Face Painting on the Fourth of July

For the last 5 years (I think) The Gathering has been painting faces for free for the children of Salem on the 4th of July. Down on Derby Wharf during the day, before the fireworks happen there is a kids fair, asnd we paint faces. Fortunately there are some of us (well, "us" in not an accurate term, because I am not one of the "us") who are professional artists. Jeff, Brian, Kay, and Adam were our professionals this year. A high school girl from Ipswich named Rea spontaneously joined us this year, and she was good too.

Below are pictures from the day. Thanks to all who helped out: Jeff M, Jeff G, Carlos, Jodi, Brian, Diane, Mike, Kay, Adam, and Rea. They made a great team. As you can tell by the pictures below there were quite a few faces wanting to be painted. The size of the line is not at its peak, and it looked like this non-stop for 3 and a half hours.

Free is just too good to pass up.

Salem Living Green Fair

The Salem Living Green and Renewable Energy Fair has begun. We are the location for the speaker series, and it will begin at 11am.

Rinus Oestrook from the Salem Chamber of Commerce began by declaring this Salem Green Day.

I introduced the first speaker, and before doing so I highlighted the Free Washington DC Conference on June 25-26, Convergence on Zero, and mentioned that if we get a good Boston area turnout that Paul Allen the leader of the Centre for Alternative Technology wants to meet with us.

The Green House Doctor

Paul Marquis is the first speaker. He is the "Green House Doctor," and was voted "Best Green Consultant" by Boston Magazine in 2007. He is talking about Green materials for your home - especially dealing with historic restorations.

Paul is talking about recycled content and is considering other issues - such as using wood may require treatment, and that treatment may be harmful. Products need to be considered for being made from recycled products, if they can be recycled later, how long lasting they are, whether they need treatment during their life. In such considerations materials made from recycled plastics may be better than wood, because of the need for regular harsh treatment.

Now he is talking about the standards for historic homes. Everything on the outside of the home is subject to the historic commission's jurisdiction, unless hardship can be declared in that restoration to historic levels. So if you have clapboard siding, and need to replace it you may not be able to change it to something else, but you can make sure to use FSC certified lumber.

When you are choosing green Products there is no Gold Standard: General criteria though:

Lumber: FSC certified, torrified wood (in New England there is a company called Cambia Lumber which makes torrified lumber), another product Pure Wood.

Paints: Hey, I paint my house with C2 - it is on his list! Yeah. Then he mentioned milk paint. Rinus sitting next to me here has used it, and says it is the best thing for furniture refinishing.

Raw Food Discussion

Kristen Overlook and Anna Forkan from Revitalive Health and Wellness, LLC are talking about Eating Green, and they are raw food people. They both studied under the mother of the raw food movement Dr. Ann Wigmore.

This discussion has none of the "Don't kill animals!" type of guilt inducing perspective. They are talking about the fun side of Raw food! that's how they put it.

American's eat 8oz. of beef a day. Hmmmm...you could power a house off that kind of energy - that is their point.

Now - to "unfired foods." Reference to "The China Study". Also a reference to the Pottenger Cat Study. Now there was some debate about Pottenger's Cats on NPR this week, and it seems that not everyone thinks the study has accuracy, and applicability to this issue.

Protein? From where? Greens - Juiced Greens - Wheat Grass is high on the list. 75% of their diet is greens.

They are talking about good bacteria now. Quote from Louis Pasteur "The microbe is nothing, the terrain is everything." Kristin says this was a late in life quote from Mr. Pasteurization. Otherwise, if we had listened to him, we may not have pasteurized everything, because there are positive healing enzymes in "living food." It is not getting rid of them, but using them properly.

Now Kristin is giving testimonies of people who have been healed through a raw food diet in Central American missions they have been on.

Now - contrasting thee digestive tracts of carnivors and and humans. 33ft of GI tract or us. 6ft for a big cat. Carnivors have other enzymes we do not.

The FDA allows milk to have a certain number "puss sacks." Yummmmmmm.

Now there is a discussion of coffee - heavy metal, cadmium is in coffee. Steak: vacuum sealed left on the counter for three days --> it had worms! from where? they were already living in it.

Now they are talking about poop! Colon discussion. Jeff Cox asked if they believe in enemas. Yes they doo, uhm I mean do. They like to talk about poo, because the colon is so important to our health.


Solar Energy Incentives by Sunlight Solar

Nick and Ryan from Sunlight Solar are talking about incentives for solar panels. In MA, there are great incentive programs for both commercial, as well as private homes.

The basics is that the sun rays received by the panels is converted in an inverter and thus connected to the home. Helps roll back the meter saving monetary levels.

PPA(Power Purchasing Agreements) or third parties are involved with no up front costs with 10 or 15 year buy out options. The rationale is both environmental and financial. For example the installation of a 5kW system would amount to planting 30 acres of trees or not driving 237,000 miles. The end result is the removal OF 190,000 lbs of CO2 gases.

In MA, 4 rebates that individuals can qualify for

1. $ per $ subtract from the invoice
2. $5 per watt(performance based)
3. Maximum, about $50,000
4. Adjusted for orientation, shade and tilt angle

Federally, $2000 max for residence systems and operating prior to Dec 31, 2008

Ysbrydnos 2009 - an Eisteddfod coming this October!

We will be looking for musicians, poets, and storytellers for the October Spirit Night 2009 bardic Competition. Ysbrydnos (euhs-bruhd-nos) is one of the Welsh words for Halloween Night. It means Spirit-Night, and this October the the Fountain Stage sponsored by The Gathering will be hosting an Eisteddfod (a Bardic Competition). There will be a Children's Competition in a couple age groups, and an adult competition. The winning adult will be crowned the Bard of Salem for the year. More information to come later. For now, keep your calendar clear enough to compete!


Today Jeff Menasco and I created the logo for the event. Well, actually, I simply came up with the idea of the first letter as a harp, and sketched it out, then took it to Jeff, and he banged out this cool logo in a little over an hour of work with me looking over his shoulder, and giving my two cents here and there. I am pretty darn happy with it.

Salem Summer Solstice Fair - sponsored by The Gathering - Looking for Dancers, Jugglers, Spinners, Drummers...

Click on the flyer below for a full size image. Come join the party on June 21st!

Tonight - Halloween Prep Meeting

It is time already to prep for Halloween. Okay that's not accurate, we've been talking for over a month now. Tonight at 6pm the group of outreach preparers will gathering at The Vault to plan for the month of October.

Sunday, June 7th Morning Service

10:10 - Small churches usually start late. Lyle Schaller said so back in the 70's with his book The Small Church is Different. It is still true for us in Salem today. But, now here I go to pull this talkative crew together.

10:17 - He says that but we still didn't start church until now. The Gathering starts really late. This is Gentry by the way.

10:20 - There is a pretty full house here today and a good energy is pervading the place. Maybe that energy is the Holy Spirit. Hopefully it is.

