Pentecost!

Today is Pentecost which is one of my favorite holidays. On Pentecost we celebrate the coming down of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples (Acts 2). At Plainsboro Presbyterian they have been folding origami cranes for prayer doves for weeks, and they were installed yesterday in the front of the church. They asked people to write prayers in any language they speak or read on the white side of the origami paper. The theme was that the church is a house of prayer for all peoples (Isaiah 56:7). They were beautiful and colorful, and they had several members of the church read prayers and scripture in their first languages.

At Pentecost the Spirit empowered the disciples to overcome the barriers of geography and language to preach the Gospel. And not everyone received the Gospel the way we would normally think. People openly sneered at the disciples and said they were drunk. Some completely dismissed the good news they were hearing, and some heard and believed and were transformed. Their lives were transformed by the power of the Spirit, and the patterns of their behavior changed. That is the beauty of Pentecost. The Spirit working in our lives and in other people's to overcome barriers and to change us inside and outside.
May we be fired up and empowered to preach the Gospel in all we say and do. May we be changed that every thought and action be made into the will of Jesus Christ.

Graduation Choir

Today I sang at PTS' graduation with our choir. The graduation was in the Princeton University chapel which is enormous and beautiful (with incredible acoustics). It's sad to know that more than a few of my friends are leaving, but it's also great to see how God has been working in their lives to lead them into the next chapter.

I'm looking forward to a restful couple of weeks before I start CPE.

Almost done

We are in the home stretch, everybody. This is the last weekend. I am studying for my first spoken examination. I've only had those in language courses in high school, and it's a very different type of studying than for an essay exam.

Yesterday some friends and I went to lunch at an Indian restaurant to celebrate our friends who are graduating and a successful completion of the school year. When we came back, my friend Craig said he heard music in the air. So I naturally starting singing that wonderful song that I know from Call Me Madam, but it turns out that there really was music in the air. Some students had decided to throw an impromptu concert in the grassy area in the middle of our campus. (see picture) That was really nice. It has been raining all week, but yesterday was beautiful. It was wonderfully relaxing thing to come back from a fun lunch and sit in the grass listening to music.

Ok. I'm almost done. I'm going to make it!

Books

Books wait for you until you need them. Buying books is not always about what you need right at that time. It's more of an art than anything else. The past few days I have been working at the PTS annual Book Sale. For months people have been donating books, and the students have been sorting them into topics such as preaching, theology, and Christian life. Many retiring professors and clergy use this book sale to clean their libraries out. All proceeds go to international seminaries to build their libraries. All volunteers got paid in books, so now I have a storage problem for texts such as The Writings of Medieval Women, The Complete Works of Josephus, Scotland: A New History, The Book of Common Prayer, and The History and Character of Calvinism.

In other news, it's the May short term... so I'm very busy with my class about the sacraments. More about that later.

The Farm

The May Term is pretty intense, so it's important to find ways to relax. Yesterday my friends Sarah and Marie and I went to Terhune Orchards, a local farm with 200 acres. They were having a kite flying festival with cider and animals to pet. Beautiful apples were on sale. One of the best things, though, were their cider donuts.

It's hot out here, and our A/C hasn't been turned on yet. I hope it's cooler where you are.

May Term

Last week was finals week, and I survived. I did quality work on my papers, and my tests went well. Today we started our May short term, and I'm in a class about the sacraments and sacramental rites. We're studying baptism, communion, marriage, foot washing, confirmation, reconciliation, and healing.

On Monday night I met Shane Claiborne. He spoke at the forum on youth ministry here. He spoke at my undergrad earlier in the school year, and I read his book Irresistible Revolution a couple months ago. He was amazing! He talked about the art of making disciples and about how we can embody love as Christians.

New blog layout. Hope you guys like it. If not, feel free to let me know.

I had allergy testing today. Ick. I am allergic to dust mites, mold, and trees. I will be making some changes in my lifestyle to reflect this new information. New medication. New pillows.

The play is coming up next week. We're actually running the entire play instead of bits and pieces. Even though I have a medium-sized part, my character appears in the beginning scene and last half of the second act, so I have to hang around the entire rehearsal. I also have to wear a hat the entire time, but we haven't begun practicing with our costumes.

I have been asked by my gracious play director and speech professor to be his teacher's assistant for next school year. A great opportunity for  me to get to the know the incoming juniors and to spend some time doing something I love.

