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He told his disciples, “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.” ―John 6.12 Jan Richardson writes:  “It is part of the miracle: how Jesus, with such intention, cares for the fragments following the feast. He sees the abundance that persists, the feast that remains within the fragments. We might think the marvel of the story is that there is enough for everyone. And yet for Jesus, enough does not seem to be enough. There is…

“There are enough irksome and troublesome things in life; aren’t things just as bad at the Olympic festival?  Aren’t you scorched there by the fierce heat?  Aren’t you crushed in the crowd? Isn’t it difficult to freshen yourself up?  Doesn’t the rain soak you to the skin?  Aren’t you bothered by the noise, the din and other nuisances?  But it seems to me that you are well able to bear and indeed gladly endure all this, when you think of…

We begin our 3 week series called Olympic Faith this Sunday.  We will reflect on Olympic Messes, Olympic Medals and Olympic Memories. Two billion of us worldwide will experience this collective show of greatness as a salve to our minds and spirits, like when a few billion of us get to watch a solar eclipse together.  It is as though a hush falls over the whole world, like a mantilla, and then gasps of amazement, and gratitude to be out…

We began our Evolution of Church series with the experience of Pentecost.  We were reminded of the story of God’s people as recorded in Acts 2:44-45:  “Everyone around was in awe—all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met.” (from The Message)  When we respond to this call from God, we…

In my beginning is my end.  In succession Houses rise and fall, crumble, are extended Are removed, destroyed,restored, or in their place Is an open field, or a factory, or a by-pass. Old stone to new building, old timber to new fires, Old fires to sakes, and ashes to the earth Which is already flesh, fur, and feces, Bone of man and beast, cornstalk and leaf. Houses live and die:  there is a time for building And a time for…

Understanding that worship in the church has evolved over many generations is one key to living in the freedom God offers each of us.  Knowing that the order in which we worship has been passed down and has changed over time gives us freedom to do the same.  Knowing that some parts of the order never change connects us all the way back to the earliest of God’s people.  When we dance and sing for joy in worship we know…

  Our worship series, The Evolution of Church, draws to a close this Sunday.  Throughout these eight weeks we have reflected on significant shifts in the ways God’s people have gathered together to root their lives in Grace, grow in faith, and reach in love.  If you would like to catch any of the messages you missed you may listen to them here: This week we invite you to read Mark 6.30-34 & 53-56.  In these two selections, Jesus invites…

Reinhold Niebuhr was a theologian who brought us into the 20th century.  He was one who significantly shaped Liberal Protestant Theology especially during the 1940’s and 1950’s.  There is a resurgence of interest in his writings and you can listen to a recent podcast about him here: “On Being” Podcast by Krista Tippett

“A new Methodist hymnal, joint produced in 1935 by the Methodists, North and South, and the Methodist Protestants, contained 4 orders of Sunday worship…The trend was heavily in the direction of dignified order, in both liturgy and music.  Church architecture and worship habits reflected the times.  The trend everywhere was toward more formal structures….The Christian year was rediscovered, along with liturgical colors; candles joined the cross on countless communion tables….preaching also changed.  Sermons were better structured and full of literary…

We will travel from the American frontier to the American city when Christian people built churches and were earnest in their attempt to “give their best” to God. We will continue our journey for 2 more weeks with a focus on the shifts in music, prayer, gender roles, and location (as in architecture) of the Christian community.   We will continue to “walk the paths” of those who came before us in the coming weeks as we move through the…

One of the first recorded large camp meetings “was held at Cane Ridge, Kentucky, in August 1801, where between 10,000 and 25,000 people attended, and Presbyterian, Baptist and Methodist ministers participated. It was this event that stamped the organized revival as the major mode of church expansion for denominations such as the Methodists and Baptists, who were newly converted by the teachings of John Wesley. “The significant and most recurring theme in mountain preaching,” according to Deborah McCauley, author of Appalachian…

We transition this week from the Reformation of sixteenth-century western Europe to the movement of revival in early nineteenth-century United States. Charles Yrigoyen, Jr. writes, “The most prominent religious development in early nineteenth-century America was the Second Great Awakening. This movement of religious fervor spread across the nation…While its intensity and accompanying phenomena varied in different sections of the nation, its major thrust was to convert sinners. In revivals and camp meetings throughout the country, there was an unprecedented effort…