Phil invited everyone to participate in the service today in the way that they feel led. Usually that just means that a couple of extra people play drums or something and maybe a few extra prayers are prayed. But with this crew, you never really know what an invitation to contribution will bring.

10:25 - After a few community recitations - "Come I This Day" and "The Beatitudes" - we are going to sing one of Phil's original songs, "Fall From Heaven." I am glad to be a part of a church where we have so many musicians and artists who bless us with their creative contributions. Carl writes great songs too, btw, and Phil's scripture chants are available for use in your church or community worship.

10:31 - I just ran into a family of tourists who were taking pictures of the outside of our building. Since the doors were open and we welcome interruptions, I invited them in to take pics. They politely refused, but we always welcome that sort of thing.

10:37 - Teaching time. We'll see what Phil has to bring today. The bulletin text is I Corinthians 15:12-19.

We're starting with a Scripture chant. Thank God. Sing along at home: God be merciful unto us and bless us. And cause His face to shine upon us..."

Today really is one of those days where it feels like anything can happen.

Phil is interspersing the chant above with the prayers of the people. People are asking for the end to war in Iraq and Afghanistan; parenting two year olds (namely mine); for a member's parents who are going to work with the Mennonite Mission in Indonesia for four years.

10:47 - Now Phil is starting teaching. Sorry for the false alarm.

Phil is starting by contrasting times of worship that try to replicate heaven on earth - extremely high church, beautiful cathedrals, professionally produced evangelistic/healing services, the mormon tabernacle - with worship gatherings which welcome the chaos of ordinary life - where we don't necessarily try to control people's weaknesses, awkward social interactions, the banging and clanging of real life interactions. Phil says that he prefers churches where anarchy, hopefully God's, breaks out and faith is worked out in the context of the mess.

Carlos quickly asked: "how do you know when the anarchy is God's or Satan's?"

Jeff M responded: "look at the outcomes." James S responded: um, actually I was typing, not listening.

Took a bathroom break. Who knows what I missed.

Phil: "When we get together in these moments, we should experience real life. Praying for two year olds in the midst of our frustration is real life. That's the way it ought to be."

A lot of joking about children, "spiritual warfare," murphy's law, etc.

Phil: "Through stories I want to give some philosophical background to who we are and what we do." Phil then identified a guest and asked if we could pray for his pain. The man said yes, he has a broken shoulder. We stopped and prayed.

The first story I'm going to tell...Phil is telling his story about God slapping him, which is also his conversion story.

"I want to explain how my story has influenced my view on this idea or concept that we call evangelism.

* Evangelism has become one of these terms that is loathed. According to recent studies, Evangelicals, who take their name from this emphases on the proclamation of the good news, are trusted by others about as much as prostitutes or lawyers

* One of the things that makes evangelism so hard, that makes it feel forced on people, is that Christians think they are solely responsible for the work of proclamation or evangelism. But, as my story suggests, God is already working in people's lives. We should never judge people based on what we think God is doing in their lives. We don't know what God is doing. So one of my assumptions in our work in Salem is that God is already working in their lives and we just need to trust his work and accompany people. Maybe we can help people interpret their experience or help them in other ways

* When I was younger I had the strong sense that God was more interested in my hereafter than in the here and now. I think that is true in a sense, though every single moment has the capacity to be an eternal moment. By opening myself to these eternal moments I am making my way to the great eternal moment in his presence. However, by focusing too much on people's hereafter we can put too much pressure on them to make choices in keeping with our hope for their eternal life

* James S - "When we went on mission trips to Utah we were always asked this really awkward question on our return: 'How many people did you convert.' That's an extremely awkward question, because I was out to sow seeds, to produce or reap the harvest is not something I can make happen."

Aside: there is the sound of a trumpet wafting through the streets. I don't know if it is recorded or not. Is this the weekend of the jazz festival. Btw - this aside was interrupted by someone asking for the men's room. There is always a lot of traffic around here to and from the johns.

Aside, Aside: More people are just wandering in and sitting down. That's cool.

* Sometimes in caring for the world here and now, we can lose sight of the eternal implications of what we are doing. We tend to have this pendulum swing as believers between coming too focused on there hereafter or, on the other side, of becoming too focused on the here and now. We need to find the terrible tension and balance between the here and now and the hereafter. Phil gives the illustration of a tightrope walker, who is balancing between his right and his left. As evangelistic Christians we have to be able to balance on that line.

* Reading of the scripture: "If Christ is not risen, your faith is future; you are still in your sins...If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable." Phil - If we believe in the resurrection and it did not, in fact, of occur, we are following an empty hope. I Cor 9:23 - "I have become all things to all men that I might by all means save some." In my case, I study witchcraft and other religions in order that I might serve and know people well.

11:38 - Turn to Eucharist.

12:01 - this is Phil typing after the service now. Wow, I went really long compared to usual. I like the service to be about an hour and fifteen minutes, including fellowshipping and starting late. We started on small church time - 15 minutes late, and then went about an hour and a half, and so it was a really long service for us.

10 Years!

The Gathering has been in Salem, Massachusetts for 10 years now. On June 21st, we will be hosting a Summer Solstice Fair on the streets near the church with a drum circle, and British Rock from Brittanica. We will tell our story on that Sunday morning service as well.

Then more to come in July, August, September, and... as well.

Come hang out with us on June 21st!

10am - service
noon to 5pm - Summer Solstice Fair
6pm - An evening of thankful reflection

Sunday, May 31st at The Gathering - evening service

Just as we have been splitting the messages into two parts with two preachers in the morning service, we repeat this pattern in the evening as well. So once again Jeff Gentry and myself (Pastor Phil) are doing the teaching. Jeff is teaching on the first half of James 5, and I and teaching on the last half.

It is slowly growing darker now at 7:05 after we sang together, and prayed about needs. Only the smallest lights in the room are on, and candles are lit. At the communion table there are four candles on candlesticks, and a black box with with an orthodox icon and a candle in it, and a Celtic cross about 16 inches tall.

The evening service is a very small group often, and tonight there are about 10 of us.

One guy, who is a part of the church is sleeping in the back. He's sleeping off a drinking session. It's probably safer here than out on the street.

There is a pile of books on the floor in the middle of the room. It represents our attempt to find answers to life in black and white. A small beautifully carved wooden cross sits atop it.

Jeff is teaching again on patience and gossiping from the text of James 5.

"Patience in suffering" is a part of the text being developed here. Job, Moses in the desert, Abraham, Joseph imprisoned.... Now we are discussing personal models. Jeff suggests Mother Theresa, and James Shewey mentions a professor he had who told his students to prepare for the last days by taking the garbage out for mom when she asks - otherwise live our life now in preparation for the future. The guy in the back mentions Bev and I. He says that from time to time, and Bev an get embarrassed a little but love him a lot.

