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Jenny Warner

Columnist

Jenny is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area. She is the Pastor for Justice, Spirituality and Community at First Presbyterian Church of Bend, Oregon. She graduated from Biola University with a B.A. in Intercultural Studies and Psychology in 1992, and in 2010, received a Masters of Divinity from San Francisco Theological Seminary.

After college, Jenny spent two years in Southeastern Europe, working with missionaries in their cross-cultural adjustment. Since moving back, she has helped plant a new church, married and become a mother of two daughters, worked as a spiritual director and an artist. Having recently finished her PCUSA ordination requirements, she is currently seeking a call as a pastor.

Jenny's interests include poetry, creating and exploring art, theology, running and yoga, knitting, being outdoors, cooking and eating great food, and drinking strong coffee and fabulous wine. She delights in the gift of friendship, and is most happy at play and rest with her husband and two daughters.

Works by Jenny Warner

From shame and blame to belonging

Jenny Warner | June 03, 2016

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The holy prison of Lent

Jenny Warner | February 10, 2016

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In the shelter of each other

Jenny Warner | January 31, 2016

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Privileged stories

Jenny Warner | January 28, 2016

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Reflections from Robben Island

Jenny Warner | January 25, 2016

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Welcome to Lent

Jenny Warner | February 18, 2015

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Marcus' Striped Socks

Jenny Warner | January 22, 2015

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The Pastor in Protest

Jenny Warner | December 17, 2014

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The Advent of Discontent

Jenny Warner | December 15, 2014

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Book Response: How to Be a Christian Without Going to...

Jenny Warner | October 25, 2014

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Headphones

Jenny Warner | September 30, 2014

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the dangerous ambivalent leader

Jenny Warner | September 17, 2014

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Living Between Denial and Despair

Jenny Warner | September 15, 2014

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Minute by Minute: My plan to get through 2014

Jenny Warner | January 22, 2014

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How to Christmas #3: Be the adult in the room

Jenny Warner | December 24, 2013

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How to Christmas #2: say thank you

Jenny Warner | December 21, 2013

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How To Christmas #1: Listening to Christmas Music

Jenny Warner | December 20, 2013

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What San Lucas Toliman, Guatemala and Bend, Oregon have in...

Jenny Warner | December 11, 2013

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with gratitude to Dallas Willard (1935-2013)

Jenny Warner | May 08, 2013

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Curating Transformation

Jenny Warner | April 25, 2013

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Post-sermon Anxiety

Jenny Warner | March 25, 2013

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What We Do: Good Friday

Jenny Warner | March 21, 2013

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Solitude in Community

Jenny Warner | March 08, 2013

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A Drama Queen's Lent

Jenny Warner | February 21, 2013

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Christianity in ashes

Jenny Warner | February 13, 2013

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impressions of Cuba

Jenny Warner | January 27, 2013

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Sacred Apricots

Jenny Warner | January 18, 2013

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Why an Incarnation

Jenny Warner | December 20, 2012

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A sermon in response to Newtown

Jenny Warner | December 17, 2012

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R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Jenny Warner | December 03, 2012

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My heroes

Jenny Warner | November 28, 2012

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Thy Life's A Miracle

Jenny Warner | November 27, 2012

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I am not thankful the church has alienated so many people

Jenny Warner | November 22, 2012

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I am not thankful for the struggle with my weight

Jenny Warner | November 20, 2012

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I am not thankful for tragedy

Jenny Warner | November 17, 2012

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What I am not grateful for

Jenny Warner | November 15, 2012

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You must be born again

Jenny Warner | October 04, 2012

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Just get the first post written

Jenny Warner | September 20, 2012

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Defying Gravity: Becoming a Woman of Influence

Jenny Warner | March 11, 2012

The time has come to stop fighting for myself and extend a hand to lift other women who......

Listening for God's Christmas Song

Jenny Warner | December 23, 2011

The invitation of incarnation is to stop and notice the miracle of God's breaking in to......

