The Artist as Educator: Making Art in Your Bible
By: Lisa Nichols Hickman Writing in the Margins: Connecting with God on the Pages of your Bible began with a prayer. After the death of Rich Gordon, his family entrusted me with his Bible. I quickly learned he was a margin writer. For years I thought about the notes...
Art: the Act of Creation and Invitation
By: Theresa Cho For many of us, considering the use of art in worship and in ministry can illicit two emotions. We may feel inadequate or incompetent to produce good art. We may also imagine art in worship and in ministry to be like a craft store blowing up in our...
Inheriting and Tweaking Rituals
When we inherit things it not only means the fine china, it also means the expired #10 cans of green beans. What we inherit can be a case of the good, the bad, and the ugly…or a case of the good, the not so good, and the fabulous. It takes some care and planning to re-shape or polish a valued ritual. In my most recent call I inherited a fourth grade Catechism Class. Here are the steps I took in approaching this ritual.
Step 1: Treading Lightly
When I am new at a church, I try to be open to the history and practices of that congregation. During introductions, casual conversations often lead to the sharing of personal opinions. “Let me introduce myself. I’m Anne and I have been a Sunday School teacher for 16 years. I have taught children to youth, but don’t ever ask me to teach that Seniors Class [insert eye roll here].”
Pop Culture and Faith Formation
By: John Vest In my Ed Talk at the 2016 APCE Annual Event in Chicago, I showed a clip from the original Star Wars movie and the trailer for the newest film, The Force Awakens. I used these clips to illustrate my point that faith formation and spiritual growth are...
Reflections from the PC(USA) General Assembly
By: Von Clemans Portland, Oregon – As I write this (6/24/16) the 222nd General Assembly of the PC(USA) is nearing its end after a week of orientations, committee meetings, and plenary sessions. Our four partner denominations have similar national gatherings. ...
Zootopia and God’s Beloved Community
By: Andy Acton And God said, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.” And it was so. God made the wild animals of the earth of every kind, and the cattle of every kind, and...