Calling all clergy spouses whose ordained partners have 10 years or less in ministry. . . Want to feel connected? Want a safe place to explore the tricky, and sometimes even difficult, path clergy spouses tread?  Come to the new Clergy Spouse Bible Study led by Gilda Hurst and Marcia Hotchkiss, beginning Tuesday, September 5, 2017, at 6:30 pm at the Church of the Good Shepherd at 11122 Midway Road, Dallas 75229. Everyone is welcome, but the study is particularly aimed at those who are somewhat new to the ordained ministry.  We will meet six or seven times this fall at various churches in the metropolitan area. The study is being piloted right here in the Diocese of Dallas and will look at the following three areas: the clergy spouse and the congregation, the clergy spouse and his/her ordained spouse, and the clergy spouse and God and how the interplay of these three areas.  

Between Gilda and Marcia, they have over 30 years of experience as spouses of Episcopal priests. They have served with their husbands in churches of all sizes from missions to a couple of the largest in the Episcopal church. Gilda went with Mike (Church of the Savior, Allen) to seminary at Sewanee when one son was in high school and the other two in college. She served as president of the Spouses of the Seminary, was on the School of Theology Executive Committee, and is currently a trustee for the University of the South. Gilda has led many Bible studies over the years and currently works at James Avery as a manager. She is licensed as a spiritual director through the Stanton Center.

Marcia went with Tom (Good Shepherd, Dallas) to Virginia Theological Seminary when their children were in preschool. She has taught Bible studies and Sunday School and spoken at retreats in several dioceses in the southeast and at Kanuga. She has a certificate in Listening from the Acorn Healing Foundation in Whitehall, UK, and is currently doing a practicum in Spiritual Direction with an ecumenical training group in Dallas. Marcia teaches Speech Communication at Brookhaven College and is a co-author of a public speaking text book.

For further information or to register for the Bible study, email Gilda at or Marcia at . Evites will soon be sent to all  spouses who are somewhat new to ordained ministry, but all are welcome!