Incense

You know, I've always heard of the use of incense in church. It was never in the church I grew up in, so it was a concept and a tradition that I was pretty unfamiliar with. UNTIL TODAY. I thought I'd finally check it out, and try to understand it. I never really grasped the point of it. My initial thoughts was that it was something to do with the Holy Spirit and the burning and smoke is supposed to symbolize some part of God's presence that we can sense but not necessarily see. I've grown up in a church where the use of burning candles was always an important symbol to represent the eternal flame of Jesus. It was to represent his presence in worship and his presence in our lives always. But incense just didn't makes sense to me. So I looked it up and here's what I learned...

Incense is intended to burn for the smell. And despite the common misconception, incense is the actual substance, not the aroma it produces. Pretty cool. It's used traditionally for religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, and meditation. And I was partially right in my assumptions from before, because incense is intended to create a spiritual atmosphere.

 I also learned what I had always thought, but never been sure about: incense was a tradition as a part of the catholic church. It turns out that incense is also common in Orthodox and Anglican churches. Some new information to me was that it's also extremely common in eastern art, households, and religion. For instance, Japanese, Tibetan, and Indian cultures all use incense as well.

The wikipedia page explores incense in much more depth, so you should check it out!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incense

Media in worship

My research paper was all about the use of media in worship, so I thought it would be appropriate to express my feelings on the matter. A while back I posted about Z-church, an online worship experience. But here, I'm going to delve more into my reaction to things like that.

I grew up going to traditional church services. I would sit in an aisle inside  wide, ornate sanctuary. With 500 other members, I would listen to a minister preach from the pulpit. We would take communion and sing hymns. To me, these kind of experiences were what defined church. There was no media, apart from the microphone up on the pulpit and lectern. This traditional approach is what naturally became the "right" way to worship for me. When I would visit friends' churches and see massive projector screens and a full band, something felt off. I never saw it as wrong. I just simply didn't feel as connected as I normally did back in the style of worship I knew.

To me, the use of media in worship matters. I can't grow in the same strong relationship with God during a church service if there are distractions from technological aids. However, to some, it's what keeps them interested, focused, and engaged. Ultimately, that's what matters. If you can still get everything you're looking for out of a service that provides flashing light and loud music, then I'm happy. Who's to say what is the right way to worship? I think the right response to that question would be the acceptance that there really is no right way. Worshipping is connecting with God. So with media or not, if the goal is reached, that's all that truly matters.

Cairn Christian Church

I thought I'd just post on a visit I made back in October. I visited Cairn Christian Church. My old youth minister referenced me to it. It was a Disciples of Christ Church, the same denomination that I grew up apart of. It was a great experience. Especially just being a matter of weeks into college, it was comforting to go to an experience that was familiar to me, Sunday church service.

it wasn't the 600 people, the full 60+ person choir, the massive organ, the wide, endless rows in the sanctuary, and the enormous building I was used to. Sure it was all different, but it was familiar. We still had communion. There was still a welcoming, friendly community. I think I may have met everybody in there that day (But that's not saying much, as there were probably no more than 30 people present). Nonetheless, it was the tradition, the environment, and the experience that was familiar to me.

It was really great. And if only the church weren't 30 minutes away by bus, I'd go more often. Maybe when I have a car, I'll get that luxury. That Sunday service for me is just a pleasant and comforting constant in my life, and I'm definitely looking forward to summer to be in that position again (as well as the opportunity to hang out with friends and family and not do schoolwork for months). It's a great church, everybody should check it out! Here's their church website: http://www.cairnchristianchurch.com/

Homosexuality in the Bible

Homosexuality in the Bible. It's a big topic. BIG. And it's unpopular to be on the side that opposes gay marriage. Many people tend to think that those people are crazy, psychotic religious groups. And although there is a portion of that side made up by those types of people, there are also some who look at the Bible with an understanding of the historical, metaphorical and contextual context yet still do not condone gay marriage. One of my best friends has that mindset, and he sent me an article that nicely wraps up the other side of this argument with a balanced, respectful, and intelligent perspective on Biblical evidence that points to why the right for gays to marry is receiving such criticism.

Something I just want to mention quickly about the side that condemns gay marriage: That decision is not based on some sort of belief to keep homosexuals from gaining equal rights. It is a decision based on love, and trying to prevent people from doing things against the will of God. I'm no expert, but I do think I have a decent grasp on that side of the argument, and I think that's a really important point to understand, even if you don't choose to read the article. But definitely read it, so you can understand much better too!

So anyway, I urge y'all to check it out, it's a fantastic article and a really good look at that side of the argument.

http://www.presbyterymiddletennessee.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/hays-article.pdf

Rob Bell

We've touched on Rob Bell a little bit in class, so I thought I'd try to learn a little bit more about him, his life, and his faith.

Rob Bell is the founder of Mars Hill, a non denominational Christian megachurch. He also has written two books and done a video series. I was fascinated to learn that his Mars Hill Bible Church was getting to be too much of a burden for him. He had to take a day off on Fridays. He eventually left the church, in pursuit of his calling to save to a broader, wider audience. So he began other projects. First he wrote a book, and then he worked on a video series. His popularity grew and grew until he finally wrote a second book. There was talk of getting his own television talk show. He was able to communicate his message in such innovative and creative ways, and it captured the attention of Christians and non-Christians alike.

As for his beliefs, he did found a Bible Church, so he believes that Scripture is indeed the authoritative source of truth. Personally, I don't completely agree with that, but only because I'm very careful when looking at Scripture, incorporating both historical and textual context into my analysis. That begin said, Rob Bell is very supportive of many ideas that are popular, and ones that I can definitely agree with. He's all about love, and social equality. He advocates a popular message, and I think that's contributed to much of his success. Click the link if you want to learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rob_Bell

God in suffering

I love talking about God with people. Everybody always has a different idea, perception, and view on the existence and/or purpose of God. The thing that I find most often that people have issues with, is trying to understand how God can let such horrible things happen. This issue has crossed my mind, and many of those that I talk to. How can God let bombs go off in Boston? How can God cause a fertilizer explosion in West, Texas? If God is a compassionate, loving God, why is there suffering at all? It's a hard one to answer and I've come to terms with it by accepting that God is beyond human knowledge. The pain that we deal with and experience is not understood to us the way it is understood by God. I believe in a God working toward an ultimate goodness for all people, and if suffering for me and millions of people in the world is part of his plan, then so be it. I trust that through God, on the other side of it all, is His love. We just may not be able to see it just yet.

Liturgical year

Something I've always been interested in is the calendar of the church. The liturgical calendar is full of seasons and holidays that really only play a role in Christian life. So if you're not a Christian, or not exposed to Christianity much, that whole year doesn't matter much.

And even for me, an active Christian, I still don't know that much about the Christian calendar, so I thought I'd do a little research...

At first, I thought I was pretty knowledgable. I knew when Christmas was. I knew when Easter was, and I knew Lent was forty days before Easter, but other than that, I was learning all new stuff. Turns out that most of the year is taken up by a period known as ordinary time, which basically means the time where there is no special church holiday or season going on. And after about six months of ordinary time, advent follows. Advent is the first season of the year, and it begins four sundays before Christmas. Then of course, come Christmas. After a few weeks, Lent begins for forty days leading up to the Easter Triduum, which consists of Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday. Then the Easter season follows, celebrating the resurrection of Jesus, before finally we return to ordinary time.