Meet an innoFaither is our series to introduce the inspiring optimists in the innoFaith world and what they’re working on and thinking about. We hope it helps you find and engage with each other across the network to advance faith-rooted social innovation and interfaith collaboration for social impact. Or just meet some cool people.
Meet Rev. Dr. Amy Butler, current pastor at National City Christian Church in Washington, DC, and founder of Invested Faith. Amy helps churches give new life to their assets—especially at what can be an otherwise painful stage of winding down—by investing in faith-rooted social entrepreneurs. Amy and Invested Faith remind us that God is always at work in the world if we are open to seeing that work in new ways. Don’t miss the recent profile of Amy and Invested Faith in the Washington Post.
What faith(s), if any, do you practice? Is your faith or practice bringing special inspiration or insight for you in this current moment?
As an ordained American Baptist minister, my faith is also my vocation. Currently pastor of a historic congregation in downtown DC, my faith is both my motivation and the vehicle by which I feel I can have some impact on the injustices facing our community. My faith also reminds me that I’m not alone; I’m part of a whole community of people working to make the world a place where everyone can thrive.
Where do you live?
I live in NE DC in a neighborhood that is undergoing gentrification. Many of my neighbors have lived here for decades, and their perspectives and wisdom about the history and current situation in which we find ourselves are invaluable to me.
What's your favorite pastime?
I love to garden. This time of year is my favorite time of the year, when my garden bed is ready for planting. I love all the possibility of it, and I love the way it connects me to my neighbors.
What are you working on currently?
While I pastor a congregation, my passion and extra time is focused on Invested Faith, a project I founded at the end of 2019. Invested Faith is a fund where churches at the end of their life cycles can deposit their assets; those assets are then distributed via small, unrestricted grants, to social entrepreneurs working to heal the world.
What question are you thinking about these days?
How can we embrace the end of life as we knew it pre-pandemic and embrace the new possibilities these changes offer us?
How can people find you?