Fifty Years After Yes
Fifty years after ordaining women, the Covenant Church is still learning to make room for the gifts it has already affirmed.
The Covenant Companion
June 29, 2026
Fifty years after ordaining women, the Covenant Church is still learning to make room for the gifts it has already affirmed.
After a devastating job loss, Nicki Andersen made God a promise: she’d read the Bible from cover to cover. What followed was a conversion, a baptism, and a community at Rock Harbor Church that would expand to embrace her granddaughter too, in the midst of her most difficult moments.
The Covenant Companion received multiple honors this year from the Evangelical Press Association and Associated Church Press, recognizing excellence in writing, visual storytelling, podcasting, and digital publishing across print and online platforms.
Pat Stark reflects on what is changing in Covenant church planting and why this moment calls for renewed imagination rooted in local churches and the Spirit’s leading.
As the Evangelical Covenant Church marks fifty years since voting to ordain women, six women speaking at Gather 2026 share stories of ministry, leadership, persistence, and discernment across generations and contexts throughout the life of the Covenant.
In his new role with Start and Strengthen Churches, Fil Nesta reflects on the challenges and resilience shaping bilingual church planting—highlighting the Latino church’s leadership, innovation, and witness as it navigates this moment and looks toward a hopeful future.
In communities across the country, Covenant churches are responding to changing immigration policies and enforcement through prayer, public witness, education, and tangible care—navigating this moment with courage and a deep commitment to their communities.
In honor of Black History Month, The Companion presents the following list of published Covenant authors of African American descent, highlighting both their localized ministry impact and their literary influence on the Covenant church as a whole.
For more than twenty-five years, Steve Burger helped the Covenant welcome children and families, reminding the church that children are not just the future—but full participants in the life of the Spirit today.
Amy Julia Becker invites people to reimagine the good life through her writing and speaking on disability, faith, and culture. She is the author of To Be Made
