The Corridor

Mark 13

2009-04-07T15:10:00.002-04:00

Mark 13 may give us the best window into Mark’s audience and perhaps explains why our oldest gospel account was likely written. Most scholars agree that Mark was written during the Jewish revolt against Rome (66-70 AD). This context should give us an appreciation for Mark’s gospel as we start to understand the political tensions that were at play. During this time of violent persecution many of the original disciples of Jesus and Apostles were being martyred, the loss of these eyewitness "authorities" created the need for another, reliable "authority," such as a written account.

The Way of Jesus that Mark promotes as he recounts the events of Jesus’ life was never more relevant and perhaps also as difficult to walk in. In Chapter 13 Mark uses the teachings of Jesus to encouraging his community not to participate in the rebel's revolt. The "false prophets" are those zealots who claim that their victory over Rome will usher in the new age. Mark makes it clear that the war is not a sign of the end, but only of the beginning, of “birth pangs”.

Mark warns about those who claim to be the messiah or perhaps Jesus himself in order to recruit those to join in the revolution and engage in war. Mark’s warning about those claiming to be Jesus and leading believers astray provides yet another reason why he may have felt a written, permanent account of Jesus was needed to preserve what was true about Jesus.

These were indeed difficult times, it was becoming apparent that war would destroy much of what they new, it was not hard to imagine the imminent destruction of the temple that Jesus foretold, or perhaps the temple was already destroyed depending on when exactly Mark was written.

Ched Myers writes in “Binding the Strong Man: A Political Reading of Mark's Story of Jesus” concerning the opening of Chapter 13:

“The fact that the parties of the revolt are never mentioned by name in the
Gospel may indicate that Mark felt deeply sympathetic to their protest against
the social, political, and economic oppression of the Romans. On the other hand,
the fact that Mark feels a need to reject the claims of the rebel recruiters
suggests that members of Mark's community may well have already been drafted
into the liberation war, or were sorely tempted to join. Who could resist the
pull of patriotism, or the lure of the hope that here at last was the
long-deferred prophetic promise of that final battle in which Yahweh would
vindicate Israel? In such a moment, there was only one voice that could match
the persuasive call of the rebel recruiters: Jesus the living teacher. So to
this Jesus the disciples turn in a direct plea for clarity on the meaning of the
historical moment. [p. 330]”

Today’s reading reminds us just how the gospel calls for a revolutionary change on one hand, yet the Jesus revolution can not be won with a sword.

Mark 11:12-33

2009-04-06T07:05:00.002-04:00

Today is the day after Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey, as we have been following along in this story in the book of Mark. Chapter 11:12-33, tells the story of Jesus returning the next day to Jerusalem to visit the temple. On his way he finds a fig tree, and after finding no fruit on that tree he curses it. Arriving at the temple Jesus proceeds to cast out the money changers.

If Jesus entrance into Jerusalem on a donkey was meant to contrast his Way of peace with that of one who would enter on a warhorse, Jesus entrance into the temple the next day would contrast the activity of the religious elite with Isaiah’s vision for Israel.

Yesterday the crowds who shouted “Hosanna” in desperation for a savior, even if they misunderstood the kind of messiah Jesus would be, were rural peasants, and not the religious elite that lived a different life in the city of Jerusalem. These peasants are those who had cut palms “from the fields”, and acclaimed Jesus as king and messiah knowing that they are on the bottom and they need a savior. By contrast, Jesus’ first interaction with the city’s inhabitants of the religious elite is to drive the moneychangers from the temple in the immediate aftermath of his symbolically cursing the “fruitlessness” of the fig tree.

The moneychangers exchanged Roman money for the local shekels, required as a temple gift based on the OT law. They were not merely conducting business, but they were also extorting the captive crowds. The doves were for offerings for the poor, and the merchants charged excessive prices. This took place in the area known as the "Court of the Gentiles" or "Nations", the only place where foreigners were allowed. This adds even more meaning to what Jesus quoted in Isaiah when he referred to the temple as meant for a "house of prayer for all nations."

While the Jewish peasants may have misunderstood the way of the messiah, the religious elite had sold out this dream of the Prophets for their own benefit. They had made an unholy alliance with Caesar, exchanging their responsibility to that guide others in the Way and the Prayer of the Prophets for an agreement that they would help subdue and control the crowds for Caesar. These religious elite benefited from an evil system that oppressed their own poor, and milked whatever was left by charging excessive prices in order to participate in religious practices.

Leaving the scene on their way back, the disciples noticed that the fig tree had dried up and died. This represented how the religious leadership in Israel had no fruit and dried up and died in its ability to produce any. The religious leaders and systems in Jerusalem were not going to bring about God’s dream as expressed through the Prophets for a Way and Prayer so big it could house all the nations and reconcile us all to one another and to God.

All seemed lost at this pronouncement, yet Jesus reminded them that with God all things are possible. Mountains can indeed be moved; the dream for such a large global reconciliation is not dead. But we only begin to enter that dream and make it a reality when we believe enough ourselves to forgive others as God forgives us.

This all leads directly into the conflict with the temple with the chief priests, scribes and elders, who demand to know by what authority Jesus is doing these things. Those on the margins recognize God’s presence in Jesus (”Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!”); those at the center of power with only an interest in controlling others for their own benefits can only see Jesus as godless.

Palm Sunday

2009-04-05T20:30:00.000-04:00

Today is “Palm Sunday”, the day of Jesus’ “triumphal entry” into Jerusalem. This was an incredibly political event, as it took place while Jews were coming into Jerusalem to begin preparations of the Passover. It was politically charged activity even before Jesus got there because Passover was the celebration of God’s deliverance from and oppressive ruler and an oppressive nation.

Hope was wrapped up in this story for a “new exodus” ever since the Jews had been exiled in Babylon and Jewish prophets began to dream of this “new exodus”. By the end of the O.T. the Jews were able to return home, but under the occupation of the Persian Empire. Though they did better under the Persians (rebuilt temple ect) with the rise of Greek culture, and then Rome, they had not been able to rise to self rule and a place of power as they once had under the “glory days” of King David.

It was in this volatile environment of their Roman occupation during Passover that made it common place for Jews to wave palm branches during this holiday as a symbol of their desire for a revolution. It was in this environment that Jesus entered the city, already rumored to be the Messiah, it made sense based on these hopes that he would become the focal point of their Passover demonstrations.

Some historians point out, that that it was common for Pontius Pilate to also to come to Jerusalem during Passover and other Jewish holidays. He would come around this time of year riding on a warhorse along with soldiers showing a military presence in order to remind the Jews just where they stood; and how futile a revolution would be against their military might. The Jews were desperate for another David to topple their Goliath.

Though it was prophesied in Zechariah that their King would come to them riding on a donkey, and that is just what Jesus did, the crowds still likely saw Jesus ridding into Jerusalem on a war horse. Yet Jesus’ revolution represented a different kind of Kingdom and the entry into a different kind of triumph. It was a Kingdom of God triumph in the Way of peace, which turned upside down what we tend to think as triumph according to the way of Caesar.

