Real relationship no bullshit ever
Summer Sabbatical Jam 2024
God Calls Out to Us. A look at what's stirring in the silent, empty, and barren places, and a challenge to tune in to the questions these stir up— for from them, we might just hear the voice of God, calling out. Carissa Robinson is preaching.
We Miraculous Specimens. Shit is hard, we're all going to die, and every living body is still a relentless miracle. When everything dies and everyone grieves, what hope do we have to hold onto? What, and who, is this all for? Josh Bridges-Hickey is preaching.
Working Out an Embodied Faith. What happens when we fully inhabit our bodies? And what happens when the Christian church returns to the broken body of Christ? Carissa Robinson is preaching.
Declaring the Day of Salvation. What does it mean to announce that today is the Day of Salvation? Carissa Robinson is preaching.
Great is Thy Faithfulness. One of the ways the ancient Israelites mourned the destruction of Jerusalem was by doing so as a community, together. Our cities may not be destroyed, but we have all lived through hard things. What can learn from our ancestors in faith about grieving together? Josh Bridges-Hickey is preaching.
Nostalgia is Bullshit. Amid growing pains after the 10-year mark, Galileo is working on their 4th missional priority: Real relationship, no bullshit ever. How do we keep nostalgia from getting in the way of that work? How do we keep believing that this moral arc of the universe is, somehow, bending towards justice? Remi Shores is preaching.
At church, we practice relationships with one another so that we can learn to love. Then, we take that love out into the world God still loves and Christ goes with us. Remi Shores is preaching.
Wrestling for Identity: Embracing the Limp. Life often presents us with struggles, some of our own making, but often, as in the case of the story of Jacob in Genesis, they present an opportunity to wrestle through a divine encounter and find ourselves different on the other side. We may walk with a limp, but our journey has found new direction. It is not how we look but who we are that matters. David Clarke is preaching.
An Endless Thread. Love calls us through our knowledge, but ultimately that same love shatters our knowing and awakens us to something deeper, wider, more. Rev. Yevette Christy is preaching.
A Creed, A Preposition, and a Love Letter. Growing together as the body of Christ is a lifelong project that we can only do with the help and the faith of one another and of Christ Jesus. Together, we grow toward Christ, we grow toward one another, and we live lives worthy of the life to which we have been called. Rev. Remi Shores is preaching.
What’s your reason? We are required to love, serve, forgive, etc., well, all that good stuff is impossible when our “reason” is temporal, not organic or authentic, not focused on being an offering to God. We get tired when the energy behind our reason is solely our own and not God’s. What is your reason? Rev. Yevette Christy is preaching.
Which Jesus is on the Menu? How do the frequent metaphors in the scripture help us to transcend the literal and go deeper in our relationship with God. David specifically examines Jesus’ invitation to eat the bread and become intimately engaged with Jesus for our own growth and to better represent love and justice in the world around us. David Clarke is preaching.
The Armor of Each Other. The "Armor of God" has often been used as a weapon against us, and as a tool of empire. Is there a way to draw meaning from it still? Is there a useful ethic for approaching these militant texts in the midst of a violent empire? As always, we do it together. Josh Bridges-Hickey is preaching.
Religious Loopholes: The Danger in Claiming Spiritual Exemptions. n this cluster of scripture from Mark, Jesus is letting the community know that those with religious/cultural power have been nullifying scripture, twisting commandments to benefit themselves and those who serve their purposes, and in 2024, this is a relevant message. Loopholes have always existed to protect the interests of certain groups, special groups that often need protecting, but we all know there are corrupt loopholes. Loopholes that have been integrated into most systems to protect and provide for those who created them; sadly, the church is no different. But, in Matthew 15, where this moment is also recorded, Jesus, in reference to these corrupt spiritual leaders, says, “Leave them alone. Let the blind lead the blind.” This passage is not about using our time and energy to talk about other churches or church leaders (unless it is a call to action). Jesus is speaking to us. It is not wise to take “religious loopholes” or “claim spiritual exemptions.” We want to be all in for the sake of our own interior lives. Rev. Yevette Christy is preaching.
Did Jesus Really Call the Syrophoenician Woman a B****? Or was something profound taking place as Jesus ceded power in the conversation to this foreign woman and allowed a historic breaking of glass ceilings and agency for all who are marginalized in the church and beyond. David Clarke is preaching.
Getting Low, Saying Thanks. Real gratitude requires vulnerability. Paul alllllmost didn’t make it in his thank-you note to the Philippians. Rev. Dr. Katie Hays is back!