MINERVA REW Two new books from the local author address current social issues with an inspiring mix of fantasy and faith by Candance Moore Minerva Rew is known for being many different
things: mom, pastor, educator, benefactor, and prolific poet. She's the
daughter of an amazingly strong woman whose qualities she has inherited.
She's the wife of a retired Navy pilot, deeply devoted to the American
dream. Local clinics and retailers know her as a charity organizer,
cajoling donations from them with a lovable persistence. And now, with
two books published and a third book underway, she's found herself
thrust into the very public role of author. Her
budding career began in a way familiar to most writers: there she was,
minding her own business, with no thought of making a name for herself,
and a story idea overcame her like a fever. She shoved it aside. She
questioned herself. She prayed. The story demanded an outlet, and
publication possibilities were available. One thing led to another, and
her first book, Cecilia of the Sea, was published in 2020. Minerva
recalls watching it unfold as if from outside. "I'm always asking the Lord for more ways I can minister to others. I ask Him to use me as a pipeline for blessings."-Minerva Rew Minerva's commitment to serving others is a
deeply-rooted family tradition. Her parents brought Minerva into the
world as the youngest of six children in a village in the Philippines.
They lived in a middle-class household by Filipino standards, but
Minerva's parents, seeing severe poverty around them, were determined to
help others, sometimes stretching their own limited resources to the
breaking point. Minerva
remembers walking for miles with her mother to a small lean-to that
served as the home of an illiterate laborer forgotten by the world. A
free bowl of rice perked him up, and a chat about the Christian Gospel
made him feel wanted. There was no applause, no social media fanfare,
and no taxi coming to drive them back to comfort. Just the long walk
back home and a sense of joy in having helped another human being. At
age 14, circumstances brought Minerva and her mother to the United
States. Her mother, appropriately named Ligaya, meaning "Joy" in
English, showed her youngest daughter that happiness in life is not a
result of getting something from this world, but a result of what you
give to the world from inside of yourself. American
life had different effects on Ligaya and Minerva. As a teenager
adapting to public high school in Florida, Minerva quickly saw the
disparity in the economic standards between a middle-class household in
the Philippines versus one in America. She visited friends in affluent
neighborhoods, dazzled by their standard of living. It was also during
her high school years that she met her future husband, Christopher, a
classmate and friend. Then it was off to Auburn University for both of
them, where they later married immediately after college graduation. Ligaya,
however, was haunted by the poverty of the villagers she'd left behind
in the Philippines. She started Feed My Sheep Ministries to raise
much-needed funds for Filipino missionaries laboring back home. Minerva
supported the ministry, but as a devoted mother, her attention at that
time was on soccer games and science fairs. When
Ligaya passed away unexpectedly, Minerva was left with the management
of the ministry. It was a wake-up call that reinvigorated her passion
for serving God and others. She
devoted herself to full-time work in her church, The Bridge Christian
Fellowship in Chesapeake, which now oversees Feed My Sheep. These
efforts connect with a Filipino church organization, Christ Charismatic
Fellowship International. It's a feet-on-the-ground ministry, taking the
Gospel to the poor on the wings of much-needed food and school
supplies. Minerva even became an ordained pastor through Christ Charismatic. She's been known to deliver a fiery sermon or two on the ministry's Facebook page. After exhorting Filipino missionaries with the Great Commission to bring the Christian message to the world, she supplies them with food for those in need. Realizing
the value of the miles that she walked with her mother long ago,
Minerva took her own children to her old home in the Philippines,
showing them where their fundraising was going. When her teary-eyed son
first asked what hunger did to a body, she knew she'd broken through the
American bubble in which her children had been raised. Then
came the spring of 2020, and life changed for everyone. Travel
restrictions limited her assistance to the Philippines. A terrible
typhoon season crippled phone services there, and communication ceased
with widely-scattered evangelists. Had they been injured? Abandoned? A
powerless Minerva could do nothing but pray. Meanwhile,
in the United States, the summer heat erupted with social unrest. As an
immigrant herself in a loving interracial marriage, Minerva was in a
unique position to understand all sides of the debate. That's
when the seed of a story idea was planted and began to grow. Wanting to
minister to all affected by the conflict, Minerva crafted a
creative-and unorthodox-parable. The result was her first book, Cecilia
of the Sea, released in December 2020. Then
came the challenge of explaining her uniquely imaginative tale to her
congregation. The Bridge Christian Fellowship is a Bible-based church
that strives to blend traditional Christian theology with an
open-minded/open-hearted approach to the issues besetting society.
Cecilia of the Sea tested that sensitive balance. It's a fantasy romance
promoting themes of cultural tolerance, involving-well-a mermaid who
hears singing from the moon. To Minerva's delight, her church family's
reaction was overwhelmingly positive. A stream of five-star reviews
boosted her confidence. Mountaintop
Proclamations, a devotional book about the trials of 2020, was
published next. Cecilia and Mountaintop are both available on Amazon.
Minerva is currently developing her third book, an illustrated short
story for children. As
things slowly begin to return to normal, Minerva is anxious to help the
Philippines more, and all proceeds from book sales will go entirely to
that cause. Autographed copies of these books are available through her
local church and Stillwater Tea Room in Suffolk where the owner is a
long-time supporter of missions. "I
believe God has opened this avenue as another pipeline," Minerva says.
"I don't know what the future holds, but my family and I will go
wherever He leads." Minerva Rew 1116 Hillwell Road Chesapeake, VA 23322 757-546-8414 www.mountaintopproclamations.com |