Who We Are

Who or What is Morning Blend? 

It is sometimes hard to put a finger on what defines a group. We chose the name "Morning Blend" because...well, we meet in the morning...and we are a diverse "blend" of women. We are a blend of single and married women, mothers and grandmothers, younger and older, from a variety family backgrounds, church affiliations, and life experiences. 

We meet together for a beautiful blend of fellowship, prayer, study...and some good treats! We are a group that enjoys digging into tough topics and meaty Bible studies, while building relationships with each other and building a community of care and support for our members. We work together to make the study productive, each of us bringing discussion, thoughts, and ideas to the table. What makes Morning Blend so unique and strong is the participation of everyone in the group. As a group we have always shared responsibility for everything from choosing studies and carrying the discussion, to making sure we have child care and a coffee pot.  

We welcome new members and look forward to what each person adds to the Blend!

September 2014

October 2015

 

 

Child care is provided, too! Yay!

September 2014

October 2015

This blog is another forum for us to continue the discussion, and to share links, resources, alternate perspectives, and opinions. It is a place to share information and is not THE endorsed perspective of any particular person or the church where we meet.

Meet the Hosts of the Covenant Bible Study

The 24 weeks of the Covenant Bible Study are hosted by Christine Chakoian and Shane Stanford. 

Christine Chakoian is a graduate of Yale Divinity School and McCormick Theological Seminary. She is currently the pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Lake Forest, Illinois - the largest congregation of the Presbyterian Church. Here's what her church website has to say about her:

Christine (Chris) has headed First Presbyterian since 2005. She enjoys serving as our primary spiritual leader and is committed to “equipping the saints” for daily life. In addition to preaching, teaching and pastoral care, she is a prolific author. Her book, Worship, Fellowship, and the Work of the Kingdom, explores the history of our over 150–year-old congregation; her more recent book, Cryptomnesia: How a Forgotten Memory Could Save the Church, shows how challenges facing Christianity are similar to the early church’s. She is the video co-host of Abingdon Press’s “Covenant Bible Study” and a frequent speaker on “30 Good Minutes.” Chris is married to John Shustitzky and they have a daughter, Anna. (https://firstchurchlf.org/staff/)

The article Inside the Thriving Ministry of Lake Forest's Christine McCormick, gives a bit more on Chakoian's personality and values: 

Staying in the same Presbyterian circles with people who all think along similar lines can lead to narrow-mindedness, Chakoian said. She found discussing ideas and struggles with a more diverse group of peers in her cohort group extremely helpful as she moved from one congregation to another.

And...

"A believer in Barth’s idea that faith should be expressed with the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other, Chakoian challenges those in her congregation to engage the world that God loves."

*****

Shane Stanford is a graduate of Ashbury Seminary and Duke Divinity School. He is currently the pastor of Christ United Methodist Church in Memphis, Tennessee (since 2011). From his teaching and resource ministry, Making Life Matter, website I have gathered "Five Fast Fact" (in the spirit of the Animate studies!):

1) Stanford serves as the Co-Host (with Dr. Maxie Dunnam) of We Believe in Memphis, a issues, interview based television program in the Memphis metro area. 

2) He is the author of numerous books. Most recently:  What the Prayers of Jesus Tell Us About the Heart of God. Abingdon, and scheduled to publish in 2017:  If You Heart Is Like My Heart.  Leaf wood Publishers.

3) Stanford is an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church and a member in full connection of the Memphis Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church.  

4) Dr. Stanford travels extensively sharing his personal testimony as an HIV and Hep C positive hemophiliac.  He has spoken across the nation including at the 2006 Saddleback Global AIDS Summit in California and at the Global Gathering for AIDS Awareness in Texas. 

5) Dr. Stanford is married to his highschool sweetheart, Dr. Pokey Stanford, and they are the parents of three children—Sarai Grace (19), Juli Anna (16) and Emma Leigh (11). 

A much more complete biography can be found at the "Making Life Matter" link above.

Covenant Bible Study

What's brewing at Morning Blend? 

Starting September 14th, 2016 we will begin the first segment of the Covenant Bible Study, a 24-session series divided into three 8-session segments. This first segment is called "Creating." From the Cokesbury website: 

Creating the Covenant, examines how the covenant community is created and established—highlighting several examples throughout scripture. 

