On The Table

Hi church,

Following a full week last week (joyful noise at the Lamb Center, HOT but satisfying barn-raising at the Tennyson's, and an edifying preaching clinic on Sunday morning), the plan for this week is pretty simple, as we continue to follow the Spirit's breeze in this season after Pentecost.

Sunday morning, 10am at Jammin' Java, we'll gather for another in our occasional series on "our faith traditions", in which we examine and celebrate our varied backgrounds within the gorgeous crazy-quilt that is the Body of Christ, and the gifts we bring to the Table from those diverse traditions. This time, we'll be looking at the Anglican heritage that's shared by our community (imbued as it is with Anglican DNA by our founding pastor, Doug Gray) and yours truly. We'll be celebrating a service of Holy Eucharist in (something pretty close to) the full, traditional Anglican liturgy, in all its beauty and weirdness. With music (both traditional and improvised) by Amy and P3T3 and homiletic content from Dee. All this, plus I'll teach y'all to make the sign of the cross (and what it means). Hope to see you there!

Stay cool, and keep alert for those breezes....

Peace,
Mike Croghan

Labels: Anglican

Hey church,

This past Sunday was Pentecost, and in our joint service with Convergence and Holy Grounds felt like a beautiful and powerful release of the Spirit into our chaotic collaboration, and into the world through us, the people of God.

Now, we begin the season after Pentecost. Like the season between Christmas and Lent, this part of the Church year is often referred to as "Ordinary Time" - where "ordinary" refers to the numbered weeks, not to any humdrum quality of this season. (And who ever said that God isn't powerfully present in the "ordinary", anyway?) But in any case, I really prefer to think of this time as the season of Pentecost, a season which invites us to live in vibrant consciousness of the indwelling Spirit, who sends us out into the world together to share our gifts with reckless abandon.

Our first opportunity to do that this week will be at this Thursday's Karaoke Night at The Lamb Center (6:30 to 8pm). The Spirit is always present in these gatherings, as homeless guests and volunteers of every age (including kids) share their gifts in song, friendship, and prayer. It never fails to be a powerful experience, and powerfully fun, too!

In the Anglican Church calendar, the first Sunday in Pentecost is Trinity Sunday, the day when the church particularly celebrates the relational dance of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And we'll celebrate that dance together this Sunday as we negotiate the mambo of ancient liturgy in another of our occasional series on the faith traditions that formed us and that bless our community through us. This time we're exploring the Anglican/Episcopal tradition that provided much of the "DNA" for our church through its founding pastor, Doug Gray. Please join us at Jammin' Java at 10am.

Finally, just a heads up: next weekend, Memorial Day weekend, will also be our service-worship weekend for this month. So instead of gathering at Jammin' Java, we'll be out trying to bless our wider community. Specifically, you're all invited to a combination community woods-and-stream cleanup, block party, and Memorial Day weekend cookout at Tina's and my place in Herndon. We're inviting all our neighbors, and we'll spend some time together cleaning up the massive amounts of litter in the woodsy common area in our housing community. And then we'll eat, drink, and meet new friends. Look for details as soon as we figure them out!

And that's it for this week, I think. Keep your ears and heart open for the warm, rushing wind of the Spirit this season...I think it might be a wild one.

Peace,
Mike Croghan

Labels: Anglican, karaoke, lamb center, service-worship