...and Ketchup

This post title will make more sense when I upload my next post, but just go with it for now...Here are my catch-up blogs from last week!! Enjoy :)

Tuesday, May 22

What did I do today (see) (hear) (touch)? [Objective--my 5 senses]

•       I saw an old church building, smelled its old wood, took in the ringing of gospel music around its rafters. The entrance and beginning to our journey through the Stax Museum, Soulsville USA. As we heard the stories and music from Stax ooze from the walls of the reconstructed museum, we got to experience one place, that for a moment in time and a small spot in history embodied the beloved community which we talked about in class discussion earlier this morning. Like one of the Stax musicians said, “At Stax, color didn’t come through the door.” Not that they didn’t notice the mixture of different races, not that the white folks degrading said to the black folks, “I don’t see you as black but just as a normal person.” No, color was there, it was celebrated, it just didn’t make a difference or draw boundaries between people at Stax.

What challenged me today? What inspired? [Reflective--my intuition, my emotion]

•       I was inspired by the story of Stax, resurrected from its destruction to a place of learning and music. It really taught how a place can keep its soul even when we think it is gone.
•       I was challenged by the facts presented in “At the River I Stand.” Growing up in Memphis, the Civil Rights Movement gets romanticized. While we are taught to mourn as children that we live in a city where Dr. MLK was shot, we are also taught to think that the marches for the sanitation workers were completely unified that all those working for civil rights were of one mind. While the truth of the distinction and factions even among the leaders of the Civil Rights movement doesn’t take away from the power of the Civil Rights movement or the work accomplished in Memphis, it does take away that easy narrative of events from my childhood narrative. Life is much more complicated, and while I still look with pride on those men and women who stood up for the sanitation workers in Memphis, I realize the gravity of the work Memphis still has left to do to heal the hate between the different races and ethnicities today.

What did I learn today that I didn't before?

•       I learned about some great education going on in Memphis that I really didn’t know about before. I hadn’t heard of what Soulsville Academy was doing for students in both academic and musical education. What a great blessing to hear today that the first class from Soulsville will be graduating in 2012!

How does the scripture reading for the day speak to me in light of this day's experience? [Interpretative--What does this all mean?]

•       Micah 6:6-8
o       God requires mercy, justice, and humility in our own lives and in the world as well. The mercy of people who think differently to work together for the common good. The justice of advocates demanding what is right when society or individuals deny that right. Humility to recognize how much further we have to go as individuals and as humanity towards what God wants for creation as well as the humility to recognize that we can do none of this work on our own but only with God’s help.
•       Acts 1:1-14
o       God is always with us in the struggle. In figuring out our mission, God sends angels along the way to help. When the disciples are standing around searching the heavens after Jesus ascends, two angels tell them to not look up, but look out. Out in the world, that is where our mission is. Like at Stax, the mission wasn’t to look out on a lot and mourn the loss of a great place. The mission, at least for Kirk Whalum and others, was to restore the lot, bring back (or maybe tap into) the soul that used to be at that place. To use the history of Stax for good today, education and creativity.

What will I do with this? [Decisional--self-conscious response; the next steps]

•       Like the owner of Stax who wanted to start a country recording studio but was able to stand back and let the artists that came there come together and create a whole new sound called soul, I decide to use the gift God has given me to be able to get something running, to get it off the ground, and then step back and let the whole group take it further, and created something much more beautiful than I could ever do on my own.

Wednesday, May 23

What did I do today (see) (hear) (touch)? [Objective--my 5 senses]

•       I smelled and tasted some of the best soul food in the city of Memphis! The Four Way Restaurant is as much a part of South Memphis history as the Stax Museum. As the owner proudly told our table of all the people who had been to The Four Way or as he told us about the heritage of the lamps on the wall, you heard the pride and history of the South Memphis neighborhood ringing out in the air.
•       I could hear and see the Booker T. Washington high school band marching down the street, waking up the neighborhood, calling people to come join the block party, calling strangers to become friends and help create peace, shalom, on their block with the simple first step of knowing who you live with.
•       I saw kids running around the neighborhood, playing a pick-up game of basketball.

What challenged me today? What inspired? [Reflective--my intuition, my emotion]

•       I was inspired by Marlon’s story of moving back into his neighborhood, and his journey from getting involved with Knowledgequest to starting Christquest church. How awesome that a church would be birthed out of a ministry to kids in the neighborhood, and not the other way around!
•       I am challenged by the process of Restorative Justice that Marlon was talking about for his neighborhood instead of getting the police involved, for example if a neighborhood kid breaks a window and working out a system with the person for repayment.  I wonder how often we in the church seek restorative justice in such situations, exactly the sort of justice and reconciliation the church is called to practice and seek in the world.

What did I learn today that I didn’t before?

•       I learned so much about the Shalom Zone in South Memphis.  I had no idea this sort of grass roots and holistic ministry was going on in South Memphis.  I had volunteered with some ministries (i.e. Streets) in South Memphis, but I am so thankful that there are churches like Christquest and Greater White Stone Baptist leading this work.

How does the scripture reading for the day speak to me in light of this day's experience? [Interpretative--What does this all mean?]

•       Mark 6:30-44
o       God instructs us to feed the crowds, not to let them fend them for themselves.  But God doesn’t leave us alone in the midst of such crisis, but miraculously transforms meager amounts into more than enough for the need.  It reminds me of the community gardens in Binghampton and in South Memphis, using vacant overgrown lots and transforming them into gardens that can provide healthy and fresh food to the neighborhoods.

What will I do with this? [Decisional--self-conscious response; the next steps]

•       I want to educate others as to what is going on in South Memphis.  A lot of my friends and acquaintances know about the work being done in Binghampton, but I imagine that they are clueless like I was about things like the Shalom Zone and Knowledgequest and Christquest.

Friday, May 25

What did I do today (see) (hear) (touch)? [Objective--my 5 senses]

•       I heard a story of a church answering God’s call to move into a particular neighborhood, taking faith that through them God would use a building that seemed too big for them by filling it with different ministries that meet neighborhood needs and allow others to pursue and share their passions.

What challenged me today? What inspired? [Reflective--my intuition, my emotion]

•       I was inspired by the time I was able to spend in reflective contemplation in the labyrinth today.  By repeating prayers or scriptures, I was able to enter into a conversation with God that is hard to have in the everyday humdrum of my life routine. 
•       I was challenged by our activity seeking to answer questions we as students had posed.  It helped me work through and apply our experiences and readings from the week to my own context and situation.

What did I learn today that I didn't before?

•       I re-learned the importance of holy friendship.  By working in small groups today, I was able to see how just talking through some issues and questions with other clergy can help my own creativity and resourcefulness blossom.

How does the scripture reading for the day speak to me in light of this day's experience? [Interpretative--What does this all mean?]

•       Revelation 21:1-8; 22:1-5
o       An excerpt from The Message: “Look, Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women.  They’re his people, and he’s their God.  He’ll wipe every tear from their eyes.”
o       This week, I have seen neighborhoods where God has moved in, where God’s home is right alongside the men and women working for shalom and reconciliation in Memphis.  What a blessing to have been able to see this scripture lived out.

What will I do with this? [Decisional--self-conscious response; the next steps]

•       Today, I committed to listen behind the words people speak, behind hate and fear, and to hear the spiritual and community needs of people in whatever location God places me to serve and minister.

Grace and Peace,
Amanda