Transmission @ St. Mark’s, this Wed, Apr 8th @ 7 p.m.
April 15, 2007
CIMG2881.JPG, originally uploaded by pointandlaugh.
Hey, friends~ I hope you’ve all sufficiently recovered from Easter at Avalon. It was a lot of work from everyone and I was really pleased with the event. Yay!
Anyway, our regular gatherings resume this Wednesday, the 18th, 7pm-9pm. We’ll be meeting at St Mark’s in the Bowery, a pretty radical (and historic) church on 10th St and 2nd Ave.
The service will deal with issues of space and sacredness: so far, we’ve met in people’s homes, in a dance club, and (now) a church. Are any of these spaces more holy than the others? What does sacred space mean? What is our relationship to space as New Yorkers? What makes something holy to us? It’ll be pretty cool.
We’ll also be discussing some logistics. Here are some things we’ll be discussing: Are we happy meeting twice a month or do we want to gather every week? Is St Mark’s as a location a good fit for us? How do we feel about meeting in a church? Do we want to always gather in the same location, or do we want to continue couch-surfing? Do we want to alternate between an uptown and a downtown location?
see you Wednesday,
isaac
Space & Sacredness
Wed Apr 18th @ 7pm
St. Mark’s
131 E 10th St @ 2nd Ave
www.stmarkschurch-in-the-bowery.com
subways: L to 3rd Ave, 6 to Astor Place, N, Q, R, W, 4, 5 to Union Square
Avalon pics
April 11, 2007
For Those About To Rock, We Salute You:
Steve on Guitar, Miles on Drums, Ike on Samples, Dara Sings, originally uploaded by bowiesnodgrass.
Steve on Guitar, Miles on Drums, Dara Sings, Ike on Laptop
see more Flickr pics from Easter @ Avalon
People Gather Round:
People Gather Round, originally uploaded by bowiesnodgrass.
See more photos taken by Nicole Seiferth at Avalon on Easter.
The Writing On The Wall:
DSC9232, originally uploaded by kaitlyn tikkun.
Participants add their own dates to a timeline from the birth of William Augustus Muhlenberg, through Holy Communion Episcopal Church, a Drug Rehabilitation Center, The Limelight, Avalon, and Easter!
Check out all Kaitlyn Tikkun’s Transmission photos.
Communion Photo Series:
DSC9313, originally uploaded by kaitlyn tikkun.
Check out Kaitlyn Tikkun’s gorgeous series of photos of groups doing Communion By #s in her Easter at Avalon flickr “Transmission” Set.
Blind Voyager on Happiness & Healing
April 10, 2007
Here is a quick write up on Transmission at my house on Wed March, 28th.
“If only we could get ahead in life we’d be happy.” A similar thought probably went through the paralyzed man’s head at the pool of Bethsaida (John 5:1-9). He thought if only he could touch that pool he would be healed and he would be happy. But as a blind person I know that physical healing doesn’t necessarily mean happiness. There are plenty of people in the world who are not paralyzed and who are just as miserable. What truly makes us happy is our spirit and attitude towards life. But sometimes our spirit is paralyzed and we need someone or something, like Jesus, to come and kick us off our ass.
We ritualized these ideas at Transmission on Wednesday, March 28. As we all gathered together, we each took change and threw it into a pool of water and wished for the things that “If only we had” would make us happy. Then we read psalm 121 and intermixed it with the chorus from the Beatles song “Help.”
After this I gave an abridged version of a sermon I had given at my seminary a week ago, and we then discussed our desires for happiness, how they help us and hinder us, and where our true help comes from. I told a story about a friend of mine who was born blind. Her parents were devastated and they did not know what to do. They assumed that a blind person could never live a happy and successful life so they sat out to make her life as pleasant as possible. They gave her a bedroom with a radio, tv, refrigerator, and microwave, and she stayed there and grew up into a woman weighing over 300 pounds. The whole time she thought that this was as happy as she could get, but if only she could see she could be truly happy, make friends, and go to college. Until one day a worker for the National Federation of the Blind came and told her to get off her bed and follow. The worker taught her how to accept her blindness and use skills such as cane travel and braille as a means not just of coping, but of living. After a year of training my friend had completely changed. She had lost a hundred pounds and is now going for her doctorate of law degree. This was a true transformation, and I believe that Jesus can effect a similar change in people.
