Horizons: September/October 2025
September/October 2025
Flourishing
In the Devotion for this issue, Cecilia Amorocho Hickerson says, “I don’t think I’ve ever consciously thought of myself as flourishing.” Many times over the years, Cecilia’s writing has sparked an “Oh! It’s not just me!” recognition, but perhaps nothing so much as this sentence. It led me to realize that I’ve never heard even one person say they’re flourishing and that almost all the usages of “flourish” as a verb refer to plants. Maybe it just feels like too bold claim for a person—an implication that everything is balanced, working cohesively.
Plants might end up in the perfect environment where they can flourish, but plants also grow in cycles. They lie dormant, establish roots, sprout, grow, flower and scatter seeds. Some stunning plants only live for one growing season.
All this to say, we can celebrate the beauty of a flourishing life while also being mindful of the less than glamorous growth required for that moment.
As Presbyterian women, we know well the vision and tenacity that’s behind anyone or anything that flourishes. It’s the time spent organizing worship, workshops, meals and hands-on mission for a PW event that is enjoyed not just for those things but also the sense of community and fun. It’s helping fill out paperwork for grant applications and organizing volunteer shifts at a community soup kitchen where stomachs can feel full enough to enjoy conversations.
This issue of Horizons explores that “magic behind the curtain” that leads to flourishing and that isn’t actually magic at all. The contributors to this issue share insights on how they create and support environments that promote wellness. They relate practices that connect us to God, to one another and to our own minds and bodies. From ensuring we start the days connected to God to promoting access to menstrual health products, they express gratitude for God’s gift of life by helping all life to flourish.
—Sharon Dunne Gillies, managing editor
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Features
Who Is Caring for You? The Theology and Practice of Self-Care
Drawing on examples from the Bible, including Jesus’ own ministry, Rev. Dr. Anita Wright affirms the importance of regular rest and self-care. She describes how an attentiveness to ourselves is essential groundwork for us all before we can offer care for our communities.
Guide for Mental Health Ministry
When a person needs mental health support, congregations and pastors are often the first ones they ask for help. For this reason, the PC(USA)’s Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy (ACSWP) offers a guide on how our congregations and church groups can serve as faithful sources of connection, prayer and help.
Older Adults Organizing, Advocating and Connecting: The Journey of Aging in Montclair (AIM)
Emy Kamihara shares how Montclair, New Jersey, has opened pathways for seniors to communicate their needs and has established programming that meets a variety of needs. From political engagement to education, from fun to social services, Aging in Montclair brings older adults together to ensure they thrive.
Menstrual Health as a Human Right: Equipping Advocates for Gender-based Justice
Magdalene Lewis describes how advocates for women have brought the issue of period poverty and menstrual justice to the attention of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. She shares ways that we can affirm these basic needs and support individuals in our communities.
The Sky Is Stitched with Their Stories: PW’s Sister Organizations Flourishing as a Sacred Constellation
Kelsey Law highlights how PW’s sister organizations have been and continue to be shining lights for community, worship and growth. Representatives of PW’s sister networks describe the impact of these organizations in their own faith journeys.
PW Resources
To Flourish, Nourish!
Carissa Herold celebrates just a few of the many PW ministries seeded by PW’s Annual Mission Fund.
Anna H. Bedford Bible Study Resource
Rev. Dr. Shannan R. Vance-Ocampo offers reflections and questions for use in studying Lessons Three and Four of the 2025–2026 PW/Horizons Bible study, Finding Resilience, Joy, and Our Identity in Jesus Christ, by Rev. Dr. Rhashell D. Hunter.
Departments
Devotion
The Gift of Community
Cecilia Amorocho Hickerson
Unpacking the Theme: Scripture Study
Creating a Faithful Environment
Rev. Rosie DiBianca
What One PW Is Doing
Bible Study with Ice Cream and a Cherry on Top
Betsy Berry
Mosaic
News and Information about Presbyterian Women and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)
Working for Justice and Peace
Joy in the Journey: A Quest for Justice and Connection through Native Women
Carol Day
Supporting Mission
Changing Families with a Circle of Love
Carole Jean Soine
Faithful Parenting
Precious Connections
Rev. Melanie Marsh
Books
Pages Worth Turning
After the Offering
Homes to Independence
Denise Burry
Stories from the Ages
Care and Confidence
Hillary Moses Mohaupt
