Before the Christianity site was launched, I foresaw a host of issues that the moderator team would face:
I am a Christian and I believe a general Christianity Q&A site will be very challenging to moderate because of the question of authority. To put it simply, not all Christian traditions rely on the same set of authority for answering questions of faith.
This issue has not gone away (it might have even intensified over the years), but whereas I once assumed such a site would be impossible to moderate, I now see that a firm hand on the tiller can steer this ship of fools through the rocks and shoals of doctrinal controversy. Our moderators have navigated us this far with grace and courage and great patience. I applaud them:
Richard: I think you are a genius of community formation. We have missed your presence both on C.SE and BH.SE. I stepped into your big shoes on the other site and I still find ways that you shaped the community over there for the best. We owe you a debt for finding a way to separate the topics of these two sites so that they continue to compliment each other.
Mason Wheeler: Don't think we don't notice your quiet toil in the background. Over the years I've seen enough comments and moderator actions to know that you are reliable in your judgment. You lead by example and that's admirable.
El'endia Starman: I must apologize for not taking you seriously when I first saw your name/avatar. Your depth and wisdom is remarkable. And it's balanced by a clear zest for life and an earnestness about your faith. People ignore you at their own peril.
wax eagle: We crossed paths on the Gardening site, but you were just a funny name at that point. Now I consider you a friend. (How can that happen when we have never met in person?) Thank you for your work on Eschewmenical among many, many other things you do around here. It gives me great pleasure to see your username attached to a post or show up in chat.
Caleb: If you had only written Brothers, we are not Christians‼ it would have been enough. But you consistently write brilliantly on this and many other meta sites. It's a true honor to be a moderator with you on Biblical Hermeneutics and I'm grateful to you for encouraging me to be involved with this site. If we are ever in the same city, I'll be glad to buy you a coffee (or whatever) and chat. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
One of the privileges of graduation is that we will be able to vote on a new slate of moderators. There are plenty of great candidates besides these men and I hope we have a lively round of moderation with new faces as well as old. But whoever is elected will stand on the shoulders of our Pro Tempore moderation team.
Please feel free to add your words of thanks to this team.