Now at 8:15 - I taught and connected Pentecost, and the openness of sharing the gifts of the spirit as discussed in ! Cor. 14:26-33 with James 5. The Carlos (the Prof. Carlos Z.) presented communion. Our sleeping friend woke up, and was a little trouble during communion because he was "sauced."

The service was a nice open service with good discussion times, and a little male heavy tonight, which is unique for Sunday evenings.

Sunday, May 31st at The Gathering

This morning it is a nice day. Our doors to the street are open wide, and a few people wandered in while Carl Nystedt led the worship. Carl is good, and people like to stop and listen to him. So if we can open the doors (which face to the walking mall) everyone likes to visit in downtown Salem.

Jeff is preaching now, and started by saying that "eschatology" is a $5 theological word that you don't need to spend $30,000 at seminary to learn.

I teaching through the first part of the 5th chapter of James, Jeff tells about living at Larche, and learning to cultivate life and spirituality by cleaning toilets, and putting away his Merton.

Attendance at service this morning is smaller than typical. Are you a member of a small church? How does it effect you when the numbers are smaller on a Sunday morning? Does it effect you?

Now Jeff is on the subject of gossiping - now he's meddlin'! James meddles. I guess we need to meddle like he does as well. So Jeff is calling us to repentance on the subject of grumbling and gossiping. "Nothing about us without us," is a quote he brought up as a good rule of talking about others - say nothing about them with out them present.

Okay, now Jeff is talking about gopher wood, and wondering how gophers make wood. Hmmmm, what happened to that $30,000 seminary education.

Hey there, it's Jeff now. Phil started finishing up James by pointing us back to the openness and power that is evidenced in Acts 2:41-47 and encouraged in passages like I Corinthians 14. Phil noted that for all his tough talk and assumed heavy handedness, in passages like I Cor. 14 Paul encourages the church to a radical mutuality in which more than one prophet speaks, praises and tongues are encouraged and interpreted and the church shares all good things with one another.

In closing (a phrase that preachers use at their peril, btw), Phil reminded us that James has commissioned us to do what he was attempting to do. Namely, to turn one another from sin and death and so save one another. Hmmm...saving one another...it sounds like Martin Luther had more than one reason to hate this book that he both wanted to strip from the canon and effectively commended in his writing and preaching on a number of occasions.

Paul Drake anchored the service by leading our celebration of Eucharist. In a reading of Mark that I have never thought up myself, Paul reminded us that the first Eucharist was kept among a community that was broken and disintegrating as the disciples worried that they would be the one to betray their Lord. Paul mentioned that his reading of the text was influenced by the relationality that was emphasized in the two former sermons that were preached this day. Maybe we have multiple prophets speaking during our services after all. I wish more of these prophets were women. We've got enough white male middle-class prophets around here.

Another Great Pub Theology

Tonight - May 27, 2009 a group of us met at The Old Spot, just like we do once a month for Pub Theology night.

Topic: Faith and Works how they fit together, and how they determine true spirituality.

Attending: Tom and Mary, Erin and Jim, The Prof. Carlos Z., Slade, Jeff C #3 (he's only the #3 Jeff because it rhymes with C), Mike C, and me (Phil).

Some random thoughts for the evening:

1) Mary and Tom capsized their canoe and lost their phones and wallets, and piles of other stuff, which is now on the bottom of the Atlantic. Somehow the canoe story became an illustration of faith and works. You know - storms of life, how we respond to them....

2) Mary's story about a relative who went to church all the time, but was as mean and cruel as anyone you ever met was a bit chilling.

3) Jim and Erin gave an illustration from personal life which was beautiful, on point, and you can ask them more. :-)

4) Slade called up James 2 first - "faith without works is dead."

5) Tom did not mention Obama until nearly the end of the evening! Wow, now that was restraint.

6) Jeff did not fall asleep. He wanted to I think, but he played the man, and actually was coherent.

7) Mike connected faith without much in works as a type of predeterminism, or fatalism; and works without much in faith as a type of legalism. This made the discussion take a robust turn for the good.

8) We ended by having everyone in a short phrase describe their idea of God's Government: The answers were Federalist Republic, Monarchy, Tyranny (actually something like a Kingdom Monarchy was meant I think), a Government to help the Weak, Anarchy (2 times), a Government run by the Military (Jeff called this a Hunta and laughed), and Socialism (of course this was the Prof Carlos Z., but you knew that didn't you?). So, if this was a democracy then Anarchy was the winner. Hmmmmm...

But, assuming that the government of God fulfills all the deep needs of humanity, and has all the best dynamics of any government we can imagine, then all the good things of all the kinds of government are a part of God's Kingdom, and all the bad elements of all the styles of government are lacking in God's leadership. Somehow that all tied into the topic of faith and works, and we all walked away feeling like the evening rocked.

Okay, I guess you had to be there to understand the Anarchy thing, but trust me it was cool. Peter Rollins gets it, I know that. Thumbs up Pete.

Strange Things on Easter Sunday

Oh my Gosh! Ben wore a tie - no way! Yes it's true, and here is the evidence. Look how surprised everyone is!

Other things happened of course. Glen led the communion service at the end - that's him sitting with the pirate there. Does your church have a pirate? Every church should have a pirate.

After the service was over, a young guy who played the guitar, and was busking on the streets outside the church came in, and we asked him to play. He played, everyone clapped, and we had a good time overall.

Yes, of course there was a message, and it was centered on the story of Jesus walking the Emmaus road with His disciples. The focus was that Jesus rose for the purpose of relatioship, and this desire to relate with us on an intimate level was expressed in the Emmaus Road story.

We also decorated thee place up - banners, Easter Lilies, eggs all over the floor for the kids.

Pine Sunday at The Gathering

I've struggled with Palm Sunday since moving to Massachusetts almost 10 years ago. (June will mark 10 years, and the church will be having a 10 year celebration.) The reason for my struggle was based upon the lack of palm trees in Salem.

It is true that each year the Catholic, Episcopal and sundry other higher church traditions celebrate this holyday with far more specificity, and liturgical preparation than any of my fellow Californians ever did, but they bring in wimpy little leaf segments, which they call palms, and make crosses out of them. Then they typically save the those crosses to burn and make ashes for the following year.

Now this is all fine and dandy, but when we celebrated Palm Sunday in California it was that time of year when the large Mexican fan palms, which decorate the dry landscape of San Diego County are pruned. We would either precede the landscapers, and follow closely behind them, and make sure to gather up dozens of palm fronds. These fronds were often 5 feet across. We would carefully shave the large thorns off the branches, and children and adults would be waving them in the service. Now that's a Palm Sunday!

So this year I thought to myself, "Self." I asked, "If Jesus were to ride into to Salem on Palm Sunday what would we be doing to prepare the road for the triumphal entry of the King into our city?"

I walked through our neighborhood. I looked around as I drove through town practicing hypermiling I noticed that only green trees are the evergreens. I concluded that if Jesus were to ride humbly in on a donkey that we would probably keep our coats on, because it has been so cold, and we would cut down pine branches, because they are the only greenery we have for another month or so.

