portico

Homophobic?

2008-08-09T00:37:00.007-04:00

It was good to gather and begin our discussion of a very challenging topic! The clips we watched and discussed this evening came from a documentary called "For the Bible Tells Me So", which won several awards at the Sundance festival and traces the stories of several Christian families that have had gay children. (A big thanks to Andrea for suggesting this film!)

Some of you indicated the interest in delving further into the topic. What does the Bible say about homosexuality? We'll have to devote an evening (or several!) to the topic in the future.

For now, you may be interested in the following clips on YouTube from Southern Adventist University (my alma mater).

This one is the first of a series of ten, from a student debate sponsored by the History and Social Work Departments. (You can click on the clip, go to YouTube and watch other clips.)

This one is the first of another set from the Religion Department entitled "Compassion and Clarity." It has several pastors, Bible scholars, and theologians that explain some of the texts in the Bible that deal with homosexuality. (Once again, click on the clip and go to YouTube if you want to watch the rest.)

What your friends really think of you

2008-07-11T23:25:00.010-04:00

According to a recent study of 16-29 year olds that are not Christian, Christians are "conservative, entrenched in their thinking, anti-gay, anti-choice, angry, violent, illogical, empire builders; they want to convert everyone, and they generally cannot live peacefully with anyone who doesn't believe what they believe."

That's right. If you're a Christian, and you're friends are not, somewhere in the back of their minds, they think you are:

Anti-homosexual - 91%
Judgmental - 87%
Hypocritical - 85%
Sheltered (old-fashioned, out of touch with reality) - 78%
Too political - 75%
Proselytizers (insensitive to others, not genuine) - 70%

Ouch.

Are they right? Where do these perceptions come from?

Join us this summer as we unpack the image problem Christianity faces.

first fridays

2008-04-26T18:45:00.006-04:00

Looking for a place to hang out with friends, meet new people, and welcome the Sabbath?

Join us for First Fridays.

Advent Hope will host the first of many First Fridays on May 2nd.

The fellowship hall will be transformed into a quaint cafe. Light snacks and beverages will be served.

cafe night

2008-04-10T20:05:00.003-04:00

Join us this week at our first cafe night and as we host the ACF Collegiate Summit and the 9th Spoken Logos.

Food, friends, music, and inspiration; you don't want to miss out!

Good Friday

2008-03-19T21:54:00.003-04:00

Join us this Friday evening for a time reflection, music, and prayer as we remember the final moments of Jesus' life.

Politics and Religion, Part 2

2008-03-06T23:13:00.003-05:00

Join us this Friday evening as Beth Scott leads us for the second part of an informative and lively discussion on faith and the political process.

Don't worry if you missed Part 1; we'll bring you up to speed.

7:30pm. See you there!

Blind, but wanting to see...

2008-02-29T23:06:00.006-05:00

Thanks to all who braved the cold and participated in the second part of an honest discussion about the needs that surround us, our blindness to it, and the possibilities of making a difference in our world.

I think we've been both challenged and inspired by what has been presented, shared, and discussed.

It's time to make it practical. What are some things we can do as a community to put the things we've been talking about the past couple weeks into practice?

Click here, to view the clip we watched on Friday.

Share your ideas right here. We'll flush them out some more in the upcoming week!

God's Concern for the Poor

2008-02-23T23:55:00.003-05:00

A big thanks to Micheal B. for leading us in a thought provoking and enlightening discussion on what the Bible teaches about poverty.

Here are the two clips of Bono we watched toward the end. Feel free to comment on them here.

See you this Friday for Part II of the discussion.

Politics and Religion, Part I

2008-02-14T11:20:00.005-05:00

Join us this week, as we kick off a series of discussions on faith and social justice. Over the next week's we'll be exploring some of the important issues that our society faces and the role that Christians should/can play in making a positive difference.

