Explore

Chicana/o studies scholar Dr. Adriana Nieto talks to Rev. Dr. Kristina Lizardy-Hajbi, Director of the Office of Professional Formation at Iliff School of Theology, about the volume Explore: Vocational Discovery in Ministry (Rowman & Littlefield, 2022), which Rev. Dr. Lizardy-Hajbi co-edited with Matthew Floding. The book is ideal for ministerial leadership students in search of paths to follow. “It’s really a book offering options for individuals thinking through, ‘what is my vocation in relation to my identities, my experiences and what I feel are my strengths and my gifts and my passions,’” says Rev. Dr. Lizardy-Hajbi, who is also term assistant professor of leadership and formation at Iliff. The volume includes personal stories from 45 contributors of all backgrounds and professions, serving as a discernment tool that she hopes “expands the imaginations of students rather than create limits'' when it comes to ministerial work by faith leaders, such as pastors, varieties of chaplaincy, clinical pastoral educators, academics, and nonprofit leaders. “[Ministry] is a sacred task no matter what one’s beliefs or meaning-making frameworks are,” says Rev. Dr. Lizardy-Hajbi. “It is something that should be considered with care, that is holy, and that is done, I think, in mystery, often because we don’t know…where someone is going to end up in a call."