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Hey, Church--
Once again, we are enjoying one of those strange Common Table weekends where we kinda turn 'church' on its ear, to simultaneously give ourselves some rest and to challenge ourselves to put our words into action. If you haven't participated in this dance before, don't worry... I'll do my best to show you the steps.
Step One: we will NOT be meeting at Jammin' Java on Sunday morning. Or anywhere else, for that matter (though you can certainly get together with anyone you'd like ;-). Instead, you are encouraged to take this one Sunday each month to do something sabbathy and restful-- sleeping, eating pancakes, going for a walk, and reading the newspaper are all popular choices. Take a breath, shrug off that guilt, and enjoy your Sunday morning. Amen.
Step Two: we WILL be getting together, though. This month, we'll be joining The Amazing Martha at The Lamb Center, where we'll help with breakfast and cleaning and laundry, and where we'll be taking every opportunity to connect with these good folks who live outdoors and/or who are making huge transitions toward housing and employment. The Lamb Center is open from 8am to 12:30pm, and our team will be joining them for those hours (though if you'd like to come at 7 to help set up breakfast, you're welcome to do so). They've asked us to limit the size of our group, so if you're interested, please email the GNU Team so that we don't overwhelm them with our kindness! (If too many people sign up, we'll have an alternate service project.)
Step Three: after that project, anyone who's interested can join us at Mike and Tina's place for a little lunch and our Congregational Meeting. If you're interested in CT, we'd love to have you contribute as we update everyone on our community, and as we look toward our future together. These meetings have a very open format, though we do try to conclude them in 90 minutes or so. Hope to see you there.
Mike Stavlund
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Hello, Church:
He is (almost) Risen!
I just finished a great book in preparation for Easter, wherein a high-church, British Anglican takes Christians everywhere to task for their sedate celebrations of Easter. Rather than lighting a few candles, he commends the commissioning of every man, woman, and child with a candle, until the churches are luminous! Instead of a single morning of celebration, he wants to continue the party for days and weeks! He wants the celebration of Jesus' resurrection to overflow the confines of Easter and to change the very nature of our world.
Well, I can't promise any dancing in the aisles, but we're definitely going to pull out a few stops this Sunday. With the fasting and repenting and re:Lenting of the Lenten season behind us, we'll turn on the lights and spend some time reveling in the resurrection as we celebrate a unique 'Stations of the Resurrection' together. We've found (and adapted) a really interesting Catholic liturgy, and we'll be pairing it with music and visuals and other surprises for a rich experience of Easter. Hope to see you at Jammin' Java at 10.
On the following weekend, we'll be practicing resurrection as we step away from Jammin' Java and head over to the Lamb Center on Saturday morning to join with our friends there. We'll plan to have lunch together afterward, then have a Congregational Meeting during the early afternoon. Stay tuned for more details to follow about that Saturday from the GNU Team and the Leadership Team.
Eagerly,
Mike Stavlund
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Hi church,
This weekend, we begin our final steps in this journey of Lent, as Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday and the holiest week of the Christian year begins. This coming Sunday (10am at Jammin' Java), we'll gather for a Palm Sunday worship service that looks at Jesus' entry into the holy city, as well as several peculiar interactions between our Lord and fig trees. Please join us as we continue our Lenten journey in repenting of our safe and tame ideas about the Nazarene.
After the service, Matt and Kendra Andrus have invited us to gather at their home for the last of our Lenten simple meals. Please join is in giving up our customary burritos (and giving our burrito money to somebody who needs it) as we come together for simple fare and fellowship.
As Holy Week continues, we aren't planning any specifically Common Table gatherings for Maundy Thursday or Good Friday, but if you're looking for a deeper experience of Jesus' journey from Palm Sunday to Calvary to the great reversal of his Resurrection, let me know - as our resident (Anglo-)catholic, I can hook you up with some options for liturgical worship.
Speaking of the Resurrection, please plan on joining us for our Common Table Easter gathering on the 23rd at Jammin Java!
Looking further out, the last weekend in March will bring us our monthly service-worship (it sounds like we'll be working with our friends at the Lamb Center - stay tuned for deets from the GNU Team) as well as a congregational meeting to discuss, among other things, what God is calling is to do with this newly debt-free community of ours.
And that's about it, I think. May your Holy Week journey be a blessed and transformational one.
Peace,
Mike Croghan
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Hey, Church--
First of all, let me remind you of the tragic news that we will lose an hour between Saturday and Sunday. Spring forward, change your clock, and kick yourself out of bed, and all of that.
Motivation, is that what you need? A reason, perchance, to bid your pillow adieu and go to Jammin' Java on Sunday morning? Well, we've got three reasons, and they're really good ones:
1. The Cobalt Season will be joining us all the way from California, playing some of their great folk/alt/rock tunes and helping us to see our world a little more clearly.
2. We're continuing our re:Lent series, letting Jesus deconstruct us through his parables. This week, we'll be looking at the stark Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, and the combination of this counter-cultural teaching with the music of Cobalt Season will be incendiary, indeed.
3. As we continue to forgo our usual lunch comforts during Lent, we'll be having some Stone Soup at Israel's place in Arlington, the famous Culpeper House (2428 S. Culpeper St Arlington, VA 22206 - note that Google Maps is wrong: 25th street doesn't touch Rt. 7; take Chesterfield instead). Please bring something from your refrigerator or cupboard to contribute.
Can't wait,
Mike Stavlund
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Hi church,
This week, we'll continue with the Lenten practices we began last month. On Sunday morning, we'll meet at Jammin' Java for another go at repenting of our lame and tame ideas about Jesus through listening freshly to his words. This time we'll look at what many call the parable of the unjust judge - but I like to think of it as a story of one reLENTless widow. Don't miss meeting her at 10am.
Afterward, we'll once again give up our customary Chipotle burritos (donating what we would have spent to a friend who can use it) and gather at Tina's and my house for simple fare - or possibly not-so-simple fare, depending on the success of our...uh...(sub)urban gleaning. (There will be non-gleaned options for the squeamish.)
In addition, please don't forget that our service-worship for this month is ongoing, and centers around the newest, smallest, and most red-haired Commoner, Cyrus Julian Doan, born six days ago as I write this! Over the course of the next few weeks, we'll be coming around our friends the Doans as they celebrate (and recover from!) the birth of their newest boy. We're looking for folks to bring hot meals, and for some adventurous souls to take the older boys (apparently, that includes Sam as well ;-) out to show them some fun times as the family finds a new equilibrium. So best wishes to one of our favorite families, and if you'd like to help out, please sign up here to bring a meal or get in touch with our GNU Team for more deets. The Doans would love to see you, and take it from me, you want to meet CJ. He is most adorable. :-)
Finally, please note that a wonderfully full and busy weekend is just a week away:
On Friday, March 7, people from all over the country will be converging on Washington, DC to advocate for peace as we remember the anniversary of the War in Iraq. Some of us will be a part of a gathering of some friends of emergent at historic New York Avenue Presbyterian Church at noon, followed by a processional as we gather with other faith communities at the Capitol at 2:30. More information on the larger event can be found here.
That same evening, some of us will be gathering in Vienna to experience some Deep Shift with Brian McLaren and friends. This event will continue on Saturday, March 8, as well.
And since they'll be in town for both of the above events, our friends The Cobalt Season asked if they could join us for our gathering on Sunday morning, March 9. Their music and message should make a wonderful complement to our Lenten series, and we're honored to have them aboard. Just don't forget that Daylight Saving Time begins that same morning - set your clock ahead and don't miss it!
And that's all, as far as I know. Seems like plenty to me!
Peace, Mike Croghan
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