As we gathered as a community earlier this evening and reflected on this story, we made crosses from palms. I could not help but to appreciate the symbolism of what we were doing. Here we were taking this ancient revolutionary symbol of the palm leaf, which represents a dream of conquering enemies, and turns it into a symbol about a Way that is so committed to peace and solidarity that it is willing to die for enemies. This parade of extreme contrasts, even if most were blind to them, was beautifully played out the day Jesus road into Jerusalem on a donkey.

An Introduction to "A Generous Orthodoxy"

2009-03-17T20:42:00.005-04:00

Our second Theology on Tap meeting will be at Brian Boru on Tuesday March 24th, at 7pm. You can RSVP for the event by visiting our Theology on Tap Meet-Up site HERE.

We will begin a discussion that Tuesday night that will take us across various Christian traditions throughout history. We will be using the book “A Generous Orthodoxy” by Brian McLaren as a catalyst for our conversation.

The complete title of the book is “A Generous Orthodoxy: Why I Am a Missional, Evangelical, Post/Protestant, Liberal/Conservative, Mystical/Poetic, Biblical, Charismatic/Contemplative, Fundamentalist/Calvinist, Anabaptist/Anglican, Methodist, Catholic, Green, Incarnational, Depressed-yet-Hopeful, Emergent, Unfinished CHRISTIAN ”.

Now that is a long title!!!! The first week we will simply talk about the introduction to the book and what is meant by this seemingly contradictory phrase, “generous orthodoxy”.

The Publisher's Summary for the book reads:

A confession and manifesto from a senior leader in the emerging church movement—A Generous Orthodoxy calls for a radical, Christ-centered orthodoxy of faith and practice in a missional, generous spirit.

Brian McLaren argues for a post-liberal, post-conservative, post-protestant convergence, which will stimulate lively interest and global conversation among thoughtful Christians from all traditions.

In a sweeping exploration of belief, author Brian McLaren takes us across the landscape of faith, envisioning an orthodoxy that aims for Jesus, is driven by love, and is defined by missional intent. A Generous Orthodoxy rediscovers the mysterious and compelling ways that Jesus can be embraced across the entire Christian horizon. Rather than establishing what is and is not "orthodox," McLaren walks through the many traditions of faith, bringing to the center a way of life that draws us closer to Christ and to each other.

Whether you find yourself inside, outside, or somewhere on the fringe of Christianity, A Generous Orthodoxy draws you toward a way of living that looks beyond the "us/them" paradigm to the blessed and ancient paradox of "we."

You can get the book on Amazon HERE.

Joyeux Noel

2008-12-20T12:01:00.000-05:00

We had a movie night last evening where we had friends over and watched “Joyeux Noel”, the 2005 foreign film which depicts the true story of the World War I Christmas truce of December 1914. Seen through the through the eyes of French, Scottish and German soldiers, who after experiencing much bloodshed entrenched in war with each other, declare a ceasefire for Christmas.

The truce became a life changing event in their lives where they learned about the brotherhood of man and common humanity that would trump their own sense of nationalism. Not only did this event really take place but the men who took part in it were punished for it, and most of them died soon enough afterward. But on one Christmas, they were able to experience what it means to live out “peace on earth” and “good will toward man.”

I particularly enjoyed the character of Palmer, a Scottish Anglican Priest, who took a leading roll in this movement of peace. In contrast to Palmer, his Bishop would in the end chastise Palmer, and the Christmas service he held for soldiers on both sides of the war, for “going astray”. It is the Bishop that you see and hear in the trailer that speaks of a “Holy War” and a “Crusade”. Father Palmer, who also serves a stretcher barer in the trenches, comes to question his Bishop’s nationalistic view of Christ in favor of one he feels is more true to Christ’s teachings.

The character of the German singer turned soldier Nikolaus Sprink also leads the way in a movement for peace. He takes a risk and sings along with Christmas carols as they are played on the bagpipes by Palmer and the other Scotts in their nearby trenches. Sprink takes the concert into “no man’s land” with an offering of a lit Christmas tree that would begin the talks for peace.

There are many other rich characters in this film, including the commanding officers in the trenches of the Germen, French, and Scottish soldiers. This is a must see film and after netflixing it I plan on buying it to watch again next Christmas season.

A Voice Crying from the Wilderness of the North Pole

2008-12-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

Miracle on 34th Street may be an ironic story in our culture as Santa Claus becomes the champion against the commercialization of Christmas. Kris Kringle works to re-kindle the faith and magic of the Christmas season as the WAY of dreaming for a better world than one where people think Christmas, and the value of humanity itself, can just be bought and sold at a department store. Yet as Kris fights to help people believe in something more, he finds himself in court defending his apparent crazy ways and to determine if he is the real Santa Claus.

I liken Kris in this story to John the Baptist. Like the prophet, Kris' ways stand out as nonsense in the civilized world that thinks it has outgrown the wild imagination of its prophets. You must be a crazy person to suggest such a radically different way of life over going along with the established business as usual mentality of our world. The question though comes as this voice actually begins to tap into our hopes and rekindle our dreams, is he the one?

Celebrating the second week of Advent, tonight we will be using clips from the original "Miracle on 34th Street" to talk about how going against the grain in a consumerist society can make us seem like crazy people from the wilderness of the North Pole who think they are Santa Claus. Can we give up our cynicism of the world long enough to imagine a better world and listen to that wild dream of hope the cries out to us from outside of society's boarders of the status quo?

Santa Clause may not be the reason for the season, but at least in this story, this man from the wild wilderness of the North Pole may be pointing to the One who's Christmas stockings he is unworthy to fill.

A Mighty Expectation, Past Present and Future!

2008-11-30T08:00:00.002-05:00

The scripture in this first week of Advent, particularly Mark 13, is very dark, terrifying, apocalyptic, and yet ironically hopeful.

"Eschatology" is often oversimplified to simply meaning the study of "end times". Unfortunately the idea has been twisted and perverted in the imaginations of many western evangelicals who confuse eschatology with stories like the "Left behind" series. Advent helps us to see Christian eschatology as actually far more hopeful than it is often portrayed. It is about the hope and anticipation of things to come as God's Kingdom breaks into the world. Ironically, this isn't all about the future but about the present and the past as well.

The coming of Jesus into the world brought a message of "peace on earth" and "good will toward mankind". What does this mean in a world that still seems as full of violence and injustice as it was on the day when Jesus was born? Mark’s contemporary audience would have understood this dilemma more than most of us today. If anyone could scoff and be skeptical of hope for “peace on earth” it would be those who first read the gospel of Mark, his contemporary audience between 60 and 70 AD. The bleak descriptions in chapter 13 certainly would not have been seen as a timeline for some distance future, but a description of their present reality.

Yet, even in the midst of such bleakness, as the world seems to becoming undone and the sky itself is falling, we see are told to look for Jesus coming in these very clouds of apparent despair as a way to remind us that the world is not as much being undone as it is being re-made. As one could judge the change of seasons by observing the fig tree, this is how followers of Jesus should learn to understand such signs of the times.

Things certainly were bleak in the time of Mark’s original audience. A Jewish revolt was taking place, and signs that Jesus’ prediction about the falling of the temple seemed inevitable; certainly it would soon fall very shortly after Mark’s gospel was written. Mark was the first to record a gospel on paper as many of the first eyewitnesses of the church had been killed or had died off. There were also other Jewish revolutionaries springing up claiming to be the Christ; as many would understand this to mean the chosen leader of Israel that would liberate them by sword from the tyranny of Rome. But Mark’s gospel reminds them that this is not the way of the true Christ and we are instructed not follow such false Messiahs.