Well, it might seem a bit silly, but this is an example of contextualizing the Gospel to the times and places we live, and this last Sunday we celebrated Pine Sunday (NOT Palm Sunday!), because we ain't got no outdoor palms here in Salem, and I've not felt so good about celebrating this day for at least ten years.

Snow and Forgiveness in Witch City

Well, here I am down at the church a few minutes before 8am, and wondering if anyone will be coming today. A parking snowban is on, and it's still snowing away out side, but it was a nice walk from home (about 12-15 minutes).

It sure is pretty outside, and resembles comments from scripture about sins being forgiven and being made white as snow.

Bev: Post Surgery

This morning Bev (Pastor Phil's wife) had hand surgery. After an hour and half of surgery in Boston, we were home before noon. It is early evening now. Bev is sleeping and has been doing fine all day. Her thumb (where the work was done) looks good, and she's snoozing with a little smile. Venus and Jupiter are bright in the early evening sky and everything in the world is alright - okay, not everything is alright. In fact the world is a mess, but things are good at the Wyman house.

Pete Rollins - Sunday, December 7th

We're just a week and half away from our Sunday evening visit with author, pastor of the Ikon community in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and Doctor of Postmodern Philosophy Pete Rollins.

So here's the deal. He will be with us at 6pm on Sunday evening at The Vault - 217 Essex Street in downtown Salem. This is our standard Sunday evening service time. We will have a smidgeon of music (that means a little bit, smidgeon is not a relative of the pidgeon), and then Pete will do the Pete thing and speak to us. Then following the service it will become a food and drink event. We call it the "Pete Rollins End of the Book Tour Party!"

We'd love to see you. It will be a great time to hang with friends, maybe meet Pete (if you're interested in that kind of thing), maybe hobnob with some seminary professors, or just learn some good stuff about the Christian faith.

Halloween Outreach '08 Update

I am just now getting to telling our Halloween story for this year. The month-long experience of Halloween in Salem is remarkable to behold for those who have never experienced it. Many visit us for a week or a weekend, but for those of us who live here, and serve throughout the month of October it has become commonplace to view Salem as Halloween Town. Like Jack the Mayor of Halloween Town in "The Nightmare Before Christmas" many people in Salem work all year toward October, and Halloween becomes a month long event with its 500,000 visitors.

We have rushed headlong into the middle of the celebration with the hope of being a blessing to all, and this year the event was as spectacular, and life-changing for people as any of the previous nine. Yes, this is our tenth Halloween in Salem.

Trainings occurred, and over 80 people were trained to learn how to treat Witches and Neo-Pagans as regular people. This is not something we as Christians do well. There were returning friends who helped interpret dreams from a biblical perspective, and offered spiritual advice to passing Halloween partiers. Others played music, or served free hot cocoa. Others still served food to those who came to be part of this massive outreach, or provide background support by setting up the outdoor stage, run the sound system, raise money to help support the event, or clean the carpets of the church.

We organized and ran a Children's Day event with the help of Domino's Pizza and had 3,000 attendees. We held a feast based upon experiences of Heaven and Hell, we ran 6 days of live music, gave away 3,000 cups of free hot cocoa (this number was down by 5,000 cups, because it was such a warm year!), counseled or interpreted dreams for thousands of people, gave 800 people an educational experience highlighting human slavery in the world today, and sent young men dressed as monks to offer free blessings to the people on the streets.

Each year this event grows. It seems to have legs of its own, and is moving faster than we can keep up with it. All these things are accomplished by a small church of about 45 people, and the friends and other churches who like to hang out with us.

The AP Press called me and asked for a phone interview this year. You can access the by following podcast of the short radio segment here.

The number of people who spoke of being touched by the gentle presence of God's blessing are beyond the scope of our ability to count. Even the simple gesture of giving a cup of free hot cocoa can illicit a generous response. One college aged young man replied, "This is the best idea I've seen out here." There are new faces visiting the church since the October outreach - locals who were significantly touched by the "spiritual readings," dream interpretation, and blessings from our wandering monks are visiting the church on Sunday now.

In the Old Testament we find the children of Israel gathering in Jerusalem for the feasts. Passover, Pentecost, and the feast of Tabernacles brought the people together into one place to worship and celebrate. This was the manner in which they gathered for "church." Today our society is running to festivals to celebrate, party, and vacation. Haunted Happenings in Salem is one of the great festivals in U.S culture. It has been our goal to "crash the party," and make our little festival within this larger festival called Haunted Happenings one of the "places to be." In a sense we are bringing church to the partying public, and offering gentle touches of God's grace. They effect has been dramatic.

After ten years of serving in Salem in this manner, hundreds of Christians from near and far gather to help us serve. Thousands of people experience the ministry outreach we offer, and now are beginning to return each year to looking specifically for us. These returning people are not necessarily Christians. They come from all walks of life, and have simply recognized that there is acceptance, love, and peacefulness in our presence. This has become our way of bringing the power of the Old Testament festival life to the city of Salem, and the people who visit us from around the world.

For those of you who have supported the large efforts of this little church financially or in prayer - thank you. You are at the base of our ability to continue in the footsteps of our gracious Savior on these cobble-stoned streets of Salem, Massachusetts.

Included below are some photos of the streets of Salem during our month long Halloween season. Notice the unbelievably warm temperature for this time of year. It is on the digital clock above the church. Then you will see the massive crowds in the street, and lastly one of our roving monks - Jeff Tang, who blessed the crowds is standing in front of our century old vault.

May God's Love Be with You,
Pastor Phil

Kevin Menasco in Surgery Today

Today Kevin Menasco is in the midst of perhaps as much as 10 hours of surgery for his jaw. Please keep him in prayer for both the surgery today, and his recovery.

Thanks for your service and love,
Pastor Phil

Pub Theology and the Politics of God

Last Night we met at The Old Spot once again. There were eight of us for this discussion on "The Politics of God." It was heated but friendly, and eventually redirected to consider what God wants from us personally. A good time all in all, and Mary saved us from looking like a good ol' boys club.

You can read more on the interactions at one of my personal blogs Square No More.

Three Days with Pastor Phil

There are no typical weeks at The Gathering. Salem, MA is a wonderfully diverse, and uniquely strange community, and every day provides the opportunity for little adventures. As an example of this uniqueness I thought that I might tell the mini-stories of three consecutive days and the encounters I've had. These days are not regular events, but perhaps they do illustrate the uniqueness of our city, and the remarkable opportunities for service which it provides.

Day 1

I began my workday at 5:45am at a group home for 5-12 year olds in Beverly, MA (the city just over the bridge from Salem) It's my job to wake them up, and get them off to school (or summer camp) two days a week, and then to act as a liaison to the community and the Department of Social Services. The morning was uneventful as we woke the children up, and encouraged them through basic hygiene, cleaning their rooms, and played a few games together while attempting to teach basic lessons of life to these children who would be homeless or abused if not for the state's intervention, and the group home's involvement.

