Portland, Maine. April 4, 2017. The BTS Center’s blog, Bearings: Navigating Life-as-Ministry, has – for the second year in a row – won multiple DeRose-Hinkhouse Memorial Awards of Excellence from the Religion Communicators Council (RCC), a national interfaith association of religion communicators at work in print and electronic communication, marketing, and public relations. Through the DeRose-Hinkhouse awards program, the RCC “recognizes the achievements of RCC members who demonstrate excellence as religion communicators.”

Bearings was the only publication in the Blog category to win an Award of Excellence. Edited by Dr. Elizabeth Drescher, The BTS Center’s consulting scholar, and the Rev. Alyssa Lodewick, The Center’s associate director, Bearings seeks to “help equip and support faith leaders navigating the challenges and opportunities of 21^st-century ministry.”

Bearings also was the only publication to win an Award of Excellence in the Blog Series category, for “Faith, Love, and Resistance: Progressive Christian Political Engagement Before and After the 2016 Election.” The series, which ran between October and December 2016, examined contemporary political issues, debates, and dialogues through an explicitly religious lens. It sought to help progressive Christians boldly claim their faith tradition and embody its values of justice and compassion—not only in their interpersonal relationships, but also through political engagement in the public sphere. By emphasizing the important roles that people of faith and religious organizations can play in resisting structural and personal injustice, the “Faith, Love, and Resistance” series encouraged readers to integrate their mutual calls to religious conviction and political activism.

Edited and developed by Elizabeth Drescher, and edited and produced by Alyssa Lodewick, the “Faith, Love, and Resistance” series consisted of seven pieces, posted here in chronological order:

• “Re-seeing Evangelical Support for Donald J. Trump,” by Danny Cortez

• “Beyond Prophetic Rhetoric: Jesus and Justice in Practice,” by Jamye Wooten

• “What the Parrots of Telegraph Hill and Other ‘Invasive Species’ Can Teach the Church,” by Janet Dorman

• “Bearing Each Other Up: Reflections Upon the 2016 Election,” by Bearings Editors and Contributors

• “Yes, Jesus Loves Us. Now What?” by Mihee Kim-Kort

• “The Pain of ‘Doing No Harm,’” by Jordan Shaw

• “Hope is a Thing with Muscles,” by Elizabeth Drescher

Upon learning of the fact that Bearings had once again won multiple DeRose-Hinkhouse awards, The BTS Center’s executive director, the Rev. Dr. Robert Grove-Markwood, expressed his appreciation for the collaborative work of writers and editors. “For Bearings to receive these recognitions and awards in each of its first two years speaks to the quality and consistency of this publication. Kudos to all of our writers for the richness and relevance of their work, and to our editors, Elizabeth Drescher and Alyssa Lodewick, for their polishing and perfectionism. And gratitude to our readers who find insight and inspiration, provocation and possibility, synergy and solace as they engage the diverse voices of Bearings!”

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