Sunday, November 15, 2009

US Military Tombstones

There was an interesting brief discussion on one of the Disciples email listservs this week, related to a photo of President Barack Obama at Arlington National Cemetery on Veteran's Day. A copy of the photo is here.

Someone recognized that the headstone visible on the right has a Disciples chalice on it. When I last visited Arlington, I too noticed some unusual markings on headstones. I had believed -- wrongly, as it turns out -- that there were three main markings on the headstones, a Christian cross, a Jewish Star of David, and a Muslim star and crescent moon. It turns out that there are 39 emblems that the government will inscribe on military tombstones, including several denominational symbols like the Disciples chalice and even a Atheist symbol (I did not know that there was any such recognizable symbol for strident non-believers).

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Faith and Film, "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance"

On Friday, our monthly "Faith and Film" series continues with the classic 1962 John Ford movie, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. The film, sometimes called "the last western" is about the transformation of the American west from the "wild west" to the modern west. Here is a (grainy) copy of the trailer:



The film, which stars John Wayne, Jimmy Stewart, and Lee Marvin, was added to the National Film Registry in 2007. It has important themes about the relationship between myth and fact in the creation of identity, about the relationship between liberty and law and order, and about the often-unseen dirty work that upholds our so-called civilized society. It's also just a fantastic movie.

You may recall that Gene Pitney recorded a hit song called "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" when the film was released. Oddly enough, the song was not actually a part of the movie, so if you want to hear it, you'll either have to dig out an old 45 or click here.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Coming Up Sunday, November 8

On Sunday, we will continue our look at the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church. In particular, we will consider God's promise of the Holy Spirit to guide and nurture Christians, given in Acts 1:1-5.

Sunday is also the first of two Sundays for the fifth special offering for the Disciples Mission Fund, the Thanksgiving Special Offering. This offering supports Disciples-affiliated colleges and universities, seminaries, and seminary related institutions. You can read more about it, and hear some interviews with students, here.

Of course, we will also enjoy a luncheon with a soup challenge between our membership teams. Plan to stay after worship and cheer on your team cooks and enjoy soup and dessert.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Seeds of Faith on Wednesday

The next "Seeds of Faith" will be on Wednesday evening, November 4, from 6:00-8:00. There will be dinner (pizza), a brief prayer service, and this month's lesson time will be spent helping to prepare for this weekend's Yard Sale.

"Seeds of Faith" meets monthly on the 1st Wednesday of the month.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Introduction to the New Testament class, Tuesday night

The next session of the Introduction to the New Testament class will be on Tuesday, November 3 at 7:00. In this class, we'll finish our discussion of Paul by looking at Romans, Philippians, and Philemon. Romans is Paul's magnum opus, his most detailed explanation of what Christianity means, Philippians is his famous letter from prison, and Philemon is a person letter to a friend seeking forgiveness for a runaway slave that has converted to Christianity.