From the group home I drove to the offices of an owner of a number of local Domino's Pizza locations. He and I get together once a year to plan the logistics of an Annual Halloween Children's Day, which we sponsor as a city event on the Salem Common (a city park in the middle of town), and we made plans for the event on October 18th this year. Our concerns were the entertainment, finding a new resource for vendors, and creating some opportunities for helping under-priveleged kids experience the day for free.

After leaving the group home I ate a quick lunch at home, and arrived at our meeting place - The Vault. Carlos and Chris were working our "Sacred Space": an afternoon spiritual soul retreat open to the community inviting them into The Vault for sacred music, prayer, and meditation. Often it turns out to be a commercial for the church, as people come in and out wondering what we are about.

During the afternoon a handsome, well spoken, nomadic man in his early 40's came by for a visit. He had just rolled into to town from Maine, via North Dakota, having wintered in these very cold locations. We talked. He told his story, which included leaving home at 15, traveling for most of his life, and having been a Satanist - having all the tattoos to prove it. He opened up and shared his frustration with some of the choices he had made, and how difficult it was to get along in society. We talked philosophy. We talked theology. We made friends, and I encouraged him by letting him know that God had blessed him with a powerful gift of communication. He nearly cried at one point, and we have been seeing him pop in and out since that time.

Day 2

Once again I worked at the group home in the morning helping the children in the beginning of their day. Coming from abusive backgrounds, they often exhibit destructive behavior, and we need to teach them better ways of handling themselves, and treating others.

Later that morning, I arrived at the church. I had made plans to help a local homeless man (who had just found a room to rent) get his clothing washed. This young man usually smells so bad that he is regularly asked to leave restaurants, and has even been kicked out of homeless shelters for refusing to shower. I met him at the laundromat, and we got his clothing in the washing machine, and I gave him a laundromat card with enough money to pay for the drying too. I tried to get him to put a filthy jacket he had tied around his waist into the machine, and explained the necessity of washing his clothes to keep from leaving long lasting smells from getting into the upholstery of other people's furniture, but he did not want to wash his coat. I hoped maybe I could get the jacket washed next time.

Once back at the church, a young man I have known since we first moved to Salem nine years ago came into The Vault. He wanted to talk to me about Wicca. He had been looking into this variety of Witchcraft for awhile, and wanted to get some opinions from friends. We talked for about an hour. I walked him through the history of the movement - which although it is believed by many of its followers to be ancient is in actuality only been around since the early 1950's. We talked about the differences between Christian and Wiccan beliefs, and I told him these things without ridiculing his interest in Wicca. He opened up, and shared his reservations about some of things Wiccans believed, but also related some spiritual experiences he has had, which Christians have judged as weird, or even demonic. I related stories of the early church and medieval saints which mirrored his experiences, and suggested that Christians should be pursuers of deep mystical experiences with God. He wanted to keep in regular communication about these things. I have found this young man's search for an authentic mystical experience is exhibited by many who leave the pews of the church for the woods of the contemporary Neo-Pagan experience.

After this encounter, Carlos and I visited the Chamber of Commerce. Rinus is from the Netherlands, and runs the chamber in Salem. He has been good to us. He offered to open the list of his vendors to us, so that we might be able to increase the number of vendors on our Children's Day event. This was an answer to our need for the Halloween Children's Day Event.

After going home and having dinner, Carlos and I met once again. We had been invited to Pagan Pub Crawl. Once a month some of the Witches in town gather for the Salem Pagan Pub Crawl. I usually get invited, because many of them are my friends. Carlos has been to a couple of these gatherings now, and is making friends as well. The owner of the new tattoo parlor in town was there. He is not a Witch, but he considers himself a Thelemite (you can look that one up on Wikipedia if you like). We meet a couple women from Pennsylvania who visit Salem often. We saw many friends we've known for some time. We talked about how people had become Witches after being raised as Christians, and we discussed the resurrection myths of ancient religions comparing and contrasting that to the resurrection of Christ. I suggested that Christianity perhaps did not steal the idea of resurrection, and death and rebirth from other religions, but that it might well be that the appearance of this mythology throughout many different cultures is a prophetic retelling of the story found in Jesus Christ. All in all it was a fun evening, but a long day.

Day 3

As part of my job with the group home I went to a Provider's Fair at one of the many Catholic Churches in Salem. I was hosting a table for the group home among about twenty-five other tables in the room. I met other social service providers who worked with addictions, poverty income level families, and at risk children. I met some of the local DSS administrators, and made some wonderful contacts.

I offered to help with their events in the future by providing our church sound system if they needed sound. The PA at the Catholic church was not sufficient for music, but they gave it a try. I told them that we would like to set up a Provider's Fair at our Halloween Children's Day, and that I was working on getting a number of free tickets for under-privileged children. They were excited. I had my guitar with me, and allowed a woman to play my Martin (you guitar players will know that that's a big deal), and she performed. I performed a few songs as well, and made some great contacts both for the group home I represent, as well as for The Gathering and our Children's Day event. This was a second answer to our needs for Children's Day.

It was a long day at the fair, but worked out to be wonderful for new contacts in our community.

In the evening we showed a surf film at The Vault. Every Friday Night is $1 Movie Night, and we have visitors who are not a part of the church. Some of them are regulars to movie night, and we are there to make friends with them, and to allow them to feel comfortable in our space.



These three days represent a variety of things which occur both in our church location, and around the community in Salem during the weekdays. As you can see, we are involved in social action, relationship development, and sharing our faith on a regular basis. This is Salem, and we believe it is one of the most vibrant communities in the US - even in regards to how open people's hearts are for a true and deeper spirituality.

Latin Tongues at The Gathering Tonight

Tonight we had a unique experience in glossalalia (the gift of tongues) at the Gathering. I was leading a song of worship at a particularly small service this evening. During one of the songs, I did something which is common for me to do on the evening service. I continued playing the chords of the chorus to the song, and broke into spontaneous worship created by singing words of praise which flowed improvisationally from my heart. This is something we have encouraged others to do as well, and so it is a regular practice during our Sunday evening services.

Being a good ol' Pentecostal boy (well, that is I believe that all the gifts of the Spirit are active and alive today, and I "speak in tongues"), I began to express my worship in Tongues.

I thought to myself at one point that the words seemed somewhat familiar, but being monoglot American with only a smattering of understanding in Spanish, a few short years in High School (32 years ago) trying to learn French, a familiarity with Koine (biblical Greek, which I taught many years, Prof. Carlos Z., Pastor Phil Wyman, ago, but being a dead language is not something I ever spoke), and struggling to learn Welsh I put the thought out of my head. This expression of worship lasted a couple minutes, and when it was over the Prof. Carlos Z. said to me openly in front of the group, "You were worshiping in Spanish. Did you know you were worshiping in Spanish?"

My response was, "Wow! What did I say?"