This week, Beth Scott, Advent Hope's Religious Liberty Liason and a lawyer in training, will leadsus in a thoughtful discussion of the issues that arise when thinking about faith and politics.

We're back!

2008-01-16T23:58:00.000-05:00

After a brief hiatus from gathering on Friday nights, we resume our meetings this week.

Join us as we kick off a new season of vespers. We'll be welcoming Todd and Sarah Stout to our group and also taking some time to dream and make some plans for the upcoming weeks.

We would love your input and ideas!

See you at 7:30pm! Same place...spread the word.

Happy New Year!

2008-01-04T10:13:00.001-05:00

It's 2008!

Just a reminder that we're still on our "Christmas" break this week, waiting for everyone to get back into town from the holidays.

Keep posted on when our gatherings will resume. (Hopefully this will be in the next week or two!)

In the meanwhile, share some of your ideas for vespers this spring and New Year. What would you like to see, hear, or discuss?

Christmas Caroling

2007-12-19T18:37:00.000-05:00

Have you gotten in the Christmas mood yet?

Come help spread some of the holiday cheer!

We're going caroling this Friday night at the DeWitt nursing home.

We'll meet at the church at 6:30pm and walk over to the nursing home together.

If you're in town, come on out...We'll see you Friday!

Worship Night

2007-12-12T18:02:00.001-05:00

After a week off, we're back on this week and next, before we go on our "Christmas break."

We'll continue right were we left off with a more explorations into the world of music. This time, we'll be making it!

Plan to join us for an special worship and music night. You can submit praise songs/hymns/Christmas carols you'd like to sing/share/teach in advance so we have it ready for everyone (just post it here).

Also feel free to bring additional instruments (guitars, bongos, violins, trombones, tubas, etc.) and friends!

See you soon!

*We'll be going to the DeWitt Nursing Home on the 21st for some Christmas caroling. More information to come...

Reminder

2007-12-07T15:12:00.000-05:00

Remember, there's no vespers meeting this week.

Our gatherings will resume next week...See you then!

The Sound of La Musica

2007-11-28T09:54:00.000-05:00

Attention all music aficionados,

This week, we make our transition to the topic of music and spirituality.

In preparation for our discussion, you are invited to submit a few of your favorite songs to share at our next gathering. (Make a comment to this post.) We'll play your song, and you can share why/how it speaks to you. (Others will get a chance to share if it does the same for them.)

Here are some guidelines:

1. If you wish share a song, please submit the titles/authors of 2-3 songs that spiritually move you/speak to you--genre is flexible.*
2. We'll attempt to track down the lyrics/videos to these songs.
3. If you have a digital copy of the song, please e-mail it to either Michael B. or Zane Y.
4. If you are unable to do this, please bring a copy of the song to vespers early (at 7pm.)
5. If you want to share a song that is really long (let's say a classical sonata), we may have to play an excerpt.
6. The deadline is this Thursday evening. (11.29.07; 11:59pm)

*Depending on the number of you who are interested, we may only be able to accommodate one song per person. If everyone wants to share, we'll have to select the first 6-8 submissions--that's right, first come, first serve!

See you on Friday...

Rob Bell in New York

2007-11-25T23:08:00.000-05:00

Well, what did you think?

Feel free to share some of your thoughts, questions, and disagreements from Bell's presentation here.

Also, here are some pictures from our outing.

A big thanks to Mariela for organizing the dinner to Carmine's and for purchasing tickets for us!

This is us (still smiling) after an hour and forty minutes of Rob Bell waxing eloquently on near eastern deities, castration, human sacrifice, and "the reconciliation of all creation at the culmination of history."

Is someone a bit excited about the tiramisu (or is it the just the prospects of finally seeing her hero in just a few moments)?

Jonathan and Andrea about to do some major damage to "the mini-Titanic."

James, what does your shirt say?

