About the Book
Women are fierce and fed-up, and they have been joining hands together for the purposes of societal change for as long as there has been injustice. Women of faith are guided by the Holy Spirit to work together to bring down these injustices, to build on the foundation Christ laid for the beloved community of God on earth. This book is women joining together to speak and act in new ways in response to the increasing challenges of our day. This book offers to all women the sustenance needed to face blatant racism, bigotry, sexism, heterosexism, and xenophobia in the world and in the church. The writers of Speaking Truth greet these challenges knowing that the Good News of Jesus Christ is bigger than any societal ill and that God has called us to play a part in God's work of transformation. When we pray together and act together, we claim a new vision for how things can be--a vision God gives us through Scripture. We can support both ourselves and other women as we learn to find and claim our voices and end the silences imposed upon us. Speaking Truth provides inspirational writings by women for women to face the societal challenges specific to today; includes prayers, devotions, scriptures, and inspirational quotes for special challenges; and encourages women supporting, advocating, and praying for other women.
About the Author :
Lisa Renee Pitts is an award-winning actress in theater, television, and film, as well as an accomplished audiobook narrator. She has been seen Off-Broadway, in Europe, and in regional theaters across the United States, performing leading roles in such prominent plays as A Raisin in the Sun, Doubt, Waiting for Lefty, Valley Song, and Our Town. Her television appearances include The Shield and Law and Order, and she played the recurring role of Allison Sawyer on the hit family drama Lincoln Heights for the ABC Family Channel. Lisa's audiobook titles include biographies, fiction, nonfiction and children's novels, including Pushkin and the Queen of Spades by Alice Randall, for which she won an AudioFile Earphones Award for excellence in narration. Other notable titles are Left to Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza, Better Than I Know Myself by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant, and My Name Is Not Angelica by Scott O'Dell. Lisa is a graduate of Rutgers University, where she received her B.F.A. in Theater Arts. She lives in Burbank, California. Carla Mercer-Meyer, a Southern California native, has a strong musical theater background, as she has been performing her entire life. Her credits include a guest appearance on The Morris Taylor Show, and her performances include Into the Woods and You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, as well as many other theatrical productions. An AudioFile Earphones Award-winning audiobook narrator, Mercer-Meyer resides in Southern California with her husband and four children. She is an avid audiobook listener and a book fanatic.
J. Paige Boyer is a contributor to Speaking Truth: Women Raising Their Voices in Prayer and We Pray with Her: Encouragement for All Women Who Lead.
Rev. Emily Peck-McClain is an ordained United Methodist pastor from the New York Annual Conference and the Visiting Professor of Christian Formation and Young Adult Ministries at Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC. Dr. Peck-McClain's first book, Arm in Arm with Adolescent Girls: Educating into the New Creation, was published by Pickwick in 2018. She is also a contributing editor to We Pray with Her: Encouragement for All Women Who Lead and to Speaking Truth: Women Raising Their Voices in Prayer. Peck-McClain received her BA in religion from Washington and Lee University, her MDiv from Union Theological Seminary, and her ThD from Duke Divinity School. She has pastored churches in New York City and in the Hudson Valley, north of New York City. She has a deep interest in the wisdom Scripture offers the church as we seek to grow in our faith. She is also a firm believer in the formative power of community. She and her husband, Andrew, also a United Methodist pastor, have three children and a dog named Petra.
Rev. Shannon Sullivan is a lifelong feminist and United Methodist currently serving the community of Frederick, Maryland, as the associate pastor of Calvary. She is a contributing editor for We Pray with Her: Encouragement for All Women Who Lead. She writes for Fidelias Magazine, an e-zine by and for young clergy women, and she has been published in various online platforms about the intersections of faith and public life. Rev. Sullivan is a proud graduate of Drew Theological School in Madison, New Jersey. She is married to Aaron Harrington, her high school sweetheart, who is a pilot, aerospace engineer, and general aviation geek. They have no living children but have filled their home with cats, a boxer puppy, and chickens in addition to mountains of books and airplane parts. When they are able, they travel and enjoy the beauty of God's creation from National Parks to ancient cathedrals and bustling marketplaces.
Theresa Thames is a contributor to Speaking Truth: Women Raising Their Voices in Prayer.
Rev. Jen Tyler is an ordained United Methodist pastor from the Dakotas Annual Conference, currently serving as pastor of Evergreen United Methodist Church in Wahpeton, North Dakota. Jen, a contributing editor to Speaking Truth: Women Raising Their Voices in Prayer and We Pray with Her: Encouragement for All Women Who Lead, has a Master of Divinity from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary and a BA in sociology from Simpson College. Prior to ordination, Jen served as a United Methodist missionary in South Africa and Washington, DC. Jen has a love of missions, a heart for people, and a passion for understanding and engaging contextual ministry. When she isn't busy in the local church or sharing stories over cups of (good, strong!) coffee, she loves to travel and ride her bike, sometimes at the same time.