It discusses the story of our origins in Genesis, the Exodus narrative, the teachings of Moses, the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, as well as other books from each Testament that focus on the foundation of Christian faith. 

In doing so, it lays out the framework for a life lived in concert with God and others.

As a whole, the Covenant Bible Study takes participants through the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation. It is our plan to cover the second and third segments of the study over the course of the study year.

Photo shoot at Amy's

You never know what  morning with the ladies from Morning Blend Bible Study might bring.

On Wednesday, Aug. 24, we meet in Amy's backyard and modeled some of the beautiful prayer shawls that Julie crocheted. If you're interested in a piece, let her know!

Julie

Photos by Tesha M. Christensen

Living a Radical Ordinary Life

I cannot recommend the following article enough! What's It Like to Be Shane Claiborne-Again was written by D. L. Mayfield, a woman who decided along with her husband to pursue a life of simplicity and service after hearing of Shane Claiborne's work. This article addresses some of the struggles that come up as we discuss money, service, poverty, and social justice in the church...and when we hear the stories of others doing "big" and radical things.

...many who read Claiborne and his contemporaries do feel guilty. And in response, they either feel paralyzed and do nothing, or try to atone for their sins by doing everything.

Perhaps this is what the church at large struggles with, the pervading sense of both legalism and shame that can haunt “radical” conversion stories. Just as 1 Corinthians warns us about those who sell all that they have but do not love, Claiborne describes what too often happens to social justice types: they simply trade one form of moralism (“I would never drink alcohol”) for another (“I would never wear Nikes”).

I will only give you this snippet of the article because I want you to go read the whole thing for yourselves! Enjoy!

Tip: It works best if you scroll to the bottom of the first part of the article, past the ad, and then click "single page (reader mode)." Then you can read the whole article at once, rather than clicking through 4 pages. 

Who is Doug Pagitt?

Doug Pagitt presents the seventh and final session of Animate: Practices - Community: An Unexpected Family. 

From the Animate: Practices website:

Doug Pagitt is the national director of the CANA Initiative, a collective of faith-engaged organizations, individuals, institutions, and networks that seek to embody a generous Christian ethos leading to constructive collective action in the United States. He's also the founding pastor of Solomon's Porch, a holistic missional Christian community in Minneapolis, Minnesota and a speaker and consultant for churches, denominations, and businesses throughout the United States and around the world on issues of inventive age culture, social systems Christianity, and leadership.

Five fast facts

1. Is married to Shelley and the father of four young adult children
2. Runs ultramarathons
3. Hosts a weekly radio show and has been featured in The New York Times, CNN, and the prestigious Edina community magazine
4. Wears a size-16 shoe
5. Pastors a holistic missional Christian community in Minneapolis

You can find more information about Doug Pagitt, including his blog, books, and podcasts here:
http://www.dougpagitt.com/ 

Who is Enuma Okoro?

Enuma Okoro presents the 6th session in the Animate:Practices series - Service: The Needs Right Around You. 

From the Spark House website: 

Born in New York City, Enuma Okoro is a Nigerian-American author and speaker raised in four countries on three continents. Her academic background and training is in Psychology, Communications, Theology, and Counseling. She is a former Editor-in-Chief for SpotLight™ Quarterly Magazine, a certified Spiritual Director in the Ignatian tradition, and she holds a Master of Divinity degree from Duke University Divinity School, of which she is the former Director for the Center for Theological Writing. Enuma has written two books and co-authored two others. Her first book,The Reluctant Pilgrim: A Moody Somewhat Self-Indulgent Introvert's Search for Spiritual Community, was recognized by USA Book News as a 2010 Best Books Award-Winning Finalist in "Religion-Christianity."

Five fast facts

1. Lives between America, Nigeria, and France
2. Once dressed up as a poem for Halloween
3. Has been featured on ABC's Good Morning America, NPR, The Atlantic Monthly,The Guardian, The Washington Post, and CNN's In America
4. Was the first Black woman to preach at the historic American Church in Paris–Martin Luther King Jr. was the first black man to preach there in 1965
5. Loves dogs, sometimes more than humans

Children's Books about Money and Sharing

Several lovely children's books came up in our discussions of how to teach kids about giving and sharing, how money isn't what makes us rich, and how wealth has to do with love and friendship. Here are a few:

The Table Where Rich People Sit by Byrd Baylor, Illustrated by Peter Parnall

As her family attempts to calculate the value of the desert hills, the colors of blooming cactus, and the calls of eagles and great horned owls, a young girl--who has been led astray by the family's lack of material wealth--realizes what really matters.

