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Children's Design Sale and Benefit for New Hope Grief Support Camps for Kids!
(for larger image, click on the postcard above)
Friends of the Gathering, including Laurie Huesmann and Angie Rebennack (and your faithful blog administrator, Christina Vejar), will have items for sale and display at Coley Clothes for Little Ones, on Saturday, December 2nd, from 11am-3pm, at 4106 N. Viking Way, Long Beach.
This will be an amazing opportunity to shop for your favorite kids while supporting a great non-profit, as a portion of the proceeds from this event will go to
New Hope Grief Support grief camps for kids.
For more information about the sale, visit us here:
coleyclothesforlittleones.blogspot.combring your friends and family...
The intersection of art and faith...
From the New York Times
After 15 Centuries, St. Peter Finally Leaves Home
By JORI FINKEL
It was a standoff in the desert heat between two kinds of authority: a Greek Orthodox monk and a group of Egyptian military officers. The monk, dressed in a long black robe and rugged gray vest, was clearly outgunned, but he was not afraid to raise his voice. Nor were the officers who stood in his way.
The soldiers had stopped the monk, Father Porphyrios, and his small caravan of cars and trucks at a checkpoint just before the Suez tunnel as the convoy made its way from the Holy Monastery of St. Catherine at Mount Sinai to the airport in Cairo. Their cargo could not have been more valuable: crates of centuries-old icons, devotional paintings that are as delicate as they are rare, destined for an exhibition 8,000 miles away in Los Angeles...
more
Notes and Reflections on the Values of Worship....
Here are some notes from Beth's presentation on 11/12.
In the New Testament, it is described that people gather and worship, but there are not specific guidelines about what that might look like. However, it does say that people gathered to pray together (Acts 2:42), took meals together, devoted themselves to apostles’ teaching (Acts 11), had their goods in common, sang songs, hymns and spiritual songs (Col 3:6 and Eph 5:18), and practiced preaching and teaching, prophecy and tongues, prayer, singing, confession of faith, sacraments (baptism, the Lord’s supper, footwashing, etc.), offerings, and greeted one another with a holy kiss.
However, there is no prescribed action for “how” to worship, and is informed then as now, by cultural context. What is the overarching value of worship? It is implied that we meet together (Let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good works, not forsaking our own assembling together, as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another- Hebrews 10:24), not individually, but congregationally, preparing to worship together, with the mind to fully engage and participate (As Beth’s mom would say, “A good Sunday begins on a Saturday.”).
The act of worship within the context of Grace LB is comprised of three parts: a time of reorientation, a time of receiving/engagement, and a time of responding.
1. the time of reorientation: begins with recognizing that God is present within the moment, and we are reminding ourselves of his sovereignty, within the relationship of Creator>created. We give praise in recognition of Jesus’s sacrifice for us, as it is the essence of who we are when we gather as Christians.
2. time of receiving/engagement: we share family news, celebrating the things that God has done in our lives, which is completed with the act of public reading of the Scripture and the sermon. The act of reading is always to remind us of who God is, and we sit in the presence of the Word. The goal of the sermon is to bring us to be moved by the Spirit, speaking directly to us both as individuals, and as a congregation, and to be transformed, Christians and non-Christians alike.
3. time of responding: the Gospel tells us that God speaks to us and we in turn, respond, through prayer, the sacraments, singing, offerings, times of silence, and responsive readings. This reinforces who we are as a people and a community of God, in the context of the church within and the Church world-wide. The songs we sing must be filled with the substantive words of the Scripture and to be marked by good Theology, which then creates an intersection between intellect and emotional response, as we sing through the heart.
Through this we reorient ourselves to the Gospel, the living Word, and make ourselves disciples of Christ, reminding ourselves that this is our role in the World.
The Values of Worship
Our thanks to Beth Balmer, who is presenting a three-part series on worship, at the Gathering. Notes from her presentation coming soon, but in the meantime, please read this article by Tim Keller on
Evangelistic Worship which Pastor Lou will be discussing on 11/18, while Beth and Eric are in England (buen viaje to the Balmers!).
