Week 5: "Worshipping in Community"

I am actually sad this class is drawing to a close......
.................I know you all are, too (Yeah, right! But I can hope).
Look forward to seeing you tomorrow, as a special surprise is in store.

This week, as you may have noticed, the theme is "Worshipping in Community," and the symbol is here:
What words to fill in for each circle? We;ll do that in class?

------------------------

For posterity...Here are some of the clips and links that we will be utlilizing in class this week:
---------------------------
PSALMS:

You may still be having trouble forgiving Walter Brueggemann for writing that book you had to read for last class (:..
But the same guy suggests a helpful way to categorize the Psalms. Click here.

When we talk about the psalms of lament, psalms of imprecation, and psalms of disorientation being just as integral a part of biblical "worship" as the more "obvious," upbeat and "worshipful" psalms,
these comments from Bono of U2 comes to mind. He makes a good point:


Why are we often so afraid of/threatened by the "honest and full truth," when the Scripture,
and the biblical "historical world," is not?

Bonus video below, also U2 related. This is audio recording of Bono introducing Pastor Jack Heaslip (U2's chaplain/pastor) to offer a prayer/blessing on the opening night of a U2 tour, is insightful on several levels.

I love how in the introduction Bono offers all the band's staff, roadies, etc. opportunity to participate in the blessing, without apology, but without coercion or exclusion. He's
bounded and centered set.
I also enjoy Bono's casual, almost apologetic, self-effacing (!) remark at the end about feeding the hungry "apparently" on the band that night.

(By the way, Tim Neufeld teaches a whole FPU class on the Christian implications of U2;
you should also be aware of The Rev. Beth Maynard's blog)

--
On that topic of BOTH bounded and centered set, I came across a post by Len Hjalmarson
(FPU seminary grad) which introduces us to such a grid. This concept might be a really helpful model for your Philemon paper: How do you see one set or the other, or both, or both at the same time in Philemon?

Read Len's post here, featuring Stuart Murray's diagram at right.










------------------------

Here's a sermon I once did on Psalm 22, which is another amazing psalm to use in a worship setting...How often have you heard "My God, My God, Why have You forsaken me?" in a church song?:

"The Lord Be With You...Even When He’s Not!"

----


------------------------------
Shane Claiborne (whose material on the crucifixion narrative we looked at last week, here..
my audio interview with him also at that link)
wrote a "Letter to Non-Believers" in Esquire (here) which came to mind, as I promised to post my "Confessions from a Christian Pastor" column in The Fresno Bee ( found here).
-------------------------------------------------------

Rob Bell (remember his sermon from last week?) on "Everything is Spiritual":
part 1:


part 2:


part 3:


part 4:


part 5:

-----------
What does this "Council of Elrond" scene from "Lord of the Rings" have to do with the "worshipping in community" theme?
Well, for one, "you need people of intelligence on this sort of mission....quest....thing.":


---

The Ray Vander Lann clips we'll show for this session are episodes 4 and 5 from Volume 8 of the "Faith Lessons" series, new and not excerpted online yet, but available herem


Finally (Phinally?) , on Philemon.
Kurt Willems (FPU Seminary student ) has posted a helpful series on Philemon that challenges us to apply the Three Worlds theory. I'll bet he took this class, and this is based on his Philemon paper!:

• Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part one

• Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 2 (Business / Partnership Metaphors)

• Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 3 (A Slave, a Master, and Forgiveness)

• Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 4 (Radical Reconciliation)

• Philemon: Forgiveness that Leads to Reconciliation, part 5 (New Possibilites!)

If you prefer audio, part 1 audio is here.
----------
Blessings! What's for dinner tomorrow, anyway? You'll need a big one to celebrate acing the quiz. -dave