Description

In today's episode, Nick Warnes and Karen Rohrer have a dialogue with Erin Angeli. Erin Angeli is part of the pastoral staff at Commonwealth of Oakland, a new, Jesus-centered community of faith in Pittsburgh. She and her wife Sarah keep a steadily growing urban homestead with raised vegetable garden beds, chickens, and a menagerie of pets.

Erin’s work at Commonwealth is wide-ranging, but her favorite focuses are ministry to the Oakland neighborhood and pastoral care to queer folks. Erin’s goal in her queer ministry is twofold: to provide pastoral care to those discerning their relationship with the Church, and to organize local religious leaders to design systems of support for queer Christians.

To find out more about Erin Angeli you can visit www.oaklandcommonwealth.com. 

Here are some quotes from today's interview: 

• "Collaborative leadership in a neighborhood context looks like, What do you want to do? And here's what I see happening. I recognize that as a gift."
• "Just because you're the most knowledgable, most privileged white person in the room doesn't mean you know what's best."
• "Sometimes another leader has a vision that you don't get... you're not sure this is gonna fly and you just have to sit back. It's a whole other level of the kingdom when you see something you didn't think would work, work."
• "All you do is just hand people hammers."
• "If we're feeling stuck, we take the problem and plop it right in the middle of the congregation. Every single time they discern the Holy Spirit perfectly."