After sharing with one another we ended in silent prayer. It was a wonderful time and the food and fellowship we shared before and after the service was incredible. I was particularly excited because we were able to have the service at my apartment, and I was able to welcome the church into my own home.
Paul Grenier.
Easter @ Avalon: Communion by #s
April 9, 2007
For the last part of the service we passed out:
1-gallon ziplock bags containing a piece of matzo, a brown paper bag filled with ten envelopes, and a note saying: “Find a group of 6-10 people, stand or sit in a circle, and pass out all the contents of this bag. Leave the matzo in the ziplock.”
The envelopes were numbered 1-10 and contained pieces of paper with the following instructions:
1. Sursum Corda: Have everyone in the group introduce him or herself.
2. Preface: People, share one thing from the last week for which you’re thankful.
Psalm 121 Mash-Up
April 2, 2007
I write a lot of music for Transmission but we haven’t put any audio up on the site yet. I wrote this last week for our Bethesda service and thought you might enjoy hearing it.
Push play to listen:
I frequently write antiphons for psalms when we use them in worship, but I don’t have a strong voice so if the crowd is small the singing can get iffy. Since hiring a cantor was out of the question, I figured that sampling Paul McCartney would make things a little easier (and more fun).
It actually worked really well - I recommend that any of you other small house churches look into sampling pop tunes for worship. If you want to know about the nuts and bolts of how I put this together, read on…
Holy Week Schedule
March 31, 2007
Hey, guys, some of you have asked about what Transmission is doing for Holy Week. Obviously, with Easter around the corner we won’t be able to throw a service every day of the week, but it would be cool if we could spend some time together. Here’s our tentative schedule for any Transmissioners (and/or transcurious) folks who are looking for stuff to do:
Palm Sunday. Sanctuary, 6pm, 74th and York Ave. T.j.Snodgrass, the one and only, will be delivering his first homily. If you know Snodgrass, you know he’s not a man to be trifled with, so this should be worth checking out. I’ll be doing the music (including a tribute to Depeche Mode). One specific reason to come: almost every church does the crucifixion on Palm Sunday, but Sanctuary is actually focusing on the entry into Jerusalem and leaving Good Friday for Good Friday.
Wednesday. We’ll be having our last planning meeting at Avalon, 20th St and 6th Ave. This won’t be a service, but it will be our only chance to lay out the space, check sounds and lights, etc. The more hands, the better.
Maundy Thursday. Transmission will be gathering at Katherine Lee’s place up in Washington Heights. Good food, evocative ritual, and everything you’ve come to love about Transmission… (see post below for more info)
Good Friday. We’ll be back at Sanctuary, this time for an environmental stations of the cross which will be set up from from 6-9pm. No, it’s not a three hour service; that means that you can show up whenever you want and leave whenever you want. Bowie and I are both doing installations, and I’m also making an audio loop of poetry and music. It’ll be a neat experience of traditional church doing a radically decentralized worship.
Holy Saturday. Down to Time Square for St Mary the Virgin’s Easter Vigil. Affectionately known as “Smokey Mary’s,” this place does high-liturgy like no one else. It’ll be a very different experience from Transmission, but we also recognize “high liturgy” as being both solidly multi-sensory and very traditional. It’s a long service, so eat before you get there.
Easter Sunday. EASTER AT AVALON! What else do you need?
Maundy Thursday
March 29, 2007
Hey, Transmissioners! First of all, a quick reminder that next week we’ll be having our tech/dress rehearsal for the event down at Avalon from 7-9pm. It’ll be hot. Ok, actually, it’ll probably be a little bit boring, but you should come anyway.
But, since that meeting is supplanting our weekly dose of community and ritual, we’ve decided to celebrate Maundy Thursday as a community. Katherine Lee has volunteered to host (apparently she has a massive apartment up in Washington Heights). Since the other Katie also lives up in that hood, they’ll be doing the food and I’ll be planning some sort of service. If you want to come, just shoot me an email and I will reveal Katherine’s address.
Hope to see you there!
isaac
Bethesda Transmission
March 27, 2007
Hey guys! This is your reminder that we’ll be having Transmission tomorrow night, Wednesday the 28th. This week Paul Grenier, our very own Tiresias, will be leading us in a meditation based on the pool of Bethesda. Paul’s treatment of healing stories is always exceptional - this is not one to be missed.
Unfortunately our usual gracious hostess, Bowie, will be out of town this week so we’ll be having services at Union instead (where Paul and I both live). It’s only a few blocks away from Bowie’s so it shouldn’t kill anyone to get here. Union is located at 121st and Broadway - closest stops would be 116th on the 1 train or 125th on the A/B/C/D. If you want to hopstop it, the address is 3041 Broadway, NY, NY, 10027.
There’s some big news you guys should be aware of. First of all, if you haven’t checked out the article about us on the Sojourners website (Jim Wallis’s magazine), go look at www.sojo.net Secondly, Time Out New York will be running a piece on us next week, which is fabulous.
We also have our postcards made up, so if you want some make sure to let me know! I’ve got scads.
hope to see you all tomorrow!
Fix the Lectionary!
March 16, 2007
Ok, so it’s no big secret that I’m not a huge fan of the lectionary. I mean, I do like keeping the weekly readings tied to the liturgical seasons, and I do like the way that the lectionary prevents preachers from always recycling their favorite passages. It also has some serious shortcomings, however. I don’t like the way that it makes your theological choices for you. This, for example, we learn that the Israelites leaving the wilderness and crossing into Canaan is just like the prodigal son returning home to dad, a view which I think is theologically shallow. I also don’t like the fact that the lectionary only touches on about 20% of the Bible - when was the last time you heard Joshua actually preached in church?
Apparantly, I have a kindred spirit in Frank Henderson, although he’s one-upped me by actually creating an alternative Lenten lectionary, one which he believes has more respect for women, more respect for Jewish tradition, and which better represents the tradition of Lent being a preparation for Easter. Go and read it, it’s well worth your time.
EASTER @ AVALON: service draft & songs
March 6, 2007
ORDER OF SERVICE draft (comments and questions welcome below!)
Gathering
* DJ
* Singing, clapping, body moving (see song ideas below - input welcome!)
* Welcome
Remembering the Resurrection
- “theater in the midst” (various components, still working out, order not set, staged around the room)
* Death of Jesus (Mark 15:33-47?), told by storyteller?
* Just Another Poor Boy by Chris de Burgh
* Matthew 28:1-10, reading
* 2-4 people reflect on Easter story, Mary Mag, Limelight, resurrection, etc…
Prayers of the Peoples
- interactive stations will be arranged around the space before people arrive. people will have time to explore them as they please. visit all or spend whole time at one…
* Time line from founding of Holy Communion Episcopal Church, to the Limelight, Avalon, and 4/8/07. There will be markers for people to add their own tick marks and memories to the time line of the space.
* Confession and prayer stations
* Photos and candle lighting station
* Movement station w/ dancers and yoga
* Station reflecting on seeing the Risen Christ in others
* Sex Worker information tables
* Common Ground will also be setting up an interactive station
Pass the Peace
Communion in Small Groups
- people gather in groups in 6-10, each group has a bag with instructions on how to proceed
Closing - more songs and Soul Train
SONG IDEAS (feedback and additional suggestions welcome below!)
Keep the Faith - Bon Jovi
Like a Prayer - Madonna
Stayin’ Alive - Bee Gees
I Would Die 4 U - Prince
Jesus Walks - Kanye West
I’m a Believer - Neil Diamond
Broken Wings - Mister Mister