The God-Bearer: Advent Reflections on Mary

Jenny Warner | December 05, 2011

Incarnational spirituality is not working up the strength to become someone you aren't;......

How Many Souls Shrink in Church?

Jenny Warner | November 10, 2011

Is there room in our church for questions -- real questions, the ones without answers?......

Economic Grief and Spiritual Recovery

Jenny Warner | September 27, 2011

May we choose to be present to economic grief -- and in that presence, to find......

Personal Preaching: Sharing Stories in the Pulpit

Jenny Warner | August 10, 2011

Wisely disclosing our personal stories as pastors is a tricky thing and requires a lot......

Pastor Retreating

Jenny Warner | July 13, 2011

Pastors must remember that the underpinning of all their work is the space for God in......

Transition Woman

Jenny Warner | June 22, 2011

I am making mistakes, fumbling over simple tasks, and facing bumps in the road and minor......

Becoming Pastor Mom

Jenny Warner | June 01, 2011

My challenge is to be thankful for doing work I love, while at the same time remembering......

Preacher to Preacher: An Interview with Sara Miles

Jenny Warner | May 17, 2011

Sara's perspective pulls me out of the fog of over-familiarity and the fear of sounding......

Assassination in a Googled World

Jenny Warner | May 05, 2011

This week, especially, it seems wise to preach and model interconnectedness and......

Crucify Perfectionism

Jenny Warner | April 26, 2011

Here in this new place, once again I am learning to let go of the default mindset that......

Preacher to Preacher: An Interview with Rev. Dr. Mark...

Jenny Warner | April 19, 2011

Mark challenges all of us to see our preaching as an extended conversation with a......

Ordination Day and the Mystery of God's Love

Jenny Warner | April 05, 2011

On the day of her ordination to Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian......

That New Pastor Glow

Jenny Warner | March 23, 2011

In my honeymoon stage, I encourage you to remember: What got you into this in the first......

Preacher to Preacher: An Interview with J. Alfred Smith

Jenny Warner | March 15, 2011

"The preachers in the African American tradition preach not because they can, but we......

Preacher to Preacher: An Interview with Nadia Bolz-Weber

Jenny Warner | March 03, 2011

"As a pastor who has been deeply influenced by both the emergent movement and my chosen......

Preacher to Preacher: A New Interview Series

Jenny Warner | February 23, 2011

In the spirit of conversation, I am asking five questions of great preachers. These......

A Woman's Voice

Jenny Warner | February 16, 2011

What if you ever only heard one gender preach the texts? What perspectives might you be......

Holy Chaos

Jenny Warner | February 09, 2011

What if scripture is more like the streets of Cairo than a five-star hotel?...

On My Shelf

Jenny Warner | February 02, 2011

By the time my sermon is written, I usually have a stack of about five books that I have......

Strong Sermon

Jenny Warner | January 26, 2011

While each preacher must journey into her or his own way of preaching, I think an......

Polarization and Union

Jenny Warner | January 19, 2011

In our polarized nation, our polarized church, and our often polarized selves, wisdom is......

Loving in Dangerous Times

Jenny Warner | January 12, 2011

I do not know if our country will become more or less violent in the years to come. But......

The Lonely Preacher

Jenny Warner | January 05, 2011

Quite honestly, preaching can be lonely. So at the end of the day, I find it important......

She Speaks

Jenny Warner | December 22, 2010

Maybe our problem isn't that we listen too much but we listen too little to the voices......

The Incarnate God in Vegas

Jenny Warner | December 15, 2010

As pastors, we are called to move amidst this contradictory "Vegas" world without being......

When Half Spent Was the Night

Jenny Warner | December 08, 2010

It feels to me like one of the biggest ironies that I, weak as I know myself to be, am......

To Manuscript or Not, That Is the Question

Jenny Warner | December 01, 2010

When I first began preaching, I didn't even know that people manuscripted sermons....

The Call to Preach

Jenny Warner | November 16, 2010

Truth be told, I never aspired to preach. A few years earlier, I had carefully......

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