Visit
The Resurgence for other interesting articles and resources.
Events and Announcements 11/12-11/19
John Greer is facilitating a workshop on Saturday, 11/18, on the "Purpose-Driven Employee". John will be discussing work/life balance, the theology of work, and living out the Gospel in the workplace. Registration begins at 8am at the Church Offices, Suites A+B. For more information and to RSVP to John, email gatheringgracelb@gmail.com.
Joanne Murphy is hosting a Christmas Party at Hillcrest Convalescent Home, for seniors and patients with MS, on Saturday, December 16, from 1-4pm. It will be a great time to celebrate with music, refreshments, and getting to know our neighbors at Hillcrest, and a wonderful opportunity to serve! Contact Joanne at gatheringgracelb@gmail.com, for more information.
Big ups to Jeff Rau, for his contributions to the Gathering blog. Please feel free to send your announcements, articles, and advertisements to gatheringgracelb@gmail.com. We would love to post them here.
Very truly yours,
Christina
Cheers to the CWK! - A special feature by Jeff Rau
A couple of guys who are part of The Gathering have been a part of a band called the Cold War Kids and they have been getting some remarkable attention of recent (at least 3 of the 4 guys attend Grace regularly). Their most recent album is entitled Robbers & Cowards and has been very positively received across the industry! In fact, the most recent Rolling Stone (November 16th) has a highlighted review giving them 4 stars and their song "Saint John" is listed as "One of the Best of this Issue"! The full review includes numerous very positive comparisons: channeling the spirit of the deep South as much as Creedence Clearwater Revival, sounding akin to the White Stripes, telling stories that could sit with Flannery O'Connor collections, and having as much sympathy for troubled characters as Bruce Springsteen. But the real highlight of the review is the closing line, "Robbers & Cowards has a deeply Christian take on its titular anti-heroes: that even the worst among us is capable of redemption." WOW!!! Way to go guys! Keep on preachin'!!! As for the rest of you... go buy their album NOW!!!
-Jeff Rau
Enjoy the Cold War Kids, recorded at the District Lounge,
here:
Friend of the Gathering, photographer
Matt Wignall, has been on the road with the Cold War Kids, and some of his photos are also featured in Rolling Stone. Good job, Matt!!!!
Hooray to our friends!
Christina
Religion, Spirituality and the Gospel : interpreting the echoes - Jeff Rau
For those of you who may not know, Ted Haggard is an evangelical preacher who has been leading a mega-church in Colorado Springs, and he has been a major leading figure in the evangelical community as president of the National Association of Evangelicals. He has risen to such notoriety that he reportedly has been a regular part of personal weekly meetings between President Bush and evangelical Christian leaders.
Recently however, he was accused of using meth and soliciting sex acts from a male prostitute. He has publicly admitted to some acts of "indiscretion" (though not admitted to the main claims against him), and as a result, he has stepped down from the NEA and has been removed from his position of pastoring New Life Church. This situation set off a media firestorm that labeled Ted a hypocrite and a liar, and it seems that in the public eye, this implicates all evangelical Christians as guilty by association.
Since this has been in the news, I have had several discussions about it with other Christians, and it seems we are all struggling with the same set of questions. Why has the struggle of one man become of such interest to the media? Do his acts of "indiscretion" automatically make him a hypocrite? And lastly, though arguably most importantly... how do we as Christians respond when others challenge Christ on the basis of a fallen Christian leader?
Why has the struggle of one man become of such interest to the media? Part of it is obvious... sex sells. But this can't be the whole story because his offense in the media's eyes is not the sex and maybe not even the drugs. In fact, the media often pushes for us to indulge our desires! In some ways we might have expected the secular world to argue that we should celebrate his breaking free of conservative oppression! (this is said entirely tongue in cheek, hopefully you get the point). But if his crime is not the sex... what is it?
His biggest offense in the media's eye is hypocrisy.
