Praxis UCC

Quick reminder: our first meeting to discuss Irresistible Revolution: Living as an Ordinary Radical is THIS THURSDAY: dinner at 6:30pm (bring a dish to share!) followed by discussion from 7:30-8:30(ish) at Chris and Leah’s place, 1093D N. Jamestown Rd.  Our gathering will focus on CHAPTERS 2-5.  Dinner will be gazpacho + nachos, and whatever else you bring!

Come out and join us for thought- and faith-provoking conversation, good food, and great fellowship!  All are welcome!

Last night we continued with our psalms study for Lent, lead by Mary Miller Brueggemann. We looked at different names for God, found in the psalms. The beginning of Psalm 18 was most interesting.

Typically the second verse is translated like this:

The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

We are looking at multiple translations, so I turned to the Jewish Study Bible, where I found this:

O LORD, my crag , my fortress, my rescuer, my God, my rock in whom I seek refuge, my shield, my mighty champion, my haven.

The first use of rock is cela` and it’s translated as “crag” in the Jewish Study Bible. This is so much more evocative – not just a rock, or a stone, or even a boulder, but a high precipice. A mountain top. The second word for rock is tsuwr which could mean a stone, or a piece of rock, or also can mean a sharp edge, as in a rock that’s been sharpened and turned into a knife.

Seeing God as “my crag” reminds me of mountain climbing, of that exertion that it takes to get to the top, and then the beauty of the view. God is not only a solid mountain top, but firm footing from which to see the hills and valleys of life.

So much meaning in just two words that translators have frequently conflated into one. I’m looking forward to unpacking more of the psalms during Lent.

Come join us on March 20th at 5:30pm for worship at Praxis!

We have just started the season of Lent where we prepare our hearts and minds for Jesus’ resurrection. For many, this time is somber and reflective, a time where people choose to give up sweets, meat, or chocolate. What if we looked at this instead as a time to feed our spirits, to find a deeper, more joyful connection with God? Do we bury God’s Spirit beneath the weight of the world, or do we allow the Spirit to pull us upward, out from under that weight?

Following worship, join us for a community meal with good food and further conversation.

Children’s church programming and childcare is provided for children age 8 and younger during the service.

Praxis welcomes people of all backgrounds, sexual orientations, and ability levels as inherently valuable children of God. Everyone is welcome!

Through the season of Advent we’ll be focusing on different aspects of humanity.  We’ll be following the traditional themes of the Advent candles – hope, love, joy, and peace.  How do these themes emphasize what it means to be truly human?  Tomorrow night we’ll start with the theme of  ”Love”.  What does love mean to us?  As we prepare for the coming of Jesus, what does love mean to God?

Come join us for dinner and small group discussions on Thursday nights.  Meal starts at 6:30, discussion starts at 7:30.

During this past Thursday’s small group gathering much of our conversation revolved around miracles – starting with the miraculously cheese-like tofu/cashew mixture masquerading as ricotta in the vegan lasagna that we shared for dinner. I don’t typically enjoy fooling anyone, but there was an almost sick satisfaction I get from hearing people exclaim, “What? There’s no dairy in this?”

Following dinner, we reflected on Matthew 10:40 to 11:6. John the Baptist, sitting in jail has heard about all of things that Jesus and his disciples are doing so he sends his students to ask Jesus if he’s the messiah. Jesus gives an interesting response, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” Now, you might think that Jesus is talking about all of the miracles that he, himself has done, but this conversation happens at a really interesting moment – right after Jesus has just debriefed the disciples upon returning from being sent out in pairs. What were they sent to do? Jesus sent them out to do exactly what he’s just talked about – to preach, to cure the sick, to raise the dead, and make those with leprosy clean.

The miracle here is not that Jesus can heal those who are sick – the miracle is that those who follow Jesus are the instrument of God’s healing and good news.

We spent some time talking about the needs of Atlanta, the places where healing and wholeness are in short supply, the communities where people need to hear and feel God’s good news. Often the issues of overcoming the divides created by various “-isms”, homelessness, sex-trafficking, violence, or rifts in our political system feel impossible to overcome – but it didn’t feel so overwhelming when we gathered to pray to be a part of God’s miracle. This is the power of community, of sharing our stories, of praying, of reaching for something together, knowing that we’re not walking alone.

We are excited to share that we are having our first small group gathering on Thursday, January 21 at 6:30pm. Everyone is invited to our weekly gatherings to eat, talk, pray, seek God, and conspire in the building of a new faith community. Join us in creating a space to reflect, laugh, connect, and serve.

Our First 8-Week Conversation: Taking on Faith as a Cycle of Reflection and Action

How is living out our faith an act of creating art?

How does prayer change the way we relate to other people?

How does the way we serve others inform our faith?

To what extent are we paralyzed by trying to live up to Christ? How would our faith look different if we focused instead on walking with Jesus?

Our gathering is at 1093D North Jamestown Road in Decatur. If you have any questions hit us up with an email: chris@praxisucc.org or leah@praxisucc.org

Praxis UCC is a new ministry of the United Church of Christ and is open to everyone. We believe that each person is crafted by God’s hand and loved by the Divine. We celebrate the diversity in which God has made us–different sizes and shapes, abilities and families, races and ethnicities, genders and sexual orientations–and we affirm that everyone has something important to contribute to God’s community.