Letters to the editor

Male, female pastors can lead both men, women
I’m puzzled. Larry Malone, director of United Methodist Men’s Ministries, “thinks church today is ‘feminized to a degree’ because a disproportionate number of women are present as the power players” (“Men avoid female church experiences,” July 28).
It seems he considers female pastors “power players.” At present clergywomen constitute about 33 percent of active pastors in the Southwest Texas Conference. That’s too many?
Malone asks, “If our biggest purpose is reaching all of God’s creatures for Christ, what could a female pastor do with the fact that some men are more likely to respond to male leadership?”
Well, what did male pastors do for centuries with the fact that some women are more likely to respond to female leadership?
In The United Methodist Church chances are you will have both male and female pastors as time goes by. Just wait! I have been privileged to work with both men and women over 30 years.
All pastors, I believe, work to disciple and train both male and female leaders in our churches.
I would be disappointed to think that a denominational executive associates the presence and leadership of female pastors with the absence of men in our churches. 
Jeanne Devine
San Antonio

Walks to Emmaus might restore joy among Christians
Have you been on a Walk to Emmaus?
A time to draw away from the busyness of our world is something we need but won’t take the time to do. The Walk to Emmaus is a time to be alone with God and think about priorities.
Emmaus’ goal is to build Christian leaders, especially men. Emmaus is not a secret society. Most of us have difficulty explaining exactly what happens on an Emmaus weekend because encounters with God are always difficult to explain.
As I read letters in the Witness written by good, well-intentioned Methodists, it seems many have lost their joy and focus.
Investigate www.upperroom.org/emmaus. Pray about attending a weekend Walk to Emmaus.
Going on a Walk to Emmaus might be just the thing God will use to restore your joy and refocus your life.
That is something we all need from time to time.
Chrissie Smith
San Antonio