Vox Veniae Podcast

How might we re-imagine God’s justice in a restorative framework rather than a primarily punitive one? On Christ the King Sunday, Christopher Mack reexamines scriptures on God’s justice and judgment through a lens of nonviolent theology and restorative justice. [Matthew 25:31-40] Reflection Where are you struggling to see God at work in our divisive, violent, over-consumptive, and destructive world? When you long for God to be at work in the world, what values or actions do you hope for? How might our hunger for justice reshape our baggage of images of God’s judgment? Resources Book: Raising Abel: The Recovery of the Eschatological Imagination by James Alison

Finding Wisdom What does wisdom mean to you? Gena St. David glimpses the wisdom of nature as shared through life, trees, and rain. We are invited to consider how we might find spiritual wisdom in the cycle of connection, disconnection, and reconnection embodied in nature and the life of Jesus. [Proverbs 3:13-20] Reflection What wisdom have you learned by observing patterns in nature? Where am I currently working against the wisdom of nature? What does nature teach me about the wisdom of Love? Resources Book: On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gravity, and Getting Old by Parker Palmer Meditation: “Personal Weather Report” from Sitting Still Like a Frog by Eline Snell

Let’s Not Do This When you think about your story of faith, is there a season where you felt especially burdened by the teachings and ideas around you? Kimberly Culbertson follows up her October 1st message, “Rethinking Priesthood” with a reminder of three areas, Problematic Sexual Ethic, Religious Responsibility, and Disregard for Self, where we should reconsider how religious leaders have set limitations to reinforce their own power instead of offering mercy to the marginalized. [Matthew 23:1-5] Reflection What burden might God be trying to lift from your shoulders this morning? What burdensome expectation for others might God be calling you to release? How might you lean into the “rest for your soul” that Jesus promises?

God Loves Every Part What does a hug from God feel like? On this Fifth Sunday, Vanessa Maleare, leads our entire community, including our younger ones from Greenhouse and Zamyn, in a wonder moment. She reminds us that God loves us holistically, including our being, thoughts, and feelings [Genesis 1:1-5, 26-27, 31]   Reflection Which song or breath practice might you deepen? Where do you desire to feel more free? How might song or breath help you decide to wait or move? Resources Film: Inside Out by Disney’s Pixar Poem: Broken Record by Michael Moynahan SJ

Marcus Clarke, Resident Artist at Vesper, enters into a conversation with Weylin Lee exploring how art articulates and forms us along our spiritual journey, and encourages us to see our various callings as part of exercising our God given creativity. [Genesis 1:1-5, 26-27, 31] Reflection How are we invited to practice creativity and co-create with Creator? How might our practice of making invite healing and restoration? How might we explore our own expression of creating and making? Resources Website: Studio Delmar.  The artistic practice of Marcus Clarke  https://www.delmar.work/

What is Collective Discernment? How do we create a community of equals that resists becoming a cult of personality… that resists celebrity culture? Gena St. David wraps up our fall series on non-hierarchy by inviting us to recall the wisdom we’ve gained from each of our teaching team’s perspectives and practicing collective discernment by listening deeply to the Spirit, our bodies, and to on another as we navigate community conversations and practices. [Philippians 2:1-2]   Reflection What questions are alive inside me today? How might I practice listening deeply to the Spirit, my individual body, and others? Which voices do I tend to elevate above others?

How do we exercise power effectively and holistically? Christopher Mack examines different organizational models and what characteristics might characterize a faith community moving beyond non-hierarchy. [Philippians 4:1-7]   Reflection In a crisis, where do you tend to look for safety, control, or influence? How might you seek a “loyal companion” to help facilitate an  impasse in your life? Is there a practice for right-sizedness you feel drawn to this week?   Resources Book: Reinventing Organizations: A Guide to Creating Organizations by Frederic Lafloux

What hesitancies do you have when you consider yourself in relation to priesthood? Kimberly Culbertson explores how we are invited to be hope carriers, resource facilitators, and sacrificial relators as we live out a shared calling. [1 Peter 2:4-5, 9]   Reflection How have you been called out of darkness into marvelous light?  How has God wired you to be part of creating spiritual space for others? How does interdependence change the way you view priesthood?   Resources Book: Searching for Sunday: Loving, Leaving, and Finding the Church by Rachel Held Evans

How can we grow from engaging tensions in our world? Vanessa Maleare shares her story of being shaped by tension in living out her calling, while reflecting on the story of Peter living in the tension of past failure and present affirmation.  [John 21:18-22]   Reflection Where in your life are you fleeing from tension? Which of these unresolvable tensions calls to you the most?? Which of the unresolvable tensions feels most pressing to engage in personally? Corporately? Resources Book: Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone by Brené Brown

How is a practice of shared leadership resistance against oppressive and harmful structures? Weylin Lee vulnerably reflects on the journey of Vox from hierarchy toward non-hierarchy and how this practice is a form of resistance.  [Philippians 2:1-8]   Reflection Who are the voices we need to include at the table? In what ways might you practice love with the most vulnerable? What areas of power and privilege are we invited to let go of? Resources Podcast: The Rise and Fall of Mars Hill by Christianity Today Book: When Narcissism Comes to Church: Healing Your Community from Emotional and Spiritual Abuse by Chuck DeGroat Book: A Church Called Tov: Forming a Goodness Culture by Scot McKnight & Laura Barringer