No, the Way of Jesus is much different than the Jewish revolt taking place in their midst; much different from the wars and violence of the world around them. Mark points them back to Jesus’ words that liken him to a man gone off on a journey and leaving his servants in charge. In this the church is instructed to stay on task and be about the Master’s business as we keep a watchful and expectant eye out for his return. We are invited to participate in God’s re-creation project in the world in which we live as we are called to live this new Way of Jesus in the midst of the troubled and dying world around us.

In fact we should “keep awake” and “watch” for God to work in such dire circumstances. The sky isn’t falling, and the world isn’t going to end; it is being re-made at the hands of our creator and redeemer. How can we watch for this in a way that keeps us on task to participate in God’s re-creation in the world in which we live?

This is what Advent is all about, as we watch for the Kingdom of God breaking into this dark world. Advent explores the question of how Jesus fulfilled his message of hope, how he is fulfilling it now, and how we can still anticipate hope for the future; even in the shadow of darkness, violence, injustice, sin and death in the world.

Tonight we will be using clips and our own recollection of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" to talk about how we can find hope in a world where our past, present and future can often sound a lot like a ghost story. We will look to discover the power in the message of Advent seen through the transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge, who changes before our eyes from a vessel of pain and injustice to one of redemption for himself and his community.

"A Christmas Carol captures the eschatological flavor of the Advent season in the truest sense of the word as it ties together the anticipation of God's Kingdom, and its transformational power, in the past, present, and future. This power is mightily seen in this story through the transformation of one man which changes before our eyes from a vessel of pain and injustice to one of redemption for himself and his community.

Jesus for President

2008-11-02T13:48:00.008-05:00

We are currently doing a book study of "Jesus for President: Politics for Ordinary Radicals" by by Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw.

The book and discussion is NOT about "baptizing" any political party as "Christian," but rather about how Jesus engaged his world , including the politics of his day, and often turned political terms and ideas on their ear to talk about something radically different.

This election season certainly has put politics on everyone's brain. Regardless of your political views or the presidential candidate your voting for, this book and discussion will perhaps help us explore a new way to look at both "faith" an "politics" as followers of Jesus.

Sunday, November 2, 2008 – Before there were Kings and Presidents
Sunday, November 9, 2008 – A New Kind of Commander and Chief
Sunday, November 16, 2008 – When the Empire Got Baptized
Sunday, November 23, 2008 – A Peculiar Party

You can also watch Shane Claiborne's and Chris Haw's "Jesus for President tour" below. I went to the one here in DC and it was fantastic.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Fun with the Corridor

2008-10-26T19:21:00.027-04:00

We have had some fun activities lately and I thought you would all enjoy seeing some of the fun in pictures. These pics are only a few of the great ones...let me know if you want some of your own.

We had a great time at Larriland Farms...the apples were tasty...the kids were hilarious.

"Trunk or Treating" with Angs' Mommies Group!!

Movie Night!!

An "Advent on Film" for Christmas Movie Fans

2008-10-14T17:11:00.003-04:00

We just set up a Meet-Up group for Christmas Movie Fans. The idea is to meet new people while watching and discussing Christmas movies together as we anticipate the coming of Christmas.

We will be putting together two different types of regular meetings. Anyone is welcome to come to one or both any time.

The first type will be just pure movie watching. We will pick a location and simply get together and enjoy a Christmas movie with snacks and conversations.

We will also meet every Sunday night for the last 4 weeks prior to Christmas to focus on one or two particular movies as a way to frame and discuss different aspects of the season of anticipation known as "Advent" that leads us to Christmas. These meetings will be part of the Corridor's weekly worship gatherings.

Christmas is ultimately the magical experience of when humanity meets the divine. Our culture often captures the spirit of this in the stories we tell on film. Come enjoy these movies with others, and hopefully we can at least get a taste of community that promotes peace on earth and good will toward everyone.

Some of the movies we will be watching include: Nightmare before Christmas, A Christmas Carol, It's a Wonderful Life, Miracle on 34th Street, Elf, A Christmas Story, Christmas Vacation, A Charlie Brown Christmas and The Little Drummer Boy.

Click here to check out
The Christmas Movie Fans!

In The Desert

2008-09-15T13:53:00.003-04:00

The next few weeks we will be focusing on the people of Abraham's time in the desert. As a people they just experienced a great exodus out of Egypt where they were in slavery. But knowing what we are leaving behind is only the beginning of a journey. It is a whole other thing to know where you are going.

The time in the desert was a time where the Hebrews were shaped as a community, they discovered who they are and where they were going. Let's camp in the desert the next few weeks together and allow God to shape us as a community.

September 21, 2008 - Exodus 16:2-15
September 28, 2008 - Exodus 17:1-7
October 5, 2008 - Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20
October 12, 2008 - Exodus 32:1-14
October 19, 2008 - Exodus 33:12-23

Genesis and Exodus on Film

2008-09-01T12:55:00.008-04:00

I have really enjoyed walking together as a church community through the journey of the patriarchs in the book of Genesis these last four months. I think it has been great to see these stories as one continuous story rather than the way many of us heard them as a children; often giving us the wrong impression that they were disconnected or that they stood alone. I think reading these stories together the last few months has helped us better see the overall themes and message from the text. It also has helped us see these stories as our stories and better enter into the narrative in our own lives.

The story continues these next two weeks with movie nights at our Corridor gatherings. On September 7th we will be wrapping up the book of Genesis and setting up the book of Exodus by watching Joseph the King of Dreams. On September 14th we will be watching The Prince of Egypt. I look forward to enjoying these movies together, followed by some reflection and discussion. See you there.

Peace,

James

Genesis and Romans

2008-05-25T10:43:00.001-04:00

The Lectionary will be carrying us through Both Genesis and Romans the next few months. Here is the plan if you want to look ahead.

May 25, 2008
Genesis 1:1-2:4

June 1, 2008
Genesis 6:9-22; 7:24; 8:14-19
Romans 1:16-17; 3:22b-28-31

June 8, 2008
Genesis 12:1-9
Romans 4:13-25

June 15, 2008
Genesis 18:1-15, (21:1-7)
Romans 5:1-8

June 22, 2008
Genesis 21:8-21
Romans 6:1b-11

June 29, 2008
Genesis 22:1-14
Romans 6:12-23

July 6, 2008
Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67
Romans 7:15-25a

July 13, 2008
Genesis 25:19-34
Romans 8:1-11

July 20, 2008
Genesis 28:10-19a
Romans 8:12-25

July 27, 2008
Genesis 29:15-28
Romans 8:26-39

August 3, 2008
Genesis 32:22-31
Romans 9:1-5

August 10, 2008
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28
Romans 10:5-15

August 17, 2008
Genesis 45:1-15
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32

He has Risen!

2008-03-23T07:23:00.006-04:00

Do not look for Jesus among the dead, he is no longer here.

He has Risen!!!

