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Meet the Seminarians!!

BSM is ecstatic to welcome five seminarians from Princeton Theological Seminary for the academic year of 2008-09. They are Rebecca Blake, Noah Carlson, Edwin Estevez, Laura Powell, and Miriam Todd. They will be working and serving and learning some things here—not the least of which they will learn about each other’s gifts for ministry. We asked them to interview each other and there is good news—in addition to being talented and bright, they also have a sense of humor!!

Laura Powell
BSM INTERVIEW with Laura Powell
From: Seattle with fondness for Chicago and hopes to live in Philly!
Age 24

You mentioned you loved Philly—what about it?
--Wherever you look, there’s an honest reality and a beautiful reality. It’s REAL.
Why are you pursuing an M.Div degree? I’m pursuing both an M.Div and MSW because I believe in meeting practical needs through the church- Kingdom of God theology. The Kingdom of God has been inaugurated by Jesus and we, the church continually seek for God’s Kingdom to be firmly established. This theology has been especially attractive as it appeals to my Evangelical background by focusing on personal salvation and social justice, creation care, etc. It has give me a new-found purpose and makes me excited about God again.

What brings you to Broad Street?
Every time I’m here I sense God in some new, beautiful way, whether at a meal, in the communion line, through worship, or just a conversation with someone. The people here are incredible.

Could you have pictured yourself at Broadstreet?
No!

What will you be doing for BSM?
I will be facilitating a college/campus ministry at the University of the Arts—faith and art integration for Kingdom.

What’s a class that you found helpful at Seminary?
Missional Theology class. I read David Bush who articulated Kingdom of God theology.
Basically, he says there should be no mission department in church; the whole church should be missional.

Where does Seminary fit?
Enjoy articulating theology better, reading people I wouldn’t read, and learning what world thinks of God. But I feel that the Field Education component is where I’m going to learn most.

Any inaccurate perceptions people have of you?
That I’m stand-offish but I’m actually just shy at first.

If you had one year, no work or school and no concern for money, what would you do?
I would spend a month in 12 different cities and take it all in.

House is on fire, no one is in it, and you have one thing you can save. What is it?
The keys to my truck. I love my truck: White Toyota Tacoma

Music that you find motivational?
India Arie’s I Choose. She’s amazing!

If you could be any animal, which would it be?
A duck. Think about it, you get to swim all day in the middle

Edwin Estevez
Age: 25
Hometown: North Plainfield, NJ
Interviewed by: Laura Powell

Where did you grow up?
In the Plainfield area, once a vacation home to the rich and powerful, now a city and rich estates under one name. Growing up, the North Plainfield part seemed homogenous. Now it’s incredibly diverse.

What is your family background?
My family is from Guatemala, I am a first generation American. Because of my Latin American background, I am fluent in Spanish, love to eat Guatemalan food, and of course, I’ve got rhythm.

What is your favorite Guatemalan meal?
I love breakfast! Eggs, black beans, fried plantains, cheese tortillas, and sour cream….mmm…

What has it been like growing up with your background?
I have had double identity my whole life. I love and appreciate both of these cultures that are a part of me. I resonate deeply with my Guatemalan heritage, yet I also appreciate the rights and opportunities that living in America provides.

Where do you see yourself later in life?
Well, I love the city and I love the country, but not keen on the suburbs which would be your middle ground. I guess I see myself as a traveler for a while.

Why are you at Princeton Theological Seminary?
I have always been pretty intrigued with God and theology. Even when I was as young as five, I remember wanting to preach and having lots of questions. I’ve always had a sense of call. And my family is Presbyterian…which led me to PTS.

What has been your favorite class so far?
I have seriously loved all of them, I’ve been very blessed. But if I had to pick…Systematic Theology.

What brought you to Broad Street Ministry?
I did not want to do field education in a conventional church, so my advisor suggested I check out Broad Street. My first service was December 23, 2007, it was rainy and cold, and I thought the building smelled bad. But when I heard Bill preach, I could sense immediately that it wasn’t about him at all, but it was all about the message he was bringing. Bill is a real person and the church as a whole has a tone of reality with a message of hope. It connected to me deeply.