As you can tell, Lisa really enjoyed her dairy free meal! =)

Thanksgiving Vespers

2007-11-23T16:08:00.000-05:00

Many of us are out of town, but as announced last week, we'll still be gathering this week to make cards for recovering war veterans or to write letters to soldiers stationed in the Middle East.

For more information about letter-writing, check out:

http://anysoldier.com/

See you this evening, for some fun and hanging out!

A very special person...

2007-11-16T23:35:00.000-05:00

In lieu of this evening's conversation...

Evidently, before becoming an international movie star, the young Russell Crowe considered the equally glamorous career of an Adventist pastor.

Check it out!

Directors and actors

2007-11-16T12:12:00.000-05:00

Last week, we spent some time sharing our favorite films and engaging in a discussion of about spirituality and film. How do we reconcile the humor, the truth, the beauty, and, dare I say, goodness, we find in many of our favorite movies with the rhetoric we've heard of movies being "evil" and "worldly"? It was good to hear your thoughts.

This week, we continue our exploration into drama, film, and faith. It's one thing to watch movies...quite another to make them, to act in them, and to write them.

We'll be viewing a short clip of a play/skit directed by Nelson, who visited us in NY this summer before returning to Australia, and also spending some time talking with Bashir Solebo, an actor (who happens to be a committed Christian) here in the city. He'll be sharing some of his experiences as an actor, working to make it in the world of acting and theater.

See you tonight!

Spirituality at the Movies?

2007-11-09T18:07:00.000-05:00

Tonight we'll explore the relationship between the dramatic arts and spirituality. Specifically, we'll take a look at movies.

What's your favorite movie?
What makes a movie "good"?
Are movies getting better or worse?
Is there a standard Christians should have in their viewing of movies? What is it?
Can God speak through movies that are purely secular?

All this and more...tonight!

Spoken Logos 8

2007-10-30T15:56:00.000-04:00

FRIDAY, November 2nd @ 7:30 PM

CHURCH OF THE ADVENT HOPE

111 E.87th St b/t Lex & Park Aves

1 block from the (4)(5) train at 86th St.

WWW.ADVENTHOPE.ORG

If you have a TALENT for singing, songwriting , poetry or spoken word (and even if you don't), come on down and be a part of the experience. Enjoy the fellowship, hear the unique forms of expression, and support one another as we share our thoughts about God. All are welcome.

Torrents of words

2007-10-25T11:01:00.000-04:00

Our gathering this will will focus on "word art", i.e. verbal expression, and spirituality.
Michael and Mairim will be leading a discussion poetry and spirituality.

We'll also have a panel of "experts" on hand (Tony Sebro, Beth Scott, and Elroy Pierre), who will give us an insider's perspective into the creative process and some the practical tips on getting the thoughts/words flowing.

We'll then spend some time unleashing our inner poets! =)

(Remember, Spoken Logos is just around the corner.)

For Your Viewing Pleasure

2007-10-22T17:27:00.001-04:00

Now that's what I call art! (Click on the picture, to see a larger image.)

"Christ, the Basis for Salvation" by Peter Sanchez

(This is a flipbook.)

Express Yourself

2007-10-19T10:39:00.000-04:00

“The soul never thinks without a picture." —Aristotle

To recover from our heady discussion last week, we'll spend time doing some art instead of talking about it.

This evening, we'll be exploring/expressing/sharing our spiritual journeys through the mediums of marker, pencil, and Crayola.

Where have you been? Where you now? Where are you going?

We'll "see"! =)

More "Art"

2007-10-19T10:23:00.000-04:00

I'm posting this a bit late, but last week Christian had prepared some pictures for discussion that we never got around to viewing.

What to you think? Good art? Bad art? Religious? Irreligious? What do you think the artist is trying to communicate?

"Mickey's Last Supper" - Ron English

"Brownhead" - Ron English

"Christ of St. John of the Cross" - Salvador Dali

Got an image you want to share? Let me know. We'll post it and discuss it here.