This Cup

2008-03-21T22:50:00.004-04:00

So Good Friday got me to thinkin'. We had a Tenebrae service in our home tonight with some dear friends who are also members of our church community. For me it was a siginificant night. I had been "prepping" for the story with my focus on God's character shown through Jesus' life. This time the reading of the Garden of Gethsemane events did not just roll over my mind and heart as a story "I've heard" at least 35 times. I think I finally HEARD it.

As I listened and read and studied further afterward I was hung up on Jesus request that His Father-God "take this cup" from him. I keenly felt that Jesus request was for himself in that moment but also perhaps for us. Is this the ONLY way...can you take this cup? Do we have to walk here? I find so much comfort in Jesus' request. I feel understood, known and walked with.
These days my "cups" don't feel too heavy if I look at the world around me. But I do feel exhausted and desparate at times trying to navigate all that is in front of me...some of it feels painful. I pray and ask that my baby sister's "cup" be taken from her. Over and over that request is made. I believe many who know and love her have prayed along these lines. I have prayed and asked that my husband's particular "cup" at various times in life be taken from him as well.

In all this petitioning, the "cup" hasn't been taken (at least not yet) but God has been so good to allow me, or whoever I am petitioning for, to recieve the cup with trust and sometimes even with grace.

I am thankful for Jesus' words in Gethsemane. Part of the pain with any "cup" is the lonely, isolated feeling it can bring. Jesus abolished this when he walked that lonely path and took that cup and brought new life to the world. The promise and comfort in these moments of Jesus' life give me renewed desire to continue to walk, regardless of the weight of the cup.

Maundy Thursday

2008-03-20T08:21:00.006-04:00

Today is Maundy Thursday, which according to the liturgical calendar falls on the Thursday before Easter and commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles.

At the Corridor we celebrate the Eucharist (communion) every week, but today we pay special attention to it in the specific context of the events that lead up to the death and then the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is why Karrie and I have invited our church community over to our home this evening to share in the communion meal together.

All year we have been talking about the incarnation of Jesus Christ, how God has met us in our humanity and is truly "with us" in Jesus Christ. Communion itself reminds us of this, as Jesus points to the bread and wine as his human body and blood. Through communion, Jesus asks us to partake in his humanity, as God in Christ partakes in our humanity. The incarnational God in Christ Jesus meets us even in human suffering and death. The bread is broken and the wine is spilled out.

As we enter into to the story of the final days of Jesus' incarnational life (though we will be reminded on Easter that his life goes on) we will be reminded that Jesus shared some of the darkest of human experiences leading up to and including his death on the cross.

Looking at this painting by the Russian painter Simon Ushakov of the mid to late 1600's you may notice that one of the twelve is not given that majestic hallo as the rest. This represents the betrayal of Judas Iscariot. Although, to be fair all the disciples would "fall away" and Jesus would experience of the betrayal and abandonment of his loved ones. Even this is incarnational as God enters the world as a human Jesus and experiences the sins of humanity that that is common to us all, as we turn on each other and both betray and abandon one another (and God) in our humanity.

In the course of the next hours and days of the these events Jesus will also meet us where such abandonment and betrayal turns into outright injustice. An innocent man, Jesus, is tortured and put to death by the corruptness of the religious, those in political power, and even by the outcry of the masses that embraced him just a few days ago as a king. Truly Jesus is God with us even in the sins of all of humanity and he meets us in death that is common to us all.

Jesus said, "For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." And so tonight we will remember as we come to the table and we wait for Jesus to come; embracing the hope of his resurrection that we will soon celebrate. Jesus truly is new life for humanity.

Can these bones dance?

2008-03-09T11:12:00.005-04:00

We read in Ezekiel 37 today about the vision of dry bones which from our modern context can conjure up spooky images of the "undead" that come out and play at night. What is interesting though is that in images, like the one from this cartoon, the skeletons that come to "life" and dance around are not alive at all; they never actually become un-dead because they stay dead. It is also interesting to notice in the cartoon that the skeletons run for their graves at day break.

As entertaining as it is to watch these Disney skeletons dance, I can't help but to notice the contrast between the reanimation (per Disney animation) of the bones in the cartoon with the dry bones that God breaths life back into in Ezekiel's vision. Actual life returns to Ezekiel's bones as God promises to breathe his life back into the his people in this vision. This is the kind of life that embraces the light of the sunrise and does not run away from it and return to the grave. This is the kind of life that truly reflects God because it is God's breath that calls it to life and sustains it. This is the kind of life that will truly inspire us to dance for joy.

so that the work of God might be displayed in her life

2008-03-02T05:40:00.000-05:00

Something captured me in this story of a deaf girl who wanted to experience music and play in a band. She certainly learned to “hear” music in her own way to overcome her deafness, but it wasn’t until she embraced her own deafness that she would be able to “hear” well enough to play in a band.

God in Christ embraces us in all our humanity, in our frailties, in our blindness and deafness and in all the ways we might consider “cursed”. It is in our humanity, through the divine that became human in Christ, that God’s work might be displayed in our lives. I think the message is clear; we need to embrace our own humanity and every thing that goes with it including what we might consider “cursed” as God embraces us. It is only then that something truly divine might be done in our lives and we who are blind and deaf will truly begin to see and hear.

Why was the girl in the video born deaf? Well my guess is so that the work of God might be displayed in her life. Why were you and I created the way we are? For the very same reason, so let us embrace our human condition as Christ has embraced us.

For more click HERE

The Transfiguration

2008-02-04T14:03:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was “Transfiguration Sunday” for us at the Corridor. As we read through Exodus 24:12-18, Matthew 17:1-9, and II Peter 1:16-21 I could not help but be captured by the magnificent reality that such a great mystery of God became so perfectly embodied by Jesus Christ in flesh and blood. The Transfiguration was like a brief taking the lid off God incarnate and catching just a glimpse of the majesty and great mystery of God in Christ that goes far beyond just flesh and blood; he is literally God with us.

To reflect on this story we listened to Sufjan Stevens’ song called “The Transfiguration” which simply tells this story through music. I thought it might be nice to share a live performance of his song here. The lyrics to the song are posted below the video.

When he took the three disciples
to the mountainside to pray,
his countenance was modified, his clothing was aflame.
Two men appeared: Moses and Elijah came;
they were at his side.
The prophecy, the legislation spoke of whenever he would die.

Then there came a word
of what he should accomplish on the day.
Then Peter spoke, to make of them a tabernacle place.
A cloud appeared in glory as an accolade.
They fell on the ground.
A voice arrived, the voice of God,
the face of God, covered in a cloud.

What he said to them,
the voice of God: the most beloved son.
Consider what he says to you, consider what's to come.
The prophecy was put to death,
was put to death, and so will the Son.
And keep your word, disguise the vision 'till the time has come.

Lost in the cloud, a voice. Have no fear! We draw near!
Lost in the cloud, a sign. Son of man! Turn your ear.
Lost in the cloud, a voice. Lamb of God! We draw near!
Lost in the cloud, a sign. Son of man! Son of God!

Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future

2008-02-03T07:11:00.000-05:00

In 2006 the now late Robert E. Webber organized and edited the "Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future", a document intended "to restore the priority of the divinely inspired biblical story of God's acts in history". Here is that document and this is something that I want to lean into in our community.

