A Star Appears

The scenes in the niches reflect the coming birth of Christ. A star has appeared to lead the shepherds - lead us - to him.

The Scene is Set

Shepherds wait with their flocks at night.















Joseph leads Mary, riding a donkey, to Bethlehem to be registered for the census.

The Journey Continues

This week depicts the Annunciation and the Magnificat.

"You shall bear a son and call him Jesus"

                          "Here am I, the Lord's servant"

The Journey That Is Advent

 For the first week of Advent, beginning December 2, these scenes and meditation appeared in the niches.

If, as Herod, we fill our lives with things, and again with things;

if we consider ourselves so unimportant that we must fill every moment of our lives with action,

when will we have the time to make the long, slow journey across the desert as did the Magi?

Or sit and watch the stars as did the shepherds?

Or brood over the coming of the child as did Mary?

For each of us, there is a desert to travel.

A star to discover.

And a being within ourselves to bring to life.

A Wondrous Catch

He said to them,

"Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some."

So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish.

 

This installation illustrates the “marvelous draught of fish” – a story that happens twice in the ministry of Jesus.

      On the earlier occasion, we read in Luke 5:1 – 11 that Jesus gets into the boat of some fishermen and teaches the crowd from the boat. He then instructs the fishermen to let down their nets for a catch. Simon Peter answers that they have been fishing all night without catching any fish. “Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” They then catch so many fish that their nets begin to break. Jesus tells James, John, and Simon Peter that they will now be catching people, not fish. When they bring their boats to shore, they leave everything to follow Jesus.

      The second telling of this miracle, in John 21:1 – 8, seems to recall the first catch. In this telling, Jesus has been resurrected. He stands on the beach before his disciples, but they do not recognize him. Again, they have been fishing unsuccessfully and Jesus instructs them to cast from the other side of the boat. They obey and catch so many fish that they can not haul the net back in. And now they recognize their Lord. 

Perhaps this is Jesus’ way of reaffirming their original call. After his death, the disciples have been lost and aimless without the guidance of their Lord. Could  this second occurrence of a miraculous catch be intended to remind and redirect them back to the business of catching people?

Stones of Salvation

"Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone"

 

  This installation suggests the setting of the scene from John 8:1 – 11.

This scripture passage says that Jesus is teaching the people when the scribes and Pharisees bring forth a woman they say was caught in the act of adultery. They cite the law of Moses commanding that she be stoned. They test Jesus by asking “what do you say?” Jesus bends down and writes with his finger on the ground. He stands up and pronounces “Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." He then bends back down and continues to write on the ground. When the message finally resonates with the crowd, they go away, one by one. Jesus straightens back up and addresses the woman. “Has no one condemned you? … Neither do I condemn you. Go your way and from now on do not sin again.”

Many lessons can be taken from this narrative. Note how Jesus separates himself from the mob by bending down, joining with the woman in her vulnerability. He brings a calming influence by pausing before responding to their question. However, by refusing to command that she be stoned, Jesus is not implying that no one has the moral authority to condemn. There is no false optimism that we can do as we please because God will always forgive us. Jesus condemns the sin when he tells the woman “do not sin again”. The message of the gospel is deeper than just avoiding a life of sin, however. Through the grace of Christ, we have a new quality of life that overcomes the power of sin. Jesus calls us to new life.

Peter is Redeemed

Once again, APC members share their artistic talents and faithful visions. Please take a moment to pause at the niches in the narthex to view Sam Elkind's photography and Mary Busman's water color painting.

The Rooster  

            by Mary Busman

            The Silver Dorking rooster represented in the painting is an ancient breed believed to have existed during the time of Julius Caesar. Sources reveal that the Romans introduced them as they colonized territories conquered by their legions. The proud, haughty appearance of the rooster may have reminded the subject people of the Roman soldiers.

            Early Christians upon viewing the birds might have shared this viewpoint, but also would have been reminded of Simon Peter’s denial of his Lord.  Before the cock crows, you will have denied me three times (NRSV John 13:38).

            Present day Christians are not so different from the early believers. We too, associate a rooster and its crowing, with denial. Aware of our human frailty, we share much with Peter. It is with gratitude that we continue reading in John and hear Jesus say to the Disciples, Do not let your heart be troubled, Believe in God, believe also in me (NRSV John 14:1).            

            Each morning, about an hour before sunrise, the Silver Dorking rooster heralds the arrival of dawn. Boldly it announces a new day, serving as a call to confession for Christians and the promise of redemption.

Sheep in Light and Shadow

by Sam Elkind

This image recalls the passage from The Gospel of John, Chapter 21, when the resurrected Jesus reveals himself at breakfast to the disciples on the beach of the Sea of Tiberius.

When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.

As sheep of the Lord, we seek to live in the light, not the shadows.