Believe it or not, this is where it ties in very nicely to what we've been discussing in The Gathering for the past few weeks! We have been exploring the differences between "Religion," "Spirituality," and the true "Gospel" which actually covers elements of both, in a more cohesive holistic approach. The public perception of Christianity is that it consists only of truth statements and moral law that appeal to the logos or rational; devoid of an understanding of self-community and of mission to the world. This is what we have characterized as "Religion." As we have discussed in class, it is easy for this kind of "Religion" to fall into three main traps: self-righteousness, exclusivity (us vs. them), and preoccupation with power (using moral law to control others). Since the secular world views Christianity as simply a "Religion" and does not see the fullness of the "Gospel", it is not surprising that these three traps are also secular stereotypes of the Christian church.
So how does this connect to Ted? I believe that the Ted Haggard tragedy has struck such a major chord in America because it appears to reinforce not one or two, but ALL THREE of those misconceptions about Christianity!!! Ted Haggard is accused of acting self-righteously as he preached against a particular way of life, but was unwilling to submit himself to the same law. Ted is accused of facilitating “exclusivity” and acting hypocritically as he claimed publicly to be one of "us" (Christians), while living a life in secret as one of "them" (indulging sinful desires). Lastly, and probably less obviously, he is accused of keeping up the lie in order to achieve power and influence... as evidenced by his part in the evangelical political machine that has climbed to such heights as to meet on a weekly basis with the most powerful man in the world!!! These may not be the explicit accusations found in the news media, but I believe they are clearly in the subtext. This critical trifecta causes the world outside of the Church to look in and say, "See, I knew it! All that Christianity stuff is just about self-righteous people, acting all exclusive and high-and-mighty, while just using their religion to gain power and control people."
So how do we respond??
This is a VERY difficult question that I can only begin to explore... The knee-jerk reaction is to say that we must distance ourselves from someone who has certainly not been practicing what he preached. But it doesn't take long to realize that this only reinforces the stereotype of exclusivity; "follow the rules and you're in; break the rules and you're out." This is the textbook legalist "Religious" response- hardly a response worthy of the Gospel, which promises Grace. After all, does his sin automatically make him a hypocrite? Doesn't he continually preach that we are all sinners? Why should we expect him NOT to struggle with sin?... As an alternative response, we could embrace Ted Haggard now more than ever... affirm that none is blameless... acknowledge that we are fallen people living in a fallen world... affirm that we are all in need of a saviour... extend grace... let him who is without sin throw the first stone... or maybe just forgive and forget. This response may sound better on the surface, but it just didn't sit right with me.
At this point, I got stuck. It wasn't until we held some conversations among the staff here at Grace that a third option seemed to emerge, clarifying the fault with option #2 (thanks to the insight of others).
Forgive and forget doesn't cut the mustard, because it ignores a Just God's requirement for atonement (another key component of the holistic Gospel). While it is certainly true that we all are sinful, as Christians we are to be marked by a way of life that is transformed in Christ. Being sinful may not make Ted Haggard a hypocrite, but his prior refusal to confess and repent of his sin probably did. So what do we do with Ted? The answer is sort of in between #1 and #2. I feel it is wise that he be presently removed from his position of leadership in the Church (after all, there is Just punishment for sin), but we must not kick him to the curb. Ted is a sinful man in desperate need of Christ's love and grace; we must do our best to seek reconciliation. I pray that Christ works in his heart to bring about confession and contrition, and I pray that we may one day see him restored into the body and active in ministry! We must love Ted with the whole "Gospel," not judging him on "Religious" terms, nor neglecting God's perfect Justice, "But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the Law... the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, to be received by faith... It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus." (Romans 3:21-26)
Sorry... that turned out longer than I had expected... I hope it was worth the read...
News of the week - 11/5-11/12
International Student Housing - you can be a host for an international student. To find out more, contact Laura Browder at gatheringgracelb@gmail.com.
Congratulations to Jana and Pete Deeble, who brought Luke Winslow Deeble into the world. Good job, Team Deeble! To sign up for a date to bring a meal to the Deeble family over the next month, contact Jacquie Bryant at gatheringgracelb@gmail.com.
A very Happy Birthday to Tonte Princely, celebrating on 11/9!
And we rejoice...
the Griffith Park Observatory is back online.
photo by xeni.