PROLOGUE

In every age the Holy Spirit calls the Church to examine its faithfulness to God's revelation in Jesus Christ, authoritatively recorded in Scripture and handed down through the Church. Thus, while we affirm the global strength and vitality of worldwide Evangelicalism in our day, we believe the North American expression of Evangelicalism needs to be especially sensitive to the new external and internal challenges facing God's people.

These external challenges include the current cultural milieu and the resurgence of religious and political ideologies. The internal challenges include Evangelical accommodation to civil religion, rationalism, privatism and pragmatism. In light of these challenges, we call Evangelicals to strengthen their witness through a recovery of the faith articulated by the consensus of the ancient Church and its guardians in the traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, the Protestant Reformation and the Evangelical awakenings. Ancient Christians faced a world of paganism, Gnosticism and political domination. In the face of heresy and persecution, they understood history through Israel's story, culminating in the death and resurrection of Jesus and the coming of God's Kingdom.

Today, as in the ancient era, the Church is confronted by a host of master narratives that contradict and compete with the gospel. The pressing question is: who gets to narrate the world? The Call to an Ancient Evangelical Future challenges Evangelical Christians to restore the priority of the divinely inspired biblical story of God's acts in history. The narrative of God's Kingdom holds eternal implications for the mission of the Church, its theological reflection, its public ministries of worship and spirituality and its life in the world. By engaging these themes, we believe the Church will be strengthened to address the issues of our day.

1. On the Primacy of the Biblical Narrative

We call for a return to the priority of the divinely authorized canonical story of the Triune God. This story-Creation, Incarnation, and Re-creation-was effected by Christ's recapitulation of human history and summarized by the early Church in its Rules of Faith. The gospel-formed content of these Rules served as the key to the interpretation of Scripture and its critique of contemporary culture, and thus shaped the church's pastoral ministry. Today, we call Evangelicals to turn away from modern theological methods that reduce the gospel to mere propositions, and from contemporary pastoral ministries so compatible with culture that they camouflage God's story or empty it of its cosmic and redemptive meaning. In a world of competing stories, we call Evangelicals to recover the truth of God's word as the story of the world, and to make it the centerpiece of Evangelical life.

2. On the Church, the Continuation of God's Narrative

We call Evangelicals to take seriously the visible character of the Church. We call for a commitment to its mission in the world in fidelity to God's mission (Missio Dei), and for an exploration of the ecumenical implications this has for the unity, holiness, catholicity, and apostolicity of the Church. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from an individualism that makes the Church a mere addendum to God's redemptive plan. Individualistic Evangelicalism has contributed to the current problems of churchless Christianity, redefinitions of the Church according to business models, separatist ecclesiologies and judgmental attitudes toward the Church. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to recover their place in the community of the Church catholic.

3. On the Church's Theological Reflection on God's Narrative

We call for the Church's reflection to remain anchored in the Scriptures in continuity with the theological interpretation learned from the early Fathers. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from methods that separate theological reflection from the common traditions of the Church. These modern methods compartmentalize God's story by analyzing its separate parts, while ignoring God's entire redemptive work as recapitulated in Christ. Anti-historical attitudes also disregard the common biblical and theological legacy of the ancient Church. Such disregard ignores the hermeneutical value of the Church's ecumenical creeds. This reduces God's story of the world to one of many competing theologies and impairs the unified witness of the Church to God's plan for the history of the world. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to unity in "the tradition that has been believed everywhere, always and by all," as well as to humility and charity in their various Protestant traditions.

4. On the Church's Worship as Telling and Enacting God's Narrative

We call for public worship that sings, preaches and enacts God's story. We call for a renewed consideration of how God ministers to us in baptism, Eucharist, confession, the laying on of hands, marriage, healing and through the charisma of the Spirit, for these actions shape our lives and signify the meaning of the world. Thus, we call Evangelicals to turn away from forms of worship that focus on God as a mere object of the intellect or that assert the self as the source of worship. Such worship has resulted in lecture-oriented, music-driven, performance-centered and program-controlled models that do not adequately proclaim God's cosmic redemption. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to recover the historic substance of worship of Word and Table and to attend to the Christian year, which marks time according to God's saving acts.

5. On Spiritual Formation in the Church as Embodiment of God's Narrative

We call for a catechetical spiritual formation of the people of God that is based firmly on a Trinitarian biblical narrative. We are concerned when spirituality is separated from the story of God and baptism into the life of Christ and his Body. Spirituality, made independent from God's story, is often characterized by legalism, mere intellectual knowledge, an overly therapeutic culture, New Age Gnosticism, a dualistic rejection of this world and a narcissistic preoccupation with one's own experience. These false spiritualities are inadequate for the challenges we face in today's world. Therefore, we call Evangelicals to return to a historic spirituality like that taught and practiced in the ancient catechumenate.

6. On the Church's Embodied Life in the World

We call for a cruciform holiness and commitment to God's mission in the world. This embodied holiness affirms life, biblical morality and appropriate self-denial. It calls us to be faithful stewards of the created order and bold prophets to our contemporary culture. Thus, we call Evangelicals to intensify their prophetic voice against forms of indifference to God's gift of life, economic and political injustice, ecological insensitivity and the failure to champion the poor and marginalized. Too often we have failed to stand prophetically against the culture's captivity to racism, consumerism, political correctness, civil religion, sexism, ethical relativism, violence and the culture of death. These failures have muted the voice of Christ to the world through his Church and detract from God's story of the world, which the Church is collectively to embody. Therefore, we call the Church to recover its counter-cultural mission to the world.

Epilogue

In sum, we call Evangelicals to recover the conviction that God's story shapes the mission of the Church to bear witness to God's Kingdom and to inform the spiritual foundations of civilization. We set forth this Call as an ongoing, open-ended conversation. We are aware that we have our blind spots and weaknesses. Therefore, we encourage Evangelicals to engage this Call within educational centers, denominations and local churches through publications and conferences.
We pray that we can move with intention to proclaim a loving, transcendent, triune God who has become involved in our history. In line with Scripture, creed and tradition, it is our deepest desire to embody God's purposes in the mission of the Church through our theological reflection, our worship, our spirituality and our life in the world, all the while proclaiming that Jesus is Lord over all creation.

This Call is issued in the spirit of sic et non; therefore those who affix their names to this Call need not agree with all its content. Rather, its consensus is that these are issues to be discussed in the tradition of semper reformanda as the church faces the new challenges of our time. Over a period of seven months, more than 300 persons have participated via e-mail to write the Call. These men and women represent a broad diversity of ethnicity and denominational affiliation. The four theologians who most consistently interacted with the development of the Call have been named as Theological Editors. The Board of Reference was given the special assignment of overall approval.

Corridor Super Bowl Party II

2008-01-30T20:14:00.000-05:00

This video is part of a series of “Jesus videos” by Vintage 21 that has almost become an internet cult classic over the last few years. These parodies poke fun of the absurd way many churches in our culture view Jesus.

This video show Jesus in the “first Christian church meeting” telling everyone what the rules are (which are hilarious) and then rebukes a man who missed the prayer meeting for a “silly game”. “All right, all right” Jesus says, “You can be a Christian if you promise to burn all your footballs and never miss church again.”

Silly "Jesus", doesn't he know that it's not an either/or thing and is just a matter of planning ahead and creative scheduling? We can have our church meeting THEN watch the Super Bowl! Now was that so hard? I am not sure if this will be OK with Jesus for the rest of you guys, but I know I am good with Jesus with this because he favors my "stylish beard".

