Kim Penner is a pastor with a passion for connecting our lived experiences of God in the church to bigger questions and conversations about who God is. It might come as no surprise, then, that she began her career as an academic, writing and teaching about the Bible and ethics. No matter how big the questions or topics became, she has always been concerned with what difference it might make for the actual experiences of people in the church. Questions she loves to ask include, for example: Who is God? How do we know when we see/hear/feel, God in scripture and other parts of our lives? What is the role of the church in working for peace and justice? Does God’s love include justice? How does power exist in the church and how to we avoid abuses of power?
As a pastor, Kim is grateful for the gift of seeing these questions and concerns being engaged and wrestled with regularly and implications for congregational life. She is grateful for the opportunity to walk with and to learn from others – including all our eco-social relations (isn’t God present there too?). For her, faith does not exclude doubt. Instead, as writer Cole Arthur Riley says, “Doubt is not a threat to faith; it’s faith that has finally taken off its mask.” So, feel free to bring your authentic and curious self to visits with Kim!
Kim grew up in Elmira, Ontario and calls Winnipeg, Calgary, Toronto, and Red Bay other places that feel like “home”. She currently lives in Kitchener with her partner Dylan, their children Jackson and Ethan, and their two cats (Hannah and Max). She is very close with her parents and two sisters (and their families). In addition to spending time with her loved ones, Kim enjoys a good cup of coffee, yoga, campfires, and fish tacos.
Email contact: kim@stirlingmennonite.ca