Jen - in Philly

Hello all!

I have finally moved to Philadelphia to start my next degree! My degree will be from Westminster Theological Seminary (a reformed Presbyterian school: www.wts.edu). Lord willing, I will recieve an MAR (Master of Arts in Religion) with an Urban Ministry emphasis. The course load is somewhere between the MA and MDiv. This will hopefully be a 2-year program, ending in spring 2008. So far, everyone I have met is very interesting and nice. It is a surprisingly diverse community, but everyone has the same underlying goal.. to learn in order to serve God better.

Upon registration, I have discovered that the majority of my classes will be theological, with only a few Urban ones mixed in. I have also discovered that people raise their eyebrows when I mention that I am taking 17 hours (7 courses) this semester, including 2 languages (Hebrew & Greek). The phrase "If you plan on not having a life..." has come up more often than even I can ignore, and I get the feeling that the library, books, and this computer are going to be my new best friends!

One of the first things I did when arriving in Philly was prepare for and take a placement exam for Biblical Greek. I have been working all summer (with the help of a blessed few that showed extreme patience and fortitude) to teach myself the equivalent of the 1st summer semester of Greek. The idea was to save ~$1500 for the class and not have to move to Philly a couple of months early. After much blood, sweat, and tears I took the exam... and passed! Praise God for His mercy!! That said, classes begin this Thursday, and I will be starting in the 2nd semester of Greek.

My new house is in Glenside (the Northern suburbs of Philly), and I am living with 2 other Westminster students - in their 2nd and 3rd year, respectively. It is a lovely twin house (complete with wireless and central air!) at the end of a one-way road. Fascinatingly, the loud trains that rush by - to and from Philly - cause the floor (walls, bed) to shake. The 3 active young children next door take care of shaking everything that the trains neglect with their running steps.

My parents have already visited, specifically helping me out by bringing some of my stuff and helping me decorate my room. My new housemates helped me paint my small room - a rather key lime green (very cheerful) - and Dad and Mum helped me set it up by doing the hard labor (carrying, hanging, shifting, hammering, arranging). The results are a lovely little room on the back corner of the house (2 windows! ) overlooking the backyard, and a cherry-type tree that turns pink in the spring.

Here's an interesting (and my last) story! This Sunday, I attended New Life church in the Northeast of Philly. Last year, they began an outreach to their surrounding area, which includes a large portion of the ~20,000 Albanians that live in this city! Amazing to see once again how God collides my life's paths! I had the opportunity to speak in Albanian with the 4 that were in attendance, and learned they're from Korca and Vlora (both cities I have been to - each very beautiful). The church teaches English classes now to anyone interested, and have asked me to be involved! They have even asked me to translate for them (those of you who know my Albanian skills are laughing heartily at this..!) and teach a class (those of you who know about my teaching background are laughing heartily at this..!). I do hope to be involved, perhaps 1x/week, helping teach the 3 hour class on either Mondays or Wednesdays, depending on my school requirements.

That's about all there is to say so far. I grow in excitement about what this year will bring, what people I will meet, what I will learn, how I will be stretched (mentally, spiritually, etc), and how much "life" I can throw into my full schedule! Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers (even drop a line occasionaly!), and moreover let me know how you are doing.

Take care,

Jen Taylor
Xheni