The proposed project is to fund study leave for the two applicants to collaboratively research the Wisdom Literature and associated traditions with the hope of illuminating in a new way the richness of these traditions for the church and individuals seeking new directions in their spiritual life. The desired end result will be a Book/CD collaboration based on the Wisdom Literature combining the fields of songwriting and theological discourse between two United Methodist pastors: Rev. Matthew Charlton, Ph. D., Blakemore UMC, and Rev. Sherry Cothran, M. Div., West Nashville UMC. Both Matt and Sherry have made significant contributions in the fields of music and theology around sacred text.

Sherry’s background is in popular music as the former lead singer/songwriter for Mercury Recording Artist, The Evinrudes. Sherry recently released a project that she wrote and produced entitled “Sunland,” that explores the stories of various women from the Old Testament in a modern rock/folk format. Sherry also leads workshops on working creatively with text. (www.sherrycothran.com)

Matt has written for several publications including several chapters in retreat guidebooks for youth, devotional material for the Upper Room Disciplines, commentary for the United Methodist Reporter, and published scholarly reviews and articles in several journals and magazines. He recently completed a Ph.D. in theological studies from Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, writing his dissertation on the theology of the cross from the perspective of the wisdom literature. Presently, he is editing a book of essays with Jürgen Moltmann and Tim Eberhart titled “The Economy of Salvation.” In addition to leading Blakemore UMC, he is on faculty in the School of Religion at Belmont University and teaches in the Course of Study for Local Pastors at Claremont School of Theology.