Goddess of Fierce Compassion by Scholartivist (scholar/artist/activist) Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber of The Tehom Center

So excited to be a revolutionary! Scholartivist Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber made this extraordinary collage of me as The Goddess of Fierce Compassion. Certainly my clients will attest to my ferocity—as well as my compassion. I feel as though Angela captured a picture of my true spirit.

If you don’t know of The Tehom Center—the educational and retreat not-for-profit that Angela and her spouse Elizabeth founded in Hawaii, please visit their website. It’s gorgeous, if nothing else, and as queer clergy, Angela sees who we really are.

This is copied from Tehom’s weekly email newsletter, The Weekly Revolutionary.

Tehom Center Presents

Weekly Revolutionary

Aloha from the Tehom Center! Today’s weekly revolutionary is my newest commission—and the first commission in my new collage icon style—Goddess of Fierce Compassion.
 
Commissioned by Dr. Susan Corso, lover of redwoods, skylines, labyrinths, peace roses, and stargazer lilies, she is a revolutionary woman who embodies peace, integrity, and fierce compassion. Hear this. I always adore commissions. Whether it’s of an historical or mythological woman, the woman doing the commissioning, or as a gift for daughter, mother, spouse, or ordinand, I relish the opportunity to research and listen to revolutionary women’s stories, capturing their essence on canvas. Dr. Corso’s commission was, somehow, particularly meaningful.
 
As the pandemic began to rage in March, I experimented with this new collage style for the first time in an online Arts MBA course. Always interested in this medium, I never found the time, energy, and inspiration to try it. With the non-profit’s retreats and courses cancelled due to travel restrictions, the time was available and I needed a creative outlet to grapple with the havoc of Covid-19. This new medium was not only a balm to my worried soul, but it also opened avenues for empowerment for women otherwise uninterested in folk-feminist iconography. And it paved the way for me to sign with an art agent!
 
A few months into this new normal of quarantine and social distancing, Dr. Corso reached out to me to commission her piece. This meandering Covid creativity has invited me to consider what it means to offer fierce commission—to self, others, and the world. Where do you need fierce compassion in your life? Where is the world in need of fierce compassion? How might you offer fierce compassion this week?
 
One way I’m going to ask for some fierce compassion is with our August fundraiser. On August 22, the Tehom Center non-profit turns 3 and I celebrate the last birthday in my 30s! We’re trying to raise $3,000 to begin developing an Empowering Arts Leadership Program for queer and/or BIWOC scholartivists (scholar + artist + activist). Everyone who donates is entered to win 2 FREE nights at our Hawai’i Island retreat center. Please consider donating to help us celebrate! You can donate through our Facebook fundraiser by clicking here.
 
Accept fierce compassion. Offer fierce compassion. Be fierce compassion this week.
 
Deeply,
Rev. Dr. Angela Yarber
Author, Artist, Executive Director
Tehom Center
www.tehomcenter.org
 
PS Please consider registering for either of my new courses with the School of Global Citizenry!
Queer Spirituality: Global Perspectives
&
Divine Feminine: Global Perspectives
 
Both courses earn 3 CEU credits, are adaptable for academic course credit, and are online, on-demand, and self-paced. They just launched last week and we already have global learners from Uganda, the United Kingdom, and the United States enrolled. Join them and earn a certificate in Queer Spirituality or the Divine Feminine!