4:30 to 5:30-Church (no meal after)
6:00 to end of game - Food and Super Bowl at Diggs'

Behold the Lamb of God

2008-01-18T14:08:00.000-05:00

Reflecting on John 1:29-42 through music in preparation for our gathering on January 20, 2008

Expect the Unexpected

2007-12-02T15:40:00.000-05:00

The first Sunday of Advent’s reading for Sunday December 2nd includes Matthew 24:36-44. In this passage Jesus tells his disciples the following:

"But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. For as the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and they knew nothing until the flood came and swept them all away, so too will be the coming of the Son of Man.

Then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be left. Two women will be grinding meal together; one will be taken and one will be left. Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.

But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”

Advent is not just about looking back at the coming of Christmas, it is about looking forward. In fact even when we look back at the coming of the incarnation through the birth of Christ we are reflecting on how the ancient world looked forward in expectation to the arrival of the messiah, the coming of the Kingdom, and the good news that God would truly be with them. We are reminded in this passage that as followers of Jesus, Immanuel, God incarnate who is with us, that we should still be earnestly anticipating the coming of the Kingdom of God.

I am especially struck by this passage because the words in the narrative come from Jesus himself. Jesus is the embodiment of the Kingdom of God, and he had come to the world. Jesus was literally “God with” the disciples and yet he taught them to pray that the Kingdom would come and God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven. This is truly a unique prayer request coming from Jesus especially when you consider that Jesus was the embodiment of God’s will on earth and he was standing among them.

There is this great and wonderful tension between the already and not yet in this passage. When asked by the disciples when the day will come where the Kingdom of God will have the final word, Jesus answers in a way that best keeps that wonderful tension and by this keeps them in the right frame of mind to actually lean into the Kingdom of God in the their current day. The incarnate God tells them to expect the Kingdom of God to come again in an incarnational context. You have to watch for it, because God will show up on the scene in the unexpected places of every day life; working in the field with a coworker, or perhaps while preparing a meal in the kitchen with friend. You have to watch for it because you could easily miss it. Jesus’ story tells us that two could be sharing the same experience and yet one could be ruptured up in it as the Kingdom of God and the other one could miss it all together.

Speaking of being ruptured into the Kingdom; typically this passage is used to teach about “the rapture” and used as a warning not to be “left behind”, but oddly enough I think many of those who are obsessed with “end times” are already left behind because they may be tragically missing the point. When and where will we see the Kingdom of God come? If we are careful to watch, we will see it come in the every day places and everyday things of each day; yet we are instructed to still keep watching for more. We will begin to see it when we become enraptured with the idea of the Kingdom of God coming to us in the here in now.

Jesus said ironically that the days will be as wicked as the days of Noah when the Kingdom comes as people do their own thing without the awareness to recognize that is God there. Yet God is there, and because they were not looking, they were taken by surprised, and missed it. Yes, the days of Noah were bad days, and Jesus talks about suffering and hardship to come as well, and yet it is also in these things in our lives that if we watch we will see the kingdom of God coming in. How unexpected. How more unexpected is it that God would come and be present among a world full of sin and injustice, and ye he did so in Christ. As his followers we should be looking for him to continue to come in this way as we lean into him together as the body of Christ bearing the sins and injustices of the world; and in the midst of this unexpected place look for the Kingdom of God to break in.

I think the point of this passage is to watch, and embrace our every day lives in a way that carries on the incarnation of God through us as the continued work of the body of Christ in the everyday world. I think the point is to watch and see what God will do as we keep praying and looking for the Kingdom of God to break through. I think there is a big difference between looking for the coming of the Kingdom and looking for the “end times”. Many religious people today look for the “end times” as a way to write off and escape the world, but looking for the Kingdom of God is about looking and expecting the Kingdom to break into this world. Which way are you leaning? If you not leaning into the Kingdom of God and watching as it is breaking into this world, even in the context of your everyday life, then you very well may miss it.

Yes, I believe Jesus is coming again and I am looking for him everyday in unexpected places.

Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7

2007-10-15T18:51:00.000-04:00

The passage we focused on from the Lectionary this past Sunday was Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7. As our small community is beginning to take shape this passage has really grabbed me as something I think we can identify with. The context of the passage is a message to those who are not living in the ideal world that they thought God had promised them; they are instead exiles in Babylon, not living in their own nation among their own people but rather they are instead living among Babylonians. The message they are given through the Prophet Jeremiah about their situation is astounding.

There are plenty of Christians in our culture that withdraw from the world they live in; they consider themselves citizens of another world and so they pay this world no mind (except for maybe trying to recruit others to be citizens of the next). There is truth in the imagery that as followers of Jesus we are in many ways strangers and aliens in the world and that our citizenship is of a Kingdom that is out of this world; so perhaps we might identify with the imagery of living in exile too while we spend our lives on this earth. This being the case the message in Jeremiah may also astound us.

When I read Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7, this is what I hear God instructing those living in exile:

Settle down and make yourself at home. Build houses and plant gardens just like everyone else that lives there. Be a part of the community that you are in, not just with your fellow Israelites but with the Babylonians also. Marry and have children and grandchildren and live together with the Babylonians in the land. Seek the welfare of the city because you and the Babylonians are all in this together.

I find this call to settle down and identify with others we live with in our community amazingly relevant to us today. Too often Christians have misunderstood the call to “come out and be separate” found in other places in scripture as meaning we should disassociate ourselves with our neighbors. In actuality we should only separate ourselves by being salt and light that is easily identifiable by the way we love others. Here Jeremiah calls them to actually immerse themselves in their community, not just investing in their own Jewish sub culture but by investing in the whole community including the Babylonians.

This is what I want us to be about, I want us to seek the welfare of our city, make ourselves a home here in the Washington/Baltimore area and be part of the lives of everyone we share our community with. So, like I said on Sunday, I think we need to keep our eyes open for ways we might, as individuals and as a group, invest in our community. I think there are endless possibilities of ways we might invest in helping with our community perhaps through helping with social needs, education, healthcare and environment.

This isn’t meant to come across as some kind of political platform because there are different political philosophies about what might work best, and I think there are many ways we can impact these things besides just our vote. We can help with social needs by doing things like the homeless walkathon in November, perhaps getting involved in Habitat for Humanity, and the Wolf’s are looking into how we might help the Ann Arundel County Food Pantry. We might help with education by taking part as parents in school functions and activities or we can give our time to other youth programs in our community. I love it that both Mark and Gordon have given their time to the Boy Scouts in the area. We might help in healthcare by visiting nursing homes, or taking part in a walk to fight cancer, or find a ways to support things that help those without health insurance get the help they need. On a personal level I would love to learn how to be more environmentally responsible and I am looking for ways I can get involved in community that also cares about that issue.

Anyway, these are just some ideas, but if you have any more thoughts about how we might seek the welfare of our cities and community and get involved, this might be a good place to brainstorm more about it. You can post a comment under this post, or you are welcome to create your own post if there is something you really would like to focus on.

I am excited to be in community with all of you and I am looking to forward to seeing what we become as we seek together to live out our faith in this world we live in.