Papa Panov's Special Day Original story by Leo Tolstoy, Adapted and Retold by Mig Holder and Reuben Saillens, Illustrated by Tony Morris

As a shoemaker waits all day for Jesus to visit him on Christmas, he performs many acts of kindness for the passersby.

Lu and the Swamp Ghost by James Carville, David Catrow, and Patrick C. McKissack

Mama always said, "You're never poor if you have a loving family and one good friend." 

Lotsa De Casha by Madonna and Rui Paes

Lotsa de Casha is the richest — and most miserable — man in the world. No matter how colossal his castles, how fast his horses, nor how big his sandwiches, he remains a gloomy old sourpuss — until he embarks on a fantastic adventure that leads him to the discovery of life's greatest treasure...

Who is Shane Claiborne?

The fifth session of Animate:Practices, Money: The Joy of Sharing, is presented by Shane Claiborne.

From: http://wearesparkhouse.org/adults/animate/practices/voices/shane/

Shane Claiborne is a best-selling author, renowned activist, sought-after speaker, and self-proclaimed "recovering sinner." Shane writes and speaks around the world about peacemaking, social justice, and Jesus, and is the author of numerous books, including The Irresistible Revolution and Jesus for President. He is the visionary leader of The Simple Way in Philadelphia, and his work has been featured in Fox News, Esquire, SPIN, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and CNN. 

Five fast facts

1. Has appeared on both Al Jazeera and Fox News and in Esquire, SPIN, and The New York Times Fashion section, though he's not usually known for having multiple outfits.
2. Can still turn a backflip (he was all-around state champion in gymnastics in his younger days), though he has to stretch a lot longer than he used to.
3. Has written about a dozen books, many of them with friends like Dr. John Perkins, Tony Campolo, and his ice-cream-pal Ben Cohen (from Ben and Jerry's).
4. Has lived in Philly for 20 years–where he founded The Simple Way, has been arrested a lot of times for justice-related work ("holy mischief"), and was once required to go to citizenship training classes (along with his 70-year-old nun friend).
5. As an accomplished circus performer, lists unicycling, stilting (he is more than 11 feet tall on his big stilts), juggling, and fire-breathing among his skills.  

What are the sacraments?

As we continue our discussion of sacraments, it seems helpful to offer a few definitions. According to the Catholic Church, there are 7 sacraments. I have listed them here with the common names associated with each of them:

1. Baptism

2. Eucharist/Communion

3. Penance/Reconciliation - Involving "conversion, confession, and celebration." (For Lutherans, this sacraments is often named Confession and Absolution.)

4. Confirmation

5. Marriage

6. Holy Orders/Ordination (vows of priests, nuns, monks) 

7. Anointing the Sick/Last Rites/Extreme Unction

The United Methodist Church (UMC) recognizes Baptism and Eucharist as sacraments. The other "sacraments" are practiced by the UMC, but they are not considered sacraments. The following is an excellent resource for what the UMC professes: Sacraments, Rites and Rituals. 

Finding a history of sacraments has proven somewhat difficult, and the sources are all extremely biased. An article from the Christian Courier states: 

"...the Roman Church has had a fluctuating recognition as to what constitutes a genuine 'sacrament.' The number of sacraments has varied from five to twelve. It was not until the session of Trent in 1549 that the number 'seven' became fixed as an article of faith."

A relatively thorough discussion of the sacraments can be found in the online Catholic Encyclopedia here: Sacraments. This article contains both history, definitions, and theological discussion of the sacraments. The following statements are of note:

According to the teaching of the Catholic Church, accepted today by many Episcopalians, the sacraments of the Christian dispensation are not mere signs; they do not merely signify Divine grace, but in virtue of their Divine institution, they cause that grace in the souls of men. 

Protestants generally hold that the sacraments are signs of something sacred (grace and faith), but deny that they really cause Divine grace. Episcopalians, however, and Anglicans, especially the Ritualists, hold with Catholics that the sacraments are "effectual signs" of grace. 

These statements get at one of the very, very tangled threads of this tapestry of church history and sacraments. There is a significant divide between the Catholic and Protestant churches along this line.