Career Roadmap
Douglas's work combines: Philosophy & Religion, Education, and Teaching / Mentoring
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Clay Senior High School, Oregon, OH
Bachelor's Degree
Music Teacher Education
The College of Wooster
Graduate Degree
Voice and Opera
Northwestern University
Graduate Degree
Divinity/Ministry
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary
Graduate Degree
Ethics
Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary
Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be a Clergy:
High School
Bachelor's Degree: Music Teacher Education
Graduate Degree: Voice and Opera
Graduate Degree: Divinity/Ministry
Graduate Degree: Ethics
Learn more about different paths to this career
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life took a while to figure out
1.
First, I thought I wanted to be a music teacher, because my HS music teacher taught me so much.
2.
Then I studied music in Vienna, Austria, in college junior year and decided to become a conductor.
3.
In my early 30s, I realized conducting wasn't my "calling," but that ordained ministry was.
4.
Got involved in a number of spiritual development programs to listen more closely to God's voice.
5.
Decided God was calling me to share insights that come from being gay and Christian.
6.
Sought through theological study to ground my experience in a deeper understanding of Scripture.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Myself:
I had no "opposition" from others, but I kept coming to feel as though I was on the wrong path - in college, that sent me to study abroad and then to change my career goal from teaching to professional musicmaking; and then from conducting to ministry.
How I responded:
We set goals that are appropriate for us at any moment of our lives, and it is good for us to have them, even if they will not be permanent. We never know what is ahead, so we need to act with a sense of purpose while also being open to any discomfort that tells us there is something else brewing inside us that is preparing to move us in a different direction. At such times, we can expect that the new thing will emerge that will use what we've already done while setting us on a new path.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
My parents paid for my undergraduate education, but I paid for much of my graduate study, taking loans for much of it that I am still paying back - but it was worth it.
I kept my being gay hidden for many years until I recognized that it was important for both my ministry and the church that I share it and counter the church's misunderstandings and misrepresentations of it through grounding my message in scripture.