Reverend Liz

I have a dear friend named Liz who is an ordained minister in the Disciples of Christ tradition. She is a huge inspiration to me. She lives her life extending grace and love to everyone she meets. Don't get me wrong - I have seen her angry. But I've never seen her angry over something not worthy of that emotion, nor have I seen her be ungracious or unloving to another in her anger. She is a warrior for justice and love and peace. And I just adore her. So when I started redeeming moppets and restoring them, I at once wanted to do a "Reverend Liz" doll. I waited for just the right doll. I wanted her face mold to be one of openness and happiness and grace and peace. Here's the moppet I found:

Of course, when I found her, she was naked and forlorn, lying abandoned and unloved in a bin at my local thrift store. I brought her home, cleaned her up, fixed her hair and dreamed. I made her a new dress, her clergy robes, and her stole. The crosses are embroidered on her stole using a crewel stitch. I wanted it to look a bit primitive and Millennialist, and I love how the red pops on the white stole against the black robe.

I know some folks are not comfortable with women in the ministry. But the Bible is full of women who were spiritual leaders. The Disciples of Christ Christian Churches have been ordaining women into the ministry since the late 1800's. In Christ, there is "no male nor no female." Women in the ministry is an essential part of the Christian Church.

Of course, a minister needs her tools, right? A Bible is essential, of course, as well as a calendar to keep track of her appointments and church events. The Disciples of Christ follows a Lectionary, so she needed one of those, as well as an IPad to write sermons on and, of course, the ever-present cell phone!

Making the play-scale miniatures is never my favorite part of the process, but I just love how they look with the doll! And these turned out to be so cute! As the Japanese would say, "Kawaiiiiii!"