For my final paper in my Reformation worship class I have decided to write a short adult education course. I thought this would be easier than writing a full-blown history paper. I was wrong. Plus, I have tracked down a facsimile of the original Genevan Psalter, and it never occurred to me that music writing had changed since the 1530's. That throws a cog into the wheels. Thankfully, I've got some time to figure things out.

I am very excited to announce that the Finer Things Club will be journeying to New York City for Madam Butterfly in April. Something to look forward to before finals week.

And the rain stopped again! I don't mind rain, but I mind rain for days and days at a time. It's nice to have a break.

Field Education

As you may know or not know, each seminarian must complete a year-long part-time internship called a "field education placement." I have officially accepted a placement at Rider University, a local university that's about 6,000 students. I will be working both on the main campus with the Protestant Campus Ministries and at Westminster Choir College. I will be working specifically with Rev. Dawn Adamy, a very lovely woman. (I don't have a picture of her. Sorry.) It's at the same time exciting and scary. I worked for a year as the chaplain's assistant at my undergrad school, but this is just a little different. It's nice to have things set up.

Now all I have to do is get through this semester, the finals week, the spring short term, and CPE.

Peace Rally

The Peace Rally went well yesterday on the steps of the state capital in Trenton. It was organized by the Coalition for Peace Action in Princeton. My friend and fellow seminarian Hannah spoke about respecting all life and the need for peace. 

Then some of us went for pizza.

Past, Present, and Future

Yesterday I had a weird day. Past, present, and future all converged into one in only a few short hours. Awe, shock, and hope...


Past/Awe--Yesterday I held a Bible that belonged to Dietrich Bonhoeffer (pictured, right). The Bible is a facsimile of the Luther Bible that Bonhoeffer's students gave to him as a gift. If you don't know who Bonhoeffer is, he's one of the most incredible Christians of the past century. He was a theologian and pastor who stood up to the Nazis and was executed in a concentration camp. His writings are amazing. I read The Cost of Discipleship last summer. It's thought-provoking and a great read.
The picture with the small book is me with an original edition of Calvin's Institutes. It used to be really small and in Latin. The text I'm read for my Systematic Theology class is much bigger and in English.
We saw pictures from the Martyr's Mirror showing all the different ways Anabaptists could be killed for their beliefs. 

Present/Shock--I attended a lectured last night by Peter Dale Scott, a poet and professor emeritus at Berkley. His new book The Road to Afgahanistan is coming out this fall. There is an overwhelming connection to the international drug trade and the war in Afghanistan. Today is the 7th Anniversary of the Iraq War. I will be joining the Seminarians for Peace and Justice on the steps of the state capital at noon today to ask for peace. I can't sit in silence any longer. The further I get into my New Testament class and Systematic Theology and Reformation history class, the more I cannot reconcile the idea of war with Jesus' teachings, ministry, death, and resurrection.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God" (Matt 5:6-9).
"Suddenly, one of those with Jesus put his hand on his sword, drew it, and struck the slave of the high priest, cutting off his ear. Then Jesus said to him, ‘Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword" (Matt 26:51-52)
 "'But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also'" (Luke 6:27-29a).
"'I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34-35).

If we do not stop the cycle of violence, we will only be faced with more violence. Someone must have the courage to stand up and refuse to continue the cycle. We must root out the institutionalized violence and refuse to fight back with anything but Jesus' triumph over violence. Jesus shows us a different way, a way to love one another as God loves us. I want to take the Gospel seriously. The Gospel is not safe. Jesus leads away from our homes, our families, and our communities into discipleship. Perhaps no one in the past century has devoted him or herself to the idea of discipleship more than Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Future/Hope--I was offered a field education position yesterday. I do not expect to be faced with the kinds of violence Dietrich Bonhoeffer was, but I will follow Christ as well as I can where I am. I have great hope for the future today, not because of where we are but because of where we can go.

Midterms

My midterms are basically done. I lead my history precept today, and I somehow got mixed up about what the precept paper entailed. So have to rewrite that. Also have to rewrite my New Testament exegesis paper. Due by Friday.

Things are coming along with my Calvin paper. I've decided to make it into an adult education course because I've written way too many history research papers. Haven't written curriculum before, so this might be interesting.

The storms seem to have stopped. Finally. It rained for four days straight. Today the sun came out. <3

Memorial Service

Today I was the sexton for a memorial service in remembrance of those who died in the earthquake in Haiti. Now I'm trying to study for my New Testament midterm, and it's difficult.