Peace,

James

Lazarus at the Rich Man's Gate

2007-09-30T14:02:00.000-04:00

Click HERE for a way to respond!

Sunday Gatherings in the Corridor

2007-08-22T07:48:00.000-04:00

Our church community has finally outgrown my house on Friday nights and so we are changing our gathering venue to both accommodate for this and also move to something with a bit more structure to it. We will begin to meet in a large old house in Glen Burnie that is now used as office space. They have a large room in the back of the house with several round tables set up right off the kitchen area. Starting this Sunday at 4:30pm the Corridor will begin to meet in this space weekly.

Our plan is to do some spiritual reflection, participate in communion together, spend some time in prayer, spend some time hanging out, and then share a Sunday night meal together. My hope is that our time partaking in the Eucharist together on a weekly basis will eventually help shape this to be more of a time of worship; with time we will gradually begin to incorporate more music, reading, poetry and art. I do like it that our gatherings will become more table centered as we regularly break bread with one another. I think this will be a good foundation to build our community gathering times upon.

We will also be using the time during our meals not only to continue building relationships with one another, but to talk about more ways we can make a difference in our communities and the world we live in. Whether we are working to make a difference in social and/or justice issues, the environment, or simply learning to love our neighbors better, we can not forget that the purpose of the church is to live out the Kingdom of God in the here in now. So, it will be very interesting to see how our times of gathering continues to evolve and hopefully inspire us in many different ways to actually live our faith out in the world we live in.

Discipleship and our Children

2007-06-30T16:09:00.000-04:00

I have been wrestling lately with trying to reconcile several threads of concepts that have strong implication for both my personal life and the church community we are planting. I am a father of three and most of our core group also have children so we regularly have a conversation that is common to both large and small church communities; “what do we do with our kids?” This question also has other interesting dynamics among those who find an affinity with the Emergent Church. What does discipleship of our children look like in a less programmatic/more organic structure, and a less propositional gospel/more kingdom living gospel message?

Our planting church community has brought many of these questions to the forefront as we look for ways of helping each other disciple our children. With this I found that these issues have with them a very interesting tension of approaches, especially between me and a few mothers that come from a strong churched background. I very much appreciate these advocates for our children’s spiritual growth because their love for our children and passion for this issue is helping us all give this topic the attention it deserves.

One struggle I have is accepting popular children’s programming of the modern church as discipleship. Sunday school is a long standing program and programs such as “Caravans” and “Awana’s seem to be thought of fondly by some of our parents as good models for children’s discipleship. I think Sunday School is too broadly defined to be considered a method because what is done during that time varies so much from church to church with the only constant being that they meet with children on Sunday. As for other children's programs like Caravans, when I had my children take part of an Awana’s program I was extremely disappointed in it. Do not misunderstand me, the program is executed extremely well (though the Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts are run far better), I just struggled to embrace a philosophy of compartmentalized spirituality and the promotion of a propositional gospel. Awana’s curriculum is based on memorizing very select scriptures that lays out the propositional elements to the “plan of salvation”. The thrust of these kinds program is designed to “disciple” children to assent to a particular belief system rather than to disciple children in a way of life. Being a disciple of Jesus is not about assenting to a particular belief, it is about following Jesus; and that is how I want to disciple my own children.

Here is the clincher in all of this for me; I feel like my wife and I disciple our children by walking beside them as parents and guiding them in living a good life. By this I mean that discipleship is played out with our children when we help them behave appropriately and love God and others. When our children have conflicts and struggles we are discipling them when we help them navigate through these things. As we follow Jesus as a family we help our children understand what it means to follow Jesus in the context of our every day lives and how we treat and love others. I do think that teaching about scripture and church community is important which is why I am thinking that some sort of catechism should be a part of the life of a local body; but this should only be supplemental to a lifestyle of discipleship and the discipling of our children.

I think the problem I am wrestling with is that in our consumer culture we are tempted to want a program to disciple our children for us. Combine this with the false idea that discipleship means just the indoctrination of the correct believes that we should assent to, and we are left with a very poor idea of what it means to disciple our children. So what can we do?

There are a few things I am thinking that we may do as a community. First I want to talk more with my core group about discipleship as a way of life as we follow Jesus and less about finding a program or curriculum. This conversation will also touch on how we as parents are discipling our children 24/7 and explore how we might help one another in this regard. The next thing I am thinking about is how we might disciple our children together as a community as a way to reinforce what we are doing as parents in our homes. I think part of this will include some type of catechism; even the most ancient of catechisms seem to be based on the asking of questions and leaning on pondering these kinds of questions may resonate with our post-modern sensibilities. The other part of corporate discipleship of our children should include a service aspect. I want our children to know that disciples of Jesus are the salt of the world and should make a difference to the world they live in.

I am still very much processing all this out in my own mind and our dialogue about this as a community is still very new. I do not feel that I have any real solid handle yet on how to go forward but I think I may be going in the right direction. The three things I am thinking about doing that I mentioned in my last paragraph needs fleshed out a whole lot more and there are probably are pieces I haven’t even thought of yet. I don’t know if what I wrote will make sense to anyone else but it did help me to write out some of what I have been thinking about on the topic. This is just the tip of the iceberg but being on this journey is what discipleship is all about; I just want to help our parents and our children in the journey of discipleship as well.

Tenebrae Service

2007-04-06T15:42:00.000-04:00

We are having a Tenebrae Service this Good Friday at my house. The word ‘tenebrae’ is Latin for shadows. The purpose of the Tenebrae service is to recreate the emotional aspects of the passion story by extinguishing a candle after various readings that take us through the story. At the end of the service we will be in complete darkness reminding us of the stone that was rolled in front of Jesus’ tomb. This is meant to be a somber service to help prepare us for the celebration of the resurrection on Easter Sunday.

We will be reading through John 18, and 19 along with Psalm 22.

One

2007-02-27T16:53:00.000-05:00

What is ONE?
ONE is a new effort by Americans to rally Americans - ONE by ONE - to fight the emergency of global AIDS and extreme poverty. The ONE Campaign is engaging Americans through a diverse coalition of faith-based and anti-poverty organizers to show the steps people can take, ONE by ONE, to fight global AIDS and poverty

What is the goal of the ONE campaign?
The ONE Campaign seeks to give Americans a voice, to ring church bells and cell phones, on campuses and in coffee shops, for an historic pact to fight the global AIDS emergency and end extreme poverty. We believe that allocating an additional ONE percent of the U.S. budget toward providing basic needs like health, education, clean water and food, would transform the futures and hopes of an entire generation of the poorest countries.

Why should the Corridor get involved?
ONE of the desires we have in the Corridor is to partner with others in an incarnational way on issues that should concern us as disciples of Jesus Christ. Issues of extreme poverty and AIDS world wide should compel us to want to take action like the Good Samaritan did when he saw his neighbor wounded along the road. Counting yourself as ONE is only one small way of helping and I hope that we will do much more; but this is a step and our combined voice as ONE on this issue can make a difference.

If you want to count yourself as ONE and add your voice to those who desire to make extreme poverty history in the world then go to one.org and add your name to the list.

Thank you,
James

Fist Bump is Out !?!?