Carlos responded by telling us some of the words, and thoughts which were expressed, and then we discussed this gift of Tongues for awhile.

Now that was pretty cool, and something which I have desired to see happen for many years - Thanks God!

I suppose some might say that my subconscious harbors an understanding of Spanish, which was somehow brought out at this particular moment, but that seems as far fetched to me as believing that this gift of Tongues exists supernaturally. I'll stick with the act of God theory here.

By the way, the book pictured above was written in the 60's but is still the best read on the subject I've ever read.

Crossing the Line Mini-Conference

Look for more info on this upcoming conference to make it your way in the next few days. Beth Maynard, Andrew DeFranza, Prof. Carlos Z., and Myself will be speaking at this event, with a number of local social project leaders on June 14th, 10am to 3pm. Hope to see you there!

Mother's Day message from Bev

Every Mother' Day for the last 22 years Bev has been the speaker on Sunday morning. It started the first year we pastored. Someone asked Bev when she was going to speak, and she put it off by saying that she might speak on Mother's Day Mother's Day came, and the people who wanted to hear her speak had called her on it. She spoke that first year, and the following year just expected that it was the thing she was supposed to do. A tradition was born.

This year she spoke from 2 Kings 4:1-7. The passage about the widow of the Prophet Obadiah. Obadiah had been a rich man, but during the reign of Ahab and Jezebel hid 128 prophets of God in two caves, and fed them to keep them from being killed by Jezebel. He spent all his money, and accrued debt to care for the prophets. When he died his wife and his children were left with this debt. You can read the passage to find out how God helps his widow by sending the Prophet Elisha, and the miracle of the ongoing flow of oil which sustained her.

Adam was painting up front during the service while Bev spoke, and the result off his work is seen here.


So, that is the short version of Mother's Day at The Gathering.

the gathering welcomes: will sampson

hey all, on monday, april 28th at 7 pm will sampson will be stopping by the gathering to discuss how we can pursue justice in the midst of our ordinary lives. this discussion is sure to be engaging, relatively open ended and absolutely free.

this discussion evening is a part of the two dollars a day event that is being co-hosted by boston's emergent cohort and the crossing community in downtown boston.

if you have questions about this event, please feel free to contact me directly at gentry13ATgmail.com. for more info on the two dollars a day event, check out the cohort website.

Chris' Baptism

Chris' baptism reminded me, yet again, what a beautiful thing it is for God to call a person to Himself and incorporate that individual into the body of Christ.

this was a day i won't soon forget and i thought y'all would want to see the video.

jg

Further Notes from "Jeremiah:"

Chris was baptized last Sunday. It was a wonderful moment for all of us.

Most of us at the Gathering hold to some sort of born-again experience. Just as there are many forms of our "capitulating" encounter(s) with Jesus, God presents baptism, a core sacrament in every believer's life, in many ways as a unique, individual, relational encounter with God. For me, baptism is more than just symbol, but also not a magical, protective incantation. Jesus knew we were folks trapped in space and time. Baptism provides with a "living liturgy" to remind us through the rest of our life in Jesus of His encompassing love.

Welcome to the family Chris - not just the Gathering family, but the family of the worldwide church of Jesus Christ.

ecclesiological musing - on maundy thursday service

on thursday night i had the opportunity to oversee the maundy thursday service at the gathering.* i began thinking about the service on sunday afternoon and in about 5 minutes i developed the following liturgy, which i think is one of the most innovative services i've had a hand in.

---
when the participants walked in they entered into a dim and quickly darkening space that was lit only by a trinitarian triangle of three candles. as the liturgy began i shared a few brief thoughts about the intricate relationship between intimacy and desolation** that i perceive in the gospels and then we immediately headed to the front of the church where we celebrated the institution of eucharist by sharing the sacrament together.

we shared the sacrament sinners and saints style*** and it was beautiful. as we stood around the table newly baptized Christians practiced our common priesthood for the first time; local, first-time visitors served out of town guests; and the utterly broken offered this means of grace to the utterly broken.

after eucharist everyone returned to their seats, all of which were encompassed by the trinitarian triangle of candles, and the first reader read matthew 26:36-41. after the reader spoke of Jesus' desperation for support and the disciples resultant slumber, the blew out the first candle then sat down.

immediately following five long, uninterrupted moments of silence followed. i knew that the silence would be awkward and unnerving, but i did not know that it would be so uncomfortable that i would find myself eventually staring at the second reader and inwardly pleading that she would get on with it.

eventually the second reader read matthew 26:42-43. after she had spoken of Christ's willful submission to unrelenting agony as well as the disciples' second failure, she blew out the second candle, then sat down.

five more, slightly less awkward minutes of silence followed. i tried to meditate a bit as i counted in my head to 300 and tried to work up enough courage to enact my portion of the liturgy.

finally, i stood, read matthew 26:45-46. after i read "rise, let us go. here comes my betrayer!" i asked the congregation to rise, picked up a large mirror, handed the mirror to a friend, looked in the mirror and said "here comes Christ's betrayer." then i quickly took the mirror from my friend, held it in front of her face and said "here comes Christ's betrayer." i then proceeded to stumble around the room, holding this large mirror in front of each participant and repeating this rather offensive indictment that clearly resounds through the narrative.

after each participant had faced the mirror and i faced the mirror a second time another three minutes of silence followed. then i clumsily plugged in a spotlight that shone upon a lone cross, took thirty seconds or so to gather my senses and offered a benediction.
---

i share my reflections on this service not to draw attention to myself, but to record one of my first attempts at developing a liturgy that draws the participants into an experience that resonates with, and hopefully reflects, the encounter recorded in the text. years ago my college preaching profs encouraged us to shape sermons that reflected the shape of the text. i have long realized the wisdom of that teaching and have often tried to fashion my logocentric sermons in such a manner that they reflect the biblical writers' flow of thought. however, it was not until last night that i realized the value of shaping a liturgy that physically, intellectually, spiritually and emotionally draws people into the narrative of the text.

i suppose i also share these reflections as a way of repenting of the derogatory and, i fear, mostly uninformed accusations i have aimed towards folks like dan kimball in the past. i have long been disinterested with the practices and thought of those who i have labeled programmatic emergents since many of the alt.worship experiences i have had have been too individualistically focused and often, in my not-so-humble estimation, trite. i am now beginning to see how potentially meaningful communal liturgical services that are shaped by the text can be. i suppose the next step is for me to explore how meaningful liturgical services can also be shaped in part by the history of Christian practice throughout the ages, but the pixie is staring at me right now and i get the feeling that i need to get off this damned computer.

one more quick note: the first sunday of the coming months, starting april 6, my friend kieren and i are going to be visiting emerging faith communities throughout the boston area. we will be reporting on our travels on this site as well as kieran's emergent wrestlings page. if you're interested in hosting kieren and i at your faith community or you know of a local boston community that you have wanted to explore but haven't yet found the time to do so, please drop me a line at gentry13@gmail.com.

peace be with you throughout this holiest of holy weeks.


