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Review and Herald Votes Woman as Editor of Message Magazine

Posted on Jun 21 2012

Attorney Carmela Monk Crawford has become the first female editor of Message magazine.

Hagerstown, Md. » The Review and Herald Publishing Association board has voted Carmela Monk Crawford as editor of Message, the church’s urban-flavored sharing magazine. Crawford served as associate editor of Message in the early 90s, but her connection to the ministry goes back to childhood. Her father, Paul Monk, took on the role of editor 32 years ago. “I remember how he came home with his pockets full of White House petit fours after a press briefing with President Reagan,” she says.

Crawford left editorial work in 1995 to become an attorney, but she was drawn back to Adventist publishing. “There is only one work that is ultimately satisfying, and this is it,” she explains. “I have been blessed to help people in dire situations, prevented them from serving jail sentences, and helped protect children from abuse. I have worked to protect someone’s very life. Yet, what would be the point if they did not know the freedom and clemency that Jesus offers?”

The previous editor, Washington Johnson II, served from 2007 to 2012. As a chaplain in the Navy reserve, he resigned when he received news that he was being deployed to Afghanistan.

Crawford has been invited into a position that has typically been held by male ministers. “I think my selection is a strong statement, not just within the Adventist community, but to those with whom we share the gospel,” she says. “There is too much work to do, and we need more people on it. Adventist women like me must continue to serve substantively and competently on every level throughout this movement. It’s time for us all to get on it. I’ve got my gear, I’m going in.”