Amy Butler (minister)

Amy Butler is an American ordained Christian minister. She was the first woman to serve as the senior minister at the Riverside Church in New York CIty and the first woman to lead the Calvary Baptist Church in Washington D.C.[1] Butler also served as the interim senior minister of the National City Christian Church, the National Church Of The Christian Church (Disciples Of Christ) in Washington D.C.

Dr.

Amy K. Butler
NationalityAmerican
Alma materBaylor University
International Baptist Theological Seminary
Wesley Theological Seminary
OccupationMinister
Years active1997–present
Organization(s)Founder, Invested Faith

Education and career

Butler attended Baylor University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1991 and a Master of Arts in 1996. She also holds a Bachelor of Theology from the International Baptist Theological Seminary (IBTS) in Ruschlikon, Switzerland, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from Wesley Theological Seminary.[2]

Following her graduation from IBTS, Butler led a homeless shelter in New Orleans, Louisiana through the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and served on the staff of Lindy's Place,[3] a transitional housing facility, providing support for women coming out of homelessness.[4] Butler then became Associate Pastor of Membership and Mission at St. Charles Avenue Baptist Church, also in New Orleans.

In 2003, Butler became Senior Minister of Calvary Baptist Church in Washington, DC, the founding church of the Northern Baptist Convention, now American Baptist Churches USA. As Calvary's first female Senior Minister, Butler helped Calvary more than triple in membership.[1] Her work at Calvary was featured in Paul Nixon's book We Refused to Lead a Dying Church!: Churches That Came Back Against All Odds.[4] She held this position until 2014, at which time she accepted the Senior Minister position at The Riverside Church.

The Riverside Church

Butler was elected to the senior minister position at Riverside on June 8, 2014.[5] In July 2019, after Butler completed an initial five-year term at the church, it was announced that the church's governing body would not be extending Butler's term for an additional five years. The official announcement described the decision as mutual. Later reports, however, cited other potentially contributing factors in the governing body's decision. These included retaliation against Butler for a sexual harassment claim she and others filed against a Church Council member, a visit to an education-based sex toy store with two church employees and a congregant during an out-of-town conference trip, and her requests to be compensated the same as her male predecessor and have protections to guard staff against church leaders who engaged in practices of harassment and bullying.[6][7] A former church council member claimed that although the Church Council had conducted a full and comprehensive investigation into the lay leader accused of sexually harassing female staff members, the governing body voted to terminate their relationship with Butler after an investigation that seemed rushed and poorly documented by comparison into complaints leveled against her by unnamed staff members.[8]

Invested Faith

In 2019, Butler founded Invested Faith, a non-profit funded by institutions and individuals. With the guidance of a board of advisors, the organization provides financial grants to faith-rooted social entrepreneurs. [9]

Beautiful and Terrible Things

In October 2023, Penguin Random House published Butler's book, Beautiful and Terrible Things. Its title was inspired by theologian Frederick Buechner's writings. Centered on the significance of authenticity in relationships and within communities of faith, Butler said: “If there’s one thing I hope this book does, it is to give us a little bit of courage to tell the truth about our lives, especially as pastors."[10]

Personal life

Butler was raised in Hawaii and is the mother of three children.[4] She is divorced.[11]

Bibliography
  • Beautiful and Terrible Things, Penguin Random House, 240 pp, October 2023, ISBN 9780399589485

References
  1. Otterman, Sharon (8 Jun 2014). "After Period of Turmoil, Riverside Church Elects New Leader". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 Jul 2019.
  2. "D.C. Pastor Becomes First Woman to Head N.Y.C.'s Influential Riverside Church" "The Washington Post"
  3. "Lindy's Place"
  4. "Senior Minister Biography" "The Riverside Church"
  5. Swarns, Rachel (12 Oct 2014). "A Warm Embrace for Riverside Church's First Female Leader". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 Jul 2019.
  6. Rojas, Rick (11 Jul 2019). "Pastor's Exit Exposes Cultural Rifts at a Leading Liberal Church". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 Jul 2019.
  7. Natanson, Hannah (15 Jul 2019). "Riverside Church congregants call for reinstatement of first female minister after her exit following a sex shop visit". The Washington Post. Retrieved 16 Jul 2019.
  8. "The stained-glass cliff and the Riverside Church: a double standard for our first female senior minister". Baptist News Global. 2019-10-17. Retrieved 2020-01-26.
  9. Butler, Amy (2022-09-20). "Investing faithfully: Planting seeds of change". The Presbyterian Outlook. Retrieved 2023-08-29.
  10. Brumley, Jeff (2023-10-02). "Amy Butler hopes to give other pastors courage to tell their stories". Baptist News Global. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
  11. West, Melanie Grayce (April 3, 2015). "Amy K. Butler Takes On New Challenges at New York City's Riverside Church". The Wall Street Journal.

Invested Faith

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