest.

After 9 years as a member of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) I grew tired of the tyranny of orthodoxy, and deeply frustrated with being forced to live within it. I could not lie about my sexual identity no matter how good an upper middle class lifestyle religious life gave me. I could not be dishonest with the people I'd joyfully serve. To me Advent is a time of birth and new birth, not a season to consolidate groupthink or to publicly worship within a faith system because it feels safe or familiar.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/benjamin-brenkert/the-tyranny-of-orthodoxy_b_6320656.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

Why Half of All Pastors Want to Quit Their Jobs

From Faith Street-

The pastoral vocation today is a sea of dead bodies. Consider these stats, which I’ve pulled from various surveys:

1,500 pastors leave the ministry for good each month, citing burnout or contention in their churches.

80 percent of pastors (and 84 percent of pastors’ spouses) are discouraged in their roles.

Almost half of all pastors have seriously considered leaving ministry for good in the past three months.

For every 20 pastors who go into ministry, only one retires from the ministry.

50 percent of pastors say they are unable to meet the demands of their job and are so discouraged that they would leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living.

When I share these statistics with pastors, they slowly, knowingly nod their heads.

More here-

http://www.faithstreet.com/onfaith/2014/06/25/why-half-of-all-pastors-want-to-quit-their-jobs/32683

Successful youth vocations conference continues on Facebook

Eighteen would-be priests aged 16 to 19 attending the Church of England’s first specially organised vocations conference for young people in more than 30 years are to continue meeting on Facebook as they listen to their calling. The conference was held at Westcott House and Ridley Hall theological colleges in Cambridge on 17th-19th April, 2009

As well as offering engaging talks from priests serving in the Church, the Call Waiting… Conference 2009 offered a chance to ‘grill’ an ordinand as a group, and spend a time in reflection and prayer at Stations of the Resurrection.

Eight ordinands were on hand from Ridley Hall and Westcott House colleges to offer one-to-ones on what it is like to train to be a Church of England priest.

The young people also worshipped together at choral evensong at which a choir of 16 choral scholars performed a work by Thomas Tallis.

They intend to continue the conference online, having set up a group on Facebook, to encourage one another to listen to their ‘calling'.

Revd Jules Cave Bergquist of Ministry Division said: “It was a fabulous weekend for everyone involved. The young people showed just that sort of enthusiasm, vitality and ‘can-do’ attitude that we need from young people in any ministry within the Church. Now it’s over to the dioceses to set-up appropriate was of encouraging, nurturing and discerning vocations amongst young people.”

http://www.cofe.anglican.org/news/pr4609.html