What do you hope to learn this year?
How to accept myself as I am. I have high expectations for myself, and I don’t deal well if I’m disappointed with how I did on something, even if I did the best I could. I hope to learn to be OK with my best.

What’s your favorite band?
Absolutely no hesitation…Dave Matthews Band. Their drummer rocks.

You’ve been playing drums around here…what do you love about drumming?
It makes me move.

How would you describe yourself in one phrase?
Light-hearted

Miriam Todd Tyler
Born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina by her mother, father, and two older siblings, Miriam Todd Tyler found herself in two different worlds: the “have’s” who populated her church and the “have not’s” who were her neighbors and classmates. She describes herself as someone who “always spoke up” when something wasn’t right or reeked of unfairness, and this was especially true of her time in high school where she observed various manifestations of racism and abusive politics. Miriam realized in high school that she might be called to ministry but also dreamed of journalism. She went to Presbyterian College with the mindset of “leaving the ministry door open.” Studying abroad in Scotland was an extremely formative experience for Miriam as she began deeply questioning whether she truly believed what she said she believed or whether she was simply living into the social conditioning of her upbringing. She ended up majoring in Religion, Philosophy, and Christian education in college, and also discovered a gift for counseling during that time. After doing an internship at a church in Kansas, she accepted a full-time position there after graduation to work with the youth and their families as well as other pastoral duties, including writing curriculum and rethinking missions, which she loved. Miriam worked there for four years and began to think about seminary as an avenue to put her theology and degree into practice. She is passionate about working for reconciliation between individuals as well as people groups, but feels especially called to work for reconciliation within the PCUSA denomination. Since coming to seminary she’s experienced a field education placement at Bellevue hospital in NYC as a chaplain intern. This was another formative and challenging experience for her. Miriam is pursuing ordination in the PCUSA church and is excited to explore several facets of ministry here at BSM. She describes herself as someone who “dives in and learns to swim along the way,” and is considering various vocational interests, including counseling, non profit work abroad, and pottery, in addition to her strong sense of call to parish ministry. Miriam is also deeply passionate about both listening to and encouraging the speech of those on the margins whose colorful and vital voices are rarely heard.

Becca Blake
Unabridged Edition
“Storytelling is the essence of the gospel, the ultimate story” ~ Becca Blake
Becca’s own life story and how she comes to us at Broad Street reveals something incalculable about the gospel too. Born and raised in Baltimore with her mother, father and little brother, Becca learned to create from her father. Becca’s father was an artist who specialized in print making and drawing before starting a career in advertising. Becca says her perfectionism comes from her father. To this day Becca still has Monarch butterfly wings her father made her for a Halloween costume when she was only ten. The story of her father ended all too soon for Becca at the age of ten.

In the wake of her father’s death, Becca’s grief caused her to reach out and care for the family in practical ways like cooking meals and supporting her mother. In her own words she says, “I was a latch key kid.” Grief took on many forms in the life of her family and another wave of anxiety when her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. During this time in middle school, Becca was accepted to a magnet art school for photography and in high school she took on both the mediums of photography and drawing. Becca learned that the art world has a high price to pay to be seen and found herself burnt out in the discipline.

May of her senior year, Becca’s college choice changed to Eastern University. At Eastern, Becca learned to express herself in worship through movement and took a writing course that sent her down the path of creative writing and the study of theology. Becca wanted to write to help others “birth their own creative process.” On a whim, Becca applied to Oxford and got in! There she studied Christology along with the works of C. S. Lewis and “fell back in love with academia. This is the reason why I’m at seminary.” At first Becca thought she was on the PhD path toward teaching but since her love affair with Broad Street, Becca’s path seems to be taking yet another uncalculated turn. Becca declares, “I’m not a rainbow color stole wearing pastor.” Yet, Becca has discovered a deep heart for ministry that may include art therapy, chaplaincy, or counseling. This year Becca will be helping to create a Broad Street Blog, engage in art and worship and explore counseling ministry at Broad Street. After Becca graduates this May, she hopes to move to Philly to continue ministry in this place.