Author
Verity Jones
Executive vice president, Christian Theological Seminary
The Rev. Verity A. Jones is the executive vice president at Christian Theological Seminary (CTS). She also serves as the project director of the New Media Project, which she founded in 2010 at Union Theological Seminary in the City of New York before bringing it to CTS in 2012. She is the former publisher and editor of DisciplesWorld, an independent news and opinion journal for the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the past president of the Associated Church Press. Her work has also appeared in the Christian Century, Biblical Preaching Journal and Journal for Preachers.
She is a graduate of Yale College (B.A. '89), and Yale Divinity School (M.Div. '95), and is an ordained clergy person with joint standing in the United Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Verity served as Senior Minister of Central Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Terre Haute, Indiana, for six years, and Associate Minister of the Colchester Federated Church (ABC/UCC) in Colchester, Connecticut for three.
Lilly Endowment Inc. announces Exploring Christian Practices Initiative
The Exploring Christian Practices Initiative aims to multiply opportunities and increase access to settings that help individuals from a wide variety of backgrounds explore and engage in Christian practices to address their spiritual interests and questions, find and build community with others, nourish their religious lives and grow in faith.
In this open and competitive initiative, the Endowment invites charitable organizations to submit proposals for grants of up to $2.5 million each that may be used for up to a five-year period to develop new and/or enhance existing programs that present promising strategies for advancing the aim of the initiative and provide compelling and thoughtful responses to its guiding questions. The Endowment anticipates awarding approximately 60 grants and announcing grant awards in December 2026.
The Endowment will host four virtual information sessions (February 17, 19, 24, and 25) to discuss the Exploring Christian Practices guidelines for submitting a proposal. An Interest Form and Letter of Interest are due March 25, 2026. Complete proposals are due May 18, 2026.
Learn More and register for information sessions