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Introducing the Moderator - The Rev. Dr. Carol Wood
The Presbytery of Hamilton has chosen the Rev. Dr. Carol Wood, an ecumenical chaplain with the McMaster Campus Ministries Council, as its new Moderator. Her term of office begins with the meeting of the Presbytery on September 14, 2010.
Carol describes her faith journey and her life in ministry in the following way:
A journey begins with the first step. My first steps in the faith were taken amongst a small missionary Baptist Church in Eastern North Carolina. There I came to know Christ and to experience God through a caring Christian community. I was baptized at the conclusion of a revival in the lake just beside the church. Sword drill competitions helped me to have a healthy respect for the Bible. My Sunday school and training union teachers were important mentors who helped me to grow in the faith. During university I attended a Methodist Church which was within walking distance of the campus. My mind was stretched by excellent exegetical preaching, and my appreciation for the seasons of the church year was awakened. The Methodist Church remained my home as I explored a career as a buyer for a chain of discount stores in the Southern USA.
This business experience seemed like unusual preparation for seminary, but it was a formative time to explore first hand the pressures that are inherent in working in the for- profit sector of the economy. I entered Columbia Theological Seminary (PCUSA) with the intention of becoming a pastoral counselor. The richness of exegetical work, the introduction to theologians like Henri Nouwen, Rosemary Radford Ruether, and Hans Kung, as well as the opportunities for worship and discussion broadened my concept of ministry and helped to refine my sense of call.
My seminary years were also impacted by another diverse community. I worked nights and weekends at Villa International Atlanta, a ministry of the PCUSA and six additional denominations. There with colleagues who had served as missionaries in Taiwan, Ghana and Nigeria, I came to know people who were in Atlanta to do research and study at the Centers for Disease Control. Developing friendships with Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, Baha’i, Sikh and Christians from around the world both challenged and strengthened my faith and my understanding of God’s love for the whole world.
This part-time job became a passion and was the impetus for my D. Min. thesis on Christian-Muslim dialogue. I was ordained in Greater Atlanta Presbytery in 1987 and served on the Peacemaking Committee, the Middle East Committee and the Presbytery Council.
My experiences in Atlanta deepened my commitment to ecumenism as well as a strong interest in interfaith dialogue. The broad based network of friends and colleagues in Atlanta helped me to make connections in Canada not only with the Presbyterian Church, but with the United, Baptist and Anglican Church. All of these denominations have been vital to the work and support of the McMaster Campus Ministries Council and the work of the ecumenical chaplaincy.
At McMaster, I work alongside of the Christian Reformed and Roman Catholic Chaplain, as well as advisors and leaders of the many faith groups represented on campus. I am fortunate to work with an ecumenical council that includes students, staff, faculty from a diversity of Christian backgrounds. Representatives from the Anglican, United, and Presbyterian Church ensure good communication as well as accountability.