* take a minute and check out our new digs. it's simple, informative and infinitely more accessible than our old site. thank you rhonda and elijah!
** i.e., Jesus is baptized by john in the jordan and immediately heads to the desert; the disciples experience the wonders of the transfiguration only to be warned by Jesus on the way down the mountain that they are not to speak of their experience until after His death; peter's magnificent confession is quickly followed by Christ's denunciation, etc.
*** look the person in the eye, speak their name, offer words of orientation (the body of Christ, the bread of heaven, the blood of Christ, the cup of salvation) and then the recipient becomes the servant.

Post by Jeff G.

Pub Theology #2

Pub Theology #2 is happening at The Old Spot in Salem - across from the Hawthorn Hotel. 7pm on Tuesday Evening is the time. The subject of discussion will be the benefits, excesses, harmful results, and purposes behind asceticism. Is it still a practice worth considering? Has it lost it's medieval and brutal interest, or is there something we still might gain from it today? Whadayathink of that for a hot topic!? Hope to see you there.

Pastor Phil's Radio Interview Now Online

The radio show Premier Drive, which I was asked to speak on a couple weeks ago sent me the audio file of the interview. The show was an interview about the Witches in Salem, and the Christian community living here. I've downloaded the file onto our website at The Gathering at Salem Website.

You'll find a link to the podcast of the show on the front page.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

Pastor Phil

Live Blog from The Gathering Evening Service

Tonight Jeff Gentry was blogging live during our 6pm service. If you want to read how the service went, check out Jeff's blog Musings of a Jaded Optimist.

Good Friday, and Easter Gatherings

Thursday, March 20 the darkness begins to recede. and the days grow longer. During the Spring (or Vernal) Equinox, the day is divided evenly between darkness and light, but this balance tilts as we move toward summer.

On Friday, March 21st we celebrate Good Friday, the day in which Jesus Christ died, and was buried in the cave tomb at Golgotha. Christianity remembers this as the day of greatest spiritual darkness in human history - the day of the death of our Lord. Yet it precedes the day of greatest spiritual light and hope - the Day of Resurrection.

Join us this Easter for the celebration of the passing of darkness and the cold, and the coming of the light and the warmth.

Good Friday, March 21st 7pm - Liturgy at The Vault - 217 Essex Street, Salem
a meditation and prayerful reminder of the Day of Great Darkness

Easter Sunday, March 23rd, 10am - Joy of the Light - 217 Essex Street, Salem
a celebration of the Miracle of Light and Hope

Honorable mention by Tony Jones - or not?

Tony Jones new book New Christians: Dispatches from the Emergent Frontier includes a reference to our conference last May: "God for People Who Hate Church." In the forward of the book he says that he visited some extremes in respect to his experiences while writing the book. We are listed as one extreme.

The fact that we practice dream interpretation believing that God still speaks to people in their dreams today like He did throughout the scriptures, and that we are from Pentecostal origins are the reason for this mention.

So we get the honorable mention in the forward. Or was it honorable? Maybe it was just a mention, but here's my response: Holy Laughter!? What's up with that? There may have been a few people at the conference who were into that, but as a church The Gathering does not practice that, and never has.

So Tony - Thanks for the mention, but we'll be expecting a minor retraction in the second printing bro. ;-)

Pastor Phil on The Radio Live Tomorrow

I've been asked to do a live radio interview in the UK tomorrow at 10:40am EST (USA). Premier Christian Radio is doing a telephone interview on Wednesday 26th with me at this time. The interview is for the Premier Drive show with Bridgitte Tetteh and Dave Rose.

This is what they asked me to consider:

"I wanted to talk about your ministry in Salem. Probably focusing on Paganism, Neo-Paganism, Witchcraft. To let out listeners realise that this still exists and understand that Witches are real people too.To understand how you can minister or talk to someone who may be into Witchcraft . To talk about your experiences with people that are in to Witchcraft."

I am told that interview will be "general and light."

If you would like to tune in to it you can do so online at http://www.premier.org.uk at 10:40am EST, or 7:40am PST for my West coast of the USA friends.

I'd love to have you check it out, and give me some feedback as well.

Pub Theology - First Gathering

I've written some thoughts about our first Pub Theology night at The Old Spot this last Tuesday night. You can find the blog post here.

Article in the Salem Gazette

So, we're in the paper again. The front page of the Salem Gazette has the above photo and an article which iss entitiled, "HERETIC OR HEALER?" Jeepers, who came up with that polarizing line - oh well, it is generally a good article, which is also followed by a short article about the person who challenges our way of doing things. He is fighting off police charges for causing a ruckus with his bullhorn over Halloween. Okay now that's a bit funny.

If you don't live in Salem, and don't get the Gazette, the story is here. If you want to respond you can write the editor at 72 Cherry Hill Drive, Beverly, MA 01915; or you can join the online discussion on the website. The online version does not have the print version title "HERETIC OR HEALER?" That was saved for the local people I guess.

Serving Free Hot Cocoa at Salem Bonfire

Last Night a group of us helped serve free hot cocoa, and provide the music behind the burning of the Christmas Trees at Dead Horse Beach in Salem. This is our fourth year of helping to make the event more fun.
My mom (Dorothy Jenkins) has been with us for a couple months, and is headed back home Monday. Here she is with Bev serving up Cocoa.
The line was good and long for about an hour and a half as the 5,000 trees on the Christmas tree pile created a wonderful winter/New Year experience. Mike Crockett, Jim Burrell, Carlos Ziesel, Jeff Gentry, Jeff Menasco, and Kevin Menasco also were on hand to make the event happen.
As we took down the tents the fire got a little smaller, and the crowd started going home, but as you can see 5,000 trees can take a long time to burn.

Left at the Cross

People brought items to place before the cross this week. These items were symbolic of a area of life which would be a point of surrender through this coming year. The picture shows some of the things which were placed at the cross. In the morning service there were shoes, and a dust pan as well.




Such things as matches, coins, a stick, and a pencil, as well as papers with something written on them are here. We will leave this as it is in the middle of the room for the month to remind ourselves each week of our point of surrender.

Bring Something Symbolic This Sunday

Tomorrow's service is the first of the New Year. We will be focusing on stewardship and sacrifice for part of this month, and as an point of surrender to our Lord Jesus I would like you to bring something which represents a new level of sacrifice which you feel you need to give to to God this year.

So, be ready to bring an item which represents something you want to give to God this year. i.e. If you felt like your heart was becoming hard, you might bring a small stone to represent how you want to give God your hardening heart, and allow Him to soften it this year. You might bring dollar bill or a coin to represent surrendering trusting Him for your finances this year, or you might bring blank piece of paper to represent allowing God to begin to use you artistically. You've got the idea I think - bring something which represents a new area of surrender/sacrifice to God. We will be placing these things in an altar pile leaving them in that pile symbolically, and giving them to God.

