Episode #61: Clara - Letter one - invitation

Jan,16 2026

<-#60: Ruth Chapter 8 - Leadership#62: Clara - Letter two - meeting ->

June 12, 1987

To the Council of the Southern Christian Naturism Church,

I received your letter inviting me to succeed my aunt Ruth as moderator. I read it three times before answering, because I am not certain you have chosen wisely, and because I have never imagined myself in the place you describe.

You ask for my personal acceptance, yet my first thought was to ask my husband. Should he not take the seat you offer me, for he is the one who captured my heart and guides our household? I have been taught that a woman flourishes best when she stands beside a man who shelters her decisions. This is how I have lived, and how I believed my mother lived also, and how my aunt would have lived, though she loved differently.

You write that you desire a woman to continue the line begun with Ruth. I am honored by this trust, but I am also troubled by it. Christopher never spoke of offices reserved for one sex or the other. My aunt often said the same. I fear that by insisting on a woman, you may already be shaping the message before the messenger arrives.

I must confess something plainly: I never knew Christopher. I was born in 1946, when the fence already stood and the word "resort" had replaced the word "town." My memories are of tidy paths, printed schedules, and visitors who came for weekends and left with sunburned shoulders. I learned of Christopher as children learn of a distant grandfather, through stories polished by repetition.

Perhaps this makes me unfit. I do not carry the dirt of the original fields on my skin. I carry instead the order my mother taught me, and the devotion my husband expects of me, which I give gladly.

If I were to accept, I would wish to serve quietly, without turning the fellowship into something loud or rebellious. I believe obedience has its own beauty and that discipline protects the weak. My aunt often spoke of freedom; I speak more comfortably of guidance.

I will pray on this matter and await your further counsel. Please understand that I write not from reluctance to serve but from fear of serving poorly.

In humility,

Clara Mercer

<-#60: Ruth Chapter 8 - Leadership#62: Clara - Letter two - meeting ->