2007-02-05T18:54:00.000-05:00

One thing I learned from the Super Bowl is that the “fist bump” is out. This saddened me deeply to hear because this is my primary way of greeting my brothers and sisters (with a holy fist bump) and saying hello.

Of course the new alternative to the fist bump looks fun, a hard slap to the face; done in love of course. I have tried this out some (I tried it on Gordon when we said goodbye after the Super Bowl party), but this new greeting has not been received well.

One of our goals of our church plant is to be culturally relative so perhaps it would be best to keep up with the times and go with the face slap greeting. At the same time, maybe we should stick with the old school fist bump like the ancients used and like the Apostles of the early church.

What do you think?

Poll Script from CWT

Superbowl Night

2007-02-05T18:12:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone!

We sure enjoyed sharing the superbowl with those of you who made it! We missed all of you who didn't and hope you are feeling well today. We have some fun photos of the time together - hope you have time to check them out. There is a folder for them at snapfish. I will send you all an invite to view them! Let me know if you don't get an invite so I can try again.

Thanks for the tasty food, great fellowship and fun. We love you all.

Karrie

Super Bowl Party

2007-01-30T06:55:00.000-05:00

Don’t tell Jesus but we are skipping our Friday night gathering this week and instead getting together on Sunday night for the Super Bowl!!! Everyone is invited to the Diggs’ at 6:00pm on Sunday, February 4th. Even though we are not having a church meeting, stylish beards are still preferred. I think I have the most stylish, but then again I am the Pastor. ;)

RSVP in the comments or by email. See everyone there!!

Peace,

James

Corridor Gathering Friday January 19th

2007-01-17T11:07:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone, just a reminder that we are getting together this Friday January 19th at Ken and Sally's house at 7:00pm. Our plan is to break some bread and do a little reflection on scripture together and some prayer. After that we will just hang out and enjoy each other.

My wife and kids are away this weekend so they will not be joining us and I know that the Romanow’s and Brennon’s also have different plans this week. I can’t wait to see everyone else that can make it on Friday.
If you need the Balch's address send me an email at james@corridorchurch.com

Peace,

James

Firefly Tonight

2006-12-30T11:59:00.000-05:00

We are all getting together tonight to watch the first few episodes of a sci-fi show called Firefly; a short lived series that even though canceled after only 14 episodes lead to a movie (Serenity) that Karrie and I just love. This is a great show; here is a sample to give you a taste of what it is about.

We are meeting at the Wolf’s house tonight at 6:00pm, everyone is welcome. Please keep in mind that though the show aired on television it is NOT a kid’s show. Our kids will be watching something else in another room while we watch Firefly- if you bring kids they are welcome to join them. The show does deal with some mature themes and is extremely character driven; which is what makes it so good. I am looking forward to watching it with everyone that can make it.

James

The Greatest Action Story Ever Told!

2006-12-15T07:56:00.000-05:00

First there was the Passion, then the Nativity Story; finally we have the movie about Jesus Christ Hollywood is dying to make.

When you get done laughing at this video, what do you think about Hollywood’s and the media’s portrayal of Jesus Christ over the years? Where do you think they got it right and where do you think they fell short? What matters more, how a movie accurately reflects Jesus Christ or how his followers reflect him in the world today?

Getting Quiet

2006-12-04T12:02:00.000-05:00

Pasted below is the email devotional I recieved today.

"He went up into a mountain apart" (Matt. 14:23).
One of the blessings of the old-time Sabbath was its calm, its restfulness, its holy peace. There is a strange strength conceived in solitude. Crows go in flocks and wolves in packs, but the lion and the eagle are solitaires.
Strength is not in bluster and noise. Strength is in quietness. The lake must be calm if the heavens are to be reflected on its surface. Our Lord loved the people, but how often we read of His going away from them for a brief season. He tried every little while to withdraw from the crowd. He was always stealing away at evening to the hills. Most of His ministry was carried on in the towns and cities by the seashore, but He loved the hills the best, and oftentimes when night fell He would plunge into their peaceful depths.
The one thing needed above all others today is that we shall go apart with our Lord, and sit at His feet in the sacred privacy of His blessed presence. Oh, for the lost art of meditation! Oh, for the culture of the secret place! Oh, for the tonic of waiting upon God! --Selected

I believe this quiet before God is a vital need in my own life, but I struggle to find it. Even when I am alone and technically quiet should come, I am often under fire from my own mental noise. I am encouraged by this devotional to sit long enough for quiet to come. I am encouraged to wait...

I would love to know how others find the quiet, how you get your mind to cooperate and get calm enough to really hear Him.

Something Different For Thanksgiving

2006-11-20T18:43:00.000-05:00

I was thinking the other day about Thanksgiving and I thought the obvious thought that Thanksgiving is a time to GIVE thanks. But that lead me to think about GIVING thanks in terms of giving something like a gift. I know, this still isn’t some mind blowing revelation, but it made me think that maybe I should start a new family tradition in my home in which we would give the gift of thanks to others.

What I am saying is that Thanksgiving gives us a great opportunity to give someone the gift of telling them “thank you” for the ways God has used them to bless your life.

I still think Thanksgiving is the perfect opportunity to be thankful and to count the blessing we have; we certainly should still offer our thanks up to God as our love offering to Him. But, this Thanksgiving in addition to expressing your thankfulness to God, give someone the gift of telling them “thank you” for what they mean to you in your life.

Please feel free to share your thoughts about Thanksgiving and/or the people and things you are thankful for in the comments.

Only Kindness Matters

2006-11-11T14:00:00.000-05:00

Singer and songwriter Jewel will serve as the honorary chair of the Fannie Mae Foundation Help the Homeless Program and Walkathon in DC on November 18th 2006. Jewel will bring a powerful and personal perspective when she speaks at the event. This made me think of Jewel’s song “Hands” because it reminds me of what the Kingdom of God is all about. Take a moment to watch the video and read and reflect on the words below.

"Hands"

If I could tell the world just one thing
It would be that we're all OK
And not to worry 'cause worry is wasteful
And useless in times like these
I won't be made useless
I won't be idle with despair
I will gather myself around my faith
For light does the darkness most fear
My hands are small, I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken
Poverty stole your golden shoes
It didn't steal your laughter
And heartache came to visit me
But I knew it wasn't ever after
We'll fight, not out of spite
For someone must stand up for what's right
'Cause where there's a man who has no voice
There ours shall go singing
My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
I am never broken
In the end only kindness matters
In the end only kindness matters
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
I will get down on my knees, and I will pray
My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken
My hands are small I know
But they're not yours, they are my own
But they're not yours, they are my own
And I am never broken
We are never broken
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's mind
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's heart
We are God's eyes
God's hands
God's eyes
We are God's hands
We are God's hands

On November 18th, 2006 the homeless shelter in DC I work for, Community of Hope, will be participating in the Help the Homeless Walkathon sponsored by the Fannie Mae Foundation. I want to extend an invitation to you to join us and walk with us. You can register here on line for 25 dollars, or you can walk for FREE if you email me and I can send you a special registration form. For every 100 walkers that we have with us, COH gets an additional $2,000 to help the people we serve in our shelter.

Like I said, the words of Jewel's song remind me that "in the end, only kindness matters", and that we are God’s hands, his feet, and his love in action to this world that we live in today. To me this is the Kingdom of Heaven, what do you think?