Advent - Day 25 - Merry Christmas

This painting by Cambiaso of the Virgin and Child with John the Baptist has the young John with a Lamb. When they both came to the time of their ministry, John would declare Jesus to be the Lamb of God, and here this is prefigured by this painting.

Consider the concept of God presenting Himself as a Lamb to the world, as you view this oil painting from 1550 on this Christmas Day.

Advent - Day 24

Raphael's Alba Madonna shows Mary, the infant Jesus, and John the Baptist at a young age. John is handing Jesus a cross, which Jesus is accepting. Though the moment is not a real scriptural event, but rather a fantasy piece, it gives us a picture of the John's ministry, which will prepare the way for the Lord, and of Jesus acceptance of His ministry, which includes His sacrifice upon the cross.

Consider these aspects of the the Advent today: Christ was born to become our sacrifice and Savior.

Click on image for a larger picture.

Advent - Day 23

The humble beginnings of our Savior are illustrated well by this 16th century work entitled The Nativity by Corregio.

Can you recognize your need for humility in this season remembering the humble birth of our Savior? As you consider the humble surroundings of this painting recall your own need for humility.

Click on the image for a larger picture.

Advent - Day 22

In 1259 Pisano sculpted the marble pulpit at the baptistery at Pisa, and it includes the adoration of the magi giving their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. These gifts are said to symbolically and prophetically represent kingship, divinity and death. Perhaps more importantly for us to consider is the fact that they represent giving our best to God.

Consider this sculpting, and ask yourself if you have given your best to God. In a season of giving, we can easily forget giving to the One Who has given His all for us.

Click on the picture for a larger image.

Advent - Day 21

The Adoration of the Magi:

"Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him." (Matthew 2:1-2)

His birth was prophesied even by the heavens themselves, and recognized by wise men who came from distant lands. There should be no distance too far, or mystery too deep which can hinder our search for God. The magi from far away lands model the search for God we should be willing to embark upon if necessary.

Consider this work of art by Gentile de Fabriano a 15th century Italian Gothic painter.

Click upon the picture for a larger image.

Advent - Day 20

Following the movement of art rather than that of scripture, I want to look at the Adoration of the Shepherds, a 15th century Flemish painting by Hugo Van Der Groes. Take some time to meditate on this moment of worship as it appears in this massive old painting.

The person of Jesus, Who is the Messianic promise, Who has come to save us is revealed to common shepherds. These same shepherds go to see the babe lying in the feeding trough. Each of us are the common people of this earth who have had the Messiah come to us as well. Contemplate this art and consider your place in worshiping Christ the Lord.

The painting comes in three panels and links to the three parts are listed below.

left panel
center panel
right panel

Advent - Day 19

"And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of heavenly host, praising God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, good will to men." (Luke 2:9ff)

We, as people living in a materialistic world, often struggle with the concept of hearing, or experiencing God. The story of the Advent of Christ returns us to the primary place where God and man meet one another in intimate interaction. Heaven bursts upon the scene of this earthly drudgery to shine it's light upon us. Then the great treasure store of divine repository is revealed in a baby lying in a feeding trough.

Could it be that the angels sing about simple things, apparently mundane things in your life? In Christ is the greatest treasure of divinity revealed to humans, but within ourselves we are told that there is this "treasure in earthen vessels." Perhaps the angels sing about this too.

Consider this work of art by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, and meditate upon the vast goodness of the God found in Jesus, and deposited by faith in you as well - "Christ in you the hope of Glory." Click on the image for a larger picture.

18th Day of the Advent

In this last week as we come to Christmas I will be sending out a short devotional thought, and a link to devotional art each day. For Tuesday the 18th of December the verse for our consideration and meditation is this:

"And it came about that while they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her first-born son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." (Luke 2: 6-7)

Consider the birth of our Savior. It was not easy, or convenient. Laid in a feeding trough, because there was no other place for him, the Savior of mankind came to this earth in humble means. Later the struggle would increase as Herod would seek His death. The path of following God is not an easy path, but our way has been laid out before us by One who modeled living through the hard way for us. Our way certainly can not be as difficult as His.

This work of art by Boticelli is worth a long meditative look. At first glance it might appear peaceful, but as you look deeper into the painting you will find spiritual struggle all around the manger scene. Consider this aspect of our Lord's birth this 18 Day of Advent. Click on the photo for a larger image.

No Services

There was no morning service. There will be no evening service today - December 16th either. The evil Nor'easter has battered us back into our homes! ;-)

See you on a better weather day.
Pastor Phil

YWAM Tragedy in Colorado

The YWAM Mission training center in Arvada Colorado experienced tragedy in the form of a shooting this week. The shooter then went on to visit a mega-church in Colorado Springs, killing two more people before being killed. The press release from the YWAM center can be found here.

Really Long, but Really Good Post on Emergent

So, here is a great post on the American Academy of Religion conference in San Diego. Some Emergent conversation was part of the agenda. There is the good and bad, or the pro and con of it in this post by Christine Scheller. Go here.

Article in USA Today about some of our Emergent Friends

So USA Today had an article about the Emergent Church. It is well done, and worth a read here.

Some Post Halloween Thoughts - Dialogue with Fiona Horne

Having been in Seattle at the Off the Map conference for the last 4 days, I am only now getting to posting some blogs about the Halloween season. I will add a story here and there as I have time to do so.

So here goes a mention of the Pagan/Christian Dialogue: Fiona Horne (from Mad, Mad House - a Sci-Fi channel reality series), Christian Day from Festival of the Dead, John Paul Jackson, and myself (Pastor Phil from The Gathering) held a dialogue about the Christian and Pagan worldviews, both what we might have as agreements, and what we certainly have as differences.

The church was a packed house on a Saturday Night October 28th. We passed out flyers, and at 8pm the people came flooding in. The interns from Streams, our friends from the Bridge Church, Pagans from the community, and visitors who were familiar with Fiona all came in.

The discussion centered around each person defining their spirituality, and describing some practices which were important to them. There was also reference to Spirituality and the media with the recognition that a media presence often causes people to perceive on individual as shallow.

I found Fiona gracious and intelligent. She has a deep sense of spirituality wiithin her Witchy practices, and although they are far different than my own, they are marked by peace, and graciousness. Only if some Christians I know were are gracious as she is. I found this to be true both in preparation for the dialogue, and during. Fiona shared her experience with a remarkable incident when "the Christian God" spoke to her during the filming of Mad, Mad House.

Christian Day is highly entertaining, and creatively funny. He had people laughing throughout the meeting. He and I have a friendship which goes back almost 12 years now, and it was good to hold this dialogue with him.

John Paul Jackson really did well in a setting which was new for him. Too many preachers would come off as judgmental, and condemning. John Paul never does, and he was as gentle as ever.

People attending laughed (Dennis laughed so hard he nearly busted some stitches from a surgery he recently had), cried, and people wanted to stay around and talk after.

It was a remarkable event, and we hope to do more of the same in the future.