Recently a prospective student asked me to name the pros and cons of my seminary. This is both a pro and a con, and I think this is true for all seminaries. You become aware of how powerless you are and how dependent you are on God.  The question of "why" starts to really eat at you. The paradoxes we live with everyday suddenly seem impassible... yet you're in this community of people who each have their own story about how God had led them through difficulties you never thought about. People are willing to stand up and trust in God. I think this is why PTS is so focused on community living. I couldn't have made it through my first semester without this community.

So if you're looking for a seminary to attend, don't just look at the academics or housing or financial aid. Look at the community. The other day I sat down with at a table of students, and we started talking about a hot button issue of the church today. Instead of defensive team-taking, we had a very honest conversation about the Biblical witness around this issue. No plates were thrown. No yelling happened. We just... talked and were willing to listen and were willing to say "I don't understand" or sometimes "I was wrong." No names were called. No labels were given. That is this community. Now that sounds like we're all constantly getting along and singing The Happy Song together, but we're not. We have a lot of different opinions and beliefs and interpretations, but that all seems secondary to the community. When our opinions, beliefs, and interpretations become primary (which they do sometimes) then we become "us" and "them". But I feel like those labels aren't easy to keep up here, especially when you're worshiping with the person or persons who have become the "them".

But today in the memorial service, there was no "us", no "them". No one tried to paper over the question of "why" even though no one could give an answer. Instead, we lamented and pledged ourselves to the continuing aid of Haiti and the Haitians.

If you find yourself in a place where you can give money to Haitian relief, please donate to the Red Cross. You can choose to give directly to Haitian Relief and Development.

Reading Week

It's Faux Spring Break! As one of my professors said: "We call it Reading Week so the Calvinists don't feel bad about taking a break." I'm currently working on my systematic theology midterm about the relationship between Scripture and tradition. I only have one exam which is next Monday focusing on the Gospels in my New Testament class. I have to memorize outlines of each of the Gospels. I can remember the basic outlines... it's the chapter numbers that throw me off.
I attended the Princeton University chapel yesterday for worship.They have a stained glass picture of John Witherspoon. He is right under St. Jerome. No, seriously. The chapel is HUGE. It could fit ten Miller Chapels in it. One of my friends is their seminary intern, and he told me the choir was incredible. Well, their choir IS INCREDIBLE. The organist is also incredible. As a postlude he played a Bach fugue like I have never heard a fugue played before.

Tomorrow taking a mini-vacation to a surprise location! Check back on Wednesday for pictures!

Lent, Part 2

Today I got schooled on the Reformed tradition of the liturgical year. I'm in this awesome class called Worship Renewal in the Late Middle Ages and Reformation taught by Dr. Elsie McKee, and today we talked about the ideas of sacred space and time that changed over the course of the Reformation. I learned that the Reformed Protestant leaders stripped the liturgical calendar from the church because of the doctrine of sola scriptura (also made popular by Martin Luther). For example, the Bible does not have Advent or Lent; but the Bible does include events like Jesus' birth and Pentecost. So we kept Christmas and various other holy days (holidays!), but the Reformed leaders really wanted to focus on the Lord's Day. Calvin even moved Christmas in his community to the closest Sunday to December 25th to honor the Lord's Day. The Reformed leaders wanted to preach straight through the different books of the Bible, and that could not be accomplished within the liturgical year the Medieval Catholic Church had. The Reformed leaders brought in books of the Old Testament for preaching which seems from what we've studied highly unusual during the Late Middle Ages. I was shocked! I'm Reformed, and I love the liturgical year (see my previous post on Lent)! So I asked my professor after class how we had gotten from no liturgical calendar to today where the Presbyterian churches I know follow the temporale (history of salvation events such as Christ's birth but not the saints' days) liturgical calendar. Dr. McKee said that within the past couple of generations various dialogues have taken place that have changed how Christians of various persuasions view the church calendar. Because of a renewed focus on the shared history of Christians before various splits, some Reformed denominations have re-adopted the liturgical calendar. Also, in the past couple of centuries preaching in the Reformed churches has moved from going straight through books to more topical preaching; so the liturgical calendar wasn't going to trip up the preaching.
All this means that during my lifetime the Presbyterian church does have the liturgical calendar, but not all Reformed