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Readers of the Gospel of John have wondered why Jesus repeated his question to Peter "do you love me" three times. Commentators have observed that Peter's betrayal happened three times. Perhaps Jesus is offering forgiveness in equal measure, as he reclaims Peter's discipleship.

With the gift of the Spirit, all things are possible.

According to the Day of Pentecost story in Acts 2:1-13, God gave the gift of the Holy Spirit to empower witnesses to the resurrection. On the Day of Pentecost we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit descending in a mighty rush of wind and flame to inspire the church’s proclamation of Christ’s rising and to empower its mission and ministry to the world.
The Holy Spirit has often been depicted as a dove, based on the account of the Spirit descending like a dove on Jesus at his baptism. L'Art has added a dove and ribbons to the installations in the niches. The colors evoke the flame, and the manner in which the dove and butterfly figures are suspended allows them to move freely, bringing to mind the manner in which we are all moved by the Spirit.

He is Risen Indeed!

Origami butterflies fill the niches on Easter morning.

It is for this reason that I have come to this hour

Mark 14
22 While they were eating, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to them, and said, "Take; this is my body." 23 Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, and all of them drank from it. 24 He said to them, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. 25 Truly I tell you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God."

John 13
1 Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2 The devil had already put it into the heart of Judas son of Simon Iscariot to betray him. And during supper 3 Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going to God, 4 got up from the table, took off his outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. 5 Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around him. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, are you going to wash my feet?" 7 Jesus answered, "You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand." 8 Peter said to him, "You will never wash my feet." Jesus answered, "Unless I wash you, you have no share with me." 9 Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" 10 Jesus said to him, "One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you." 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, "Not all of you are clean." 12 After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them.

Creating in the Image of God

L'Art has adopted the two spaces in the narthex flanking the sanctuary doors. These spaces are called the "niches" and provide an ideal location for three-dimensional installations. The intention is to rotate the exhibits every three or four months. These initial installations explore the theme of Creation.

For the installation on the left (west) side, Molly Elkind created a two-part sculpture entitled Where the Earth Meets the Sky. Molly made this piece out of handmade paper, stitching, and hand-dyed silk. A dyed fabric backdrop evokes the starry spaces in which our earth and its atmosphere find their home.


Close-up view of the sculptured pieces

The Artist's Statement for this exhibit:

“And God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth.” Genesis 1:9-10

When I made this piece almost ten years ago, the Creation story of Genesis was on my mind, and I was working a lot with handmade paper. Often I would press damp sheets of paper to the trunks of trees to dry, thereby embossing them with the tree’s bark texture. For this piece, I then formed, painted, and stitched the sculptures from this textured paper. Stitching on the green “earth” form resembles the lines on maps, while on the “sky” form it resembles the planets and their orbits. Each piece is lined with contrasting silk whose color links it to its counterpart. While there is space between the “earth” and the “sky” I like to think the two pieces are in dialogue with each other.

In the niche on the right, Nancy Langham created a mixed-media sculpture entitled And It Was So, utilizing tree branches, an altered book, and stitched "leaves".



Artist's Statement:

This work is meant to be a visual expression of appreciation for the symmetry between the first chapter of Genesis and the first chapter of John. In Genesis, God literally speaks creation into existence (And God said “Let there be light”). In the prologue to John, the evangelist affirms that the same creative force that formed the universe has become flesh and lived among us, and this force is referred to as the Word (or logos, in the original Greek.)
Scholars say that the Greek word logos has a wide range of meaning, but is usually translated as the “word of God”. The Greek letters for logos are used in the altered book that is the focal point of this artwork. By including Scripture passages and a book and a tree, it is hoped that viewers will be inspired to contemplate the relationships between words, books, trees, the Creation Story, and the Word.


Close-up view of the altered book

Close-up view of the stitched leaves

Art is a Spiritual Practice

Molly instructing at the Presbyterian Women's Retreat

Making art is an ancient spiritual practice (see Exodus 35), and Molly Elkind practices a lot! Molly is the team leader of L'Art (the Liturgical Art Team) and a professional artist and art instructor. The spotlight is on Molly in this post because she has been honored by being interviewed for Art is Worship Radio. The host, Vanessa Lowry, interviews artists of different faiths on the common theme of how they use inspiration and creativity as an expression of their spirituality. Molly was interviewed in January and the podcast can heard on Empower Radio

Opening Night at Molly's Solo Show at Mercer University

Molly holds an MA in Studio Art, with a concentration in Fibers, and her work has been exhibited in juried shows locally and nationally, as well as being included in private collections.
Molly loves this work that allows her "to say yes instead of no. Yes to the possibilities. Yes to creativity. Yes to making mistakes and picking up and going on. Yes to that uncertain process of creating. Making art allowed me to do that. What I realized in the process of making art was that this was bigger than me. There was something else going on here besides my own brain and my own abilities. There is a creative force that is moving through me and that allowed me to come back to a life of faith."

Molly works large!

L'Art is blessed to have such a talented leader.