October 14
COALESCE: A time of connection in community:
We are reading John Phillip Newell’s, The Rebirthing of God: Christianity’s Struggle for the New Beginnings. There are still a few books ($12.00) available at church, with the suggestion that it is good if you can read ahead of time, but is certainly not a prerequisite for listening and engaging in the seminar-like environment.
We began our time together with a John Phillip Newell Prayer and Chant
Whichever way you turn, There is the face of God
Prayer:Whichever way we turn, O God, there is your face
In the light of the moon and patterns of stars
In scarred mountain rifts and ancient groves
In mighty seas and creatures of the deep
Whichever way we turn, O God, there is your face
In the light of eyes we love
In the salt of tears we have tasted
In weathered countenances east and west
In the soft-skinned glow of the child everywhere
Whichever way we turn, O God, there is your face
There is your face, among us
Chant: Whichever way we turn, Whichever way we turn, Whichever way we turn, there is the face of God
This set up our time together as we finished discussing Chapter 1 “Reconnecting with the Earth” and Chapter 2 “Reconnecting with Compassion/ One of the insights gained from our discussion that there can be a sense of carrying out acts of compassion without fully seeing or feeling the pain that leads to the need for the action. HOW DO WE OVERCOME PARALYSIS? We may not know exactly how the action is going to play out, but we need to do something—start somewhere NO SINGLE ONE OF US IS ALL-IMPORTANT, BUT EACH OF US IS ESSENTIAL. DO/CAN WE BELIEVE THIS? No one else can play that role of compassion for us.
Reading and discussion for Sunday October 20: Read and begin discussing Chapter 3: Reconnecting with the Light. A primary feature of rebirthing of God involves a reconnecting with the light (John 1:19), “The Light that enlightens every person coming into the world” It is the Light, at the heart of every newborn child—the Light at the heart of life. For a portion of our time together we will continue to hear Newell at the Harvard Divinity School Conference. COME JOIN US, WHETHER YOU ARE A REGULAR OR JUST A ONCE-IN-AWHILE DROP IN. WE WOULD LOVE TO SEE YOU!
