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Narrative Summary
Interview with Rene Ward by Joe Stonecypher
For the Religious Lives of Ozarks Women Archive Project, I chose a woman from the town where I live—Mrs. Rene Ward. She and I had the good pleasure to meet when my family and I first moved to the Ozarks. My mother and Rene had taken a great liking to each other and Rene’s husband works with my dad for the city.
Rene was born in Tennessee in the 1960s. After many years of moving around, she and her husband settled down in the southern area of Missouri. She has been working as a teacher in schools around the area for many years and just recently retired; however, she still substitutes if the school is in need. She has two daughters and also two dogs and a cat that makes an appearance on the interview recording.
Rene lived in many places across Missouri and Kansas. She attended college at Pittsburgh State University. Finally after getting her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education, she finally returned to southern Missouri and settled down to teach and substitute at schools all around the area.
Rene was raised as a Southern Baptist and she remains one to this day. She discussed how her upbringing was very influential to her path through Christianity, as well as the role that her parents played in teaching her the path to follow toward the ways of God. Her father had a gift of speaking, and even though he was never a minister, she told of how he would often fill the role of the interim pastor and would give sermons if he needed to do so. Rene said that she had a strong foundation in the church and was very devoted to the youth group of her church and the traveling choir group that she participated in. She expressed how her involvement in both of these groups served as the source of her friendships and social life through her teens and high school days.
She has intermittently attended both a Baptist church as well as a Methodist church. She says there were periods of time when she maintained consistent attendance, as well as other times when she did not go at all. Rene discussed how one of the reasons for this is that the Baptist church they were a part of was constantly changing ministers and that was a source of inconsistency which was difficult for them to deal with.
Rene also shared one of the most important aspects about her spirituality with me—the role and the impact of contemporary Christian music in her life. She testified that music plays as big of a part in her life as the Bible, and she describes how certain pieces of music and specific songs have kept her going through difficult times. These songs constantly remind her of God’s presence, that he works in mysterious ways, that he loves us, and that through him all things are possible. Rene also briefly discussed Facebook and how she would often post song lyrics or verses as her status on the site. She sees it as a way to share her belief and spread the love of God to anyone who would listen, but she also confesses that Facebook can be a dangerous thing, so it must be used with caution.
Rene expressed a satisfaction with the place she is at in her spiritual life, and she has no regrets in any of the choices or paths she has taken. She also addressed her views on women in places of power in the church. She believes that women have a role to play, but that men are the ones who have a true calling to ministry. She also talked about her experiences as a teacher, how she kept God in the classroom without crossing any lines, and the fact that she believes that God must be present in education.
Finally, Rene covered how she views God, including the imagery and role that she places upon the divine. She feels that God is omnipotent, and she holds firm to the traditional beliefs surrounding the Second Coming of Christ—she doesn’t know when he will return, but she believes that the prophesies within the New Testament book of Revelations are being fulfilled right now.
This interview experience was enjoyable, and I found it extremely interesting; yet, I was nervous for some reason. It was difficult for me to get through, and I found myself going blank and stammering through questions. Rene was great to work with, and I loved hearing her stories, her religious beliefs, and her views on certain issues. I found her testimony concerning the role of women in places of religious authority very interesting. She was not completely orthodox in her view of women as ministers; however, she holds true to the traditional belief that women have roles and callings of their own and that men are the ones who are truly called to be ministers and hold positions of authority in the church. I was really touched when hearing about how she feels such a strong connection with music, how song lyrics play a role in her life, and how she is able to feel her closeness with God through music. Rene held to her traditional Southern Baptist views, but she was flexible enough that I wouldn’t consider her a hardcore conservative. The interview was short, but I felt that I covered all of the bases that I wanted to; I believe that I was able to end without the interview becoming stagnant. Rene and I had fun, and I really enjoyed getting to learn more about her.
Missouri State University Fall 2010 Religious Lives of Ozarks Women