January 9, 2018Suggested caption: Bishop of the Lutheran Church of Norway, Rev. Ann Helen Husnes Fjeldstad meets with Rev. Marie Fortune of Pleasant Hill who gave the Keynote Address at the Conference of church leaders in Oslo, Norway.

Pleasant HillRamblings
Jean Clark
Chroniclecontributor
Rev. Dr. Marie M. Fortune, theologian,ethicist, and expert in responding to clergy misconduct, was honored at theAmerican Academy of Religion Conference on November 16, 2017 in Boston, MA. Thepanel discussion recognizing the impactof her forty-year career addressingreligious issues pertaining to violence against women and children was called “EndingViolence: More Than a Life’s Work”. The multi-faith panel participantsincluded religious leaders, professors, and colleaguesdiscussing thisimportant ministry over the years and how it impacted their teaching andcounseling.
Marie M. Fortune grew up in western NorthCarolina where she obtained her undergraduate degree from DukeUniversity. Shereceived her seminary training at Yale Divinity School and was ordained aminister in the United Church ofChrist in 1976. After serving in a localparish, she founded the FaithTrust Institute, in 1977 where she served asExecutiveDirector until 1999. She continues to serve as Founder, Consultant,and Senior Analyst of the Institute. FaithTrust Institute is amulti-faith,multicultural organization in the U.S. providing religious communities andadvocates with training, consultation andeducational materials to address thefaith aspects of abuse.
Marie and her spouse, Dr. AnneGanley lived and worked in Seattle, WA for forty years. They had heard aboutUplandsVillage through the United Church of Christ and visited Pleasant Hillin 2004 for the first time when Marie was invited to give apresentation forthe Shalom Center of Continuing Education. After visiting for 10 years theydecided to move here in 2015 andhave built an energy efficient Deltec home onEvergreen Place. Both are active in Uplands Village, serving on the “GreenTeam”. Marie is an Uplands Board member and Anne is Chair of theArchitectural Review Committee. They are bothinvolved in Pleasant HillCommunity Church, UCC activities.
Recently Marie piloted a newcurriculum for FaithTrust Institute at the PH Community Church in aninteractive workshoptitled “Healthy Boundaries and Healthy Ministry: aConversation for Clergy and Laity Together”.In 1983, Rev. Fortune was thefirst theologianto write on the relationship between sexual violence and religion with her book,SexualViolence: TheUnmentionable Sin. She was also one of the first persons tocall religious communities to accountability on the issue of sexualabuse byclergy. Rev. Fortune is the author of nine books on sexual and domesticviolence, sexual ethics, and abuse byreligious leaders. She was editor of TheJournal of Religion and Abuse (2000–2008) and served on the National AdvisoryCouncil on Violence Against Women for the U.S. Department of Justice(1995–2000) and the Defense Task Force on DomesticViolence for the U.S.Department of Defense (2000–2003). Her commitment has been and will continue tobe, to provide thespiritual, intellectual and practical resources to those whoencounter victims, survivors and perpetrators of interpersonalviolence. Hersubsequent efforts have changed the way religious leaders and institutionsrespond to sexual and domesticviolence, as well as clergy misconduct.
After Boston, Dr. Fortune gave the Keynote Address at a Conference in Norway, which wasconvened by the Church ResourceCenter on Sexual Assault, a group similar toFaithTrust Institute. Key people in other faith groups – Christian, Muslim andJewish attended learning from the follow-up training and peer counseling facilitated byDr. Fortune. Although still involved withconsulting, training, and presentingat conferences and workshops, Marie hopes to find time to write and become moreinvolvedlocally.

This week in Pleasant Hill:

Tues,Jan 9, 2018, 6 pm, Pleasant Hill Town Council meeting at PHTown Hall, 351 E. Main St., PH 277-3813.

Wed, Jan 10, 1:30 pm inWharton Munson Home. Looney Tunes: Ann Looney plays piano or accordion. All arewelcome to enjoy.

Wed, Jan 10, 2018, 5:00pm NOTE: earlier time: Documentary: “Selma” in Room 4, PH Community Church, UCCMainStreet & Church Drive in Pleasant Hill.

Wednesdays, 6 pm, BibleStudy & Prayer followed by choir rehearsal at the Pleasant HillBaptist Mission at 39Browntown Rd near Main St.

Thurs, Jan 11, 2018, 10 amin Heritage Hall. Memory Care Support Group. All welcome.

Thurs, 2 – 4 pm; Sat, 10am – 12 Noon, Recycling at PH Town Hall, 351 E. Main St., 931-277-3813.

Thurs, Jan 11, 2 pm, CommunityBridge, Fletcher House Dining Room, all welcome. Call 277-5005.

Fri, Jan 12, 2018, 10 amin Fletcher House Dining Room, The Art Circle Library brings books, audiobooks, and DVDs.

Jean Clark

931-277-5467