Monday, October 27, 2008

Bible Verse for Sunday

"I have much more to say to you,
more than you can now bear.
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes,
he will guide you into all truth. "
John 16: 12-13

I spent some time hanging out in the First Congregational Church this weekend, waiting to see a Halloween performance by the Riverside Ballet Company. We entered a hushed, darkened church, lit by kerosene lamps on the pews and watched ballet-dancing vampires. It was truly one of the creepiest things I've experienced, being that I'm not much for the horror/macabre/underworld scene.

While waiting for the performance to start, I had 30 long minutes to browse the church's literature. They feature the verse above, along with their signature line "God is still speaking," and this explanation:

God didn't stop speaking at the end of the Bible. God has more to say. God is still trying to get my attention, trying to get me to look, to feel, to listen. God speaks through other people, nature, music, art, and the Bible.


I read a great statement this weekend in Steve Lopez's interview with gay priest Geoffrey Farrow about his recent support for California's Proposition 8, "The Bible is not a book. It's a library written over 15 centuries."

The Bible is a library. I like that.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow ... the image of ballet-dancing vampires in a church just boggles my mind. Love the irony in that!

Take Care!

Small Footprints
http://reducefootprints.blogspot.com

Marie said...

It was a strange, surreal and powerful experience. I was surprised the church didn't mind, but I suppose they were open to supporting the local arts.

Best to you - I love the ideas at your blog!
Marie

Anonymous said...

I'm with Small, vampires in church. Wonder what Lestat would have to say about that....

The Bible is a library. I like it. I also like the sentiment expressed about God still speaking to us. I grew up believing God was done talking; I think a lot of people feel that too. It's isolation at it's worst, the idea that God is done and just waiting until The End. I now know better; He is still speaking, speaks to me daily -- to all of us, if we'll only listen. He is in love with us and wants only to woo us.