Come to a Summer Crafternoon!

Each month this summer, the Fiber Arts Ministry is hosting a relaxed afternoon gathering for anyone who is interested in crafting, fiber arts, and/or making and repairing things. Feel free to bring a project or something you're trying to repair or just bring yourself and your questions and ideas. We welcome all ages and levels of experience! We will meet on August 3 from 1:00-3:00pm in the Byllesby Room. Contact Rebecca Luttrell at southsideknitter@gmail.com or Celia Paris at celia.paris@gmail.com for more information!

Summer Adult Formation - Defending Democracy from its Christian Enemies

Banning books. Silencing the press. Persecuting scholars and universities. Defunding social services for the most vulnerable. Threatening the LGBTQIA+ community. Targeting immigrants and foreigners. Consolidating executive power. Hosting military parades. It’s a well-known playbook for oppressive totalitarian regimes, yet happening before our eyes in the Unites States and other countries. Why do so many Christians in the U.S. reject democratic values, democratic practices, and democracy itself as a means of governance? And what might some moral responses be from Christians who believe democracy is worth holding onto? On Sundays July 27, August 3, and August 24 from 11:15am to 12:00pm, join the Rev. Wes Smedley in the St. Cecilia Room for some conversation based on the book Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies by Christian ethicist David P. Gushee. You do not need to have the book or have read it to participate, just be encouraged to come as you are able.

Field Trip to Museum of Contemporary Art – August 10

Join us for a field trip to the MCA for a guided viewing of an exhibit by Paul Pfeiffer on August 10 at 2:00pm, with lunch nearby before the tour. For details or to sign up by July 27 email Julia McMillan, mcmillan013@gmail.com. This field trip is endorsed by Roger Ferlo! Paul Pfeiffer: Prologue to the Story of the Birth of Freedom surveys 25 years of work over Paul Pfeiffer's career at MCA Chicago. Pfeiffer reflects on grand spectacle—moments where the world narrows to a single focus—through manipulating footage and photographs of athletes and celebrities. Drawing on a rich language of Christian references, and sometimes using religious materials directly, Pfeiffer recontextualizes these icons to draw attention to the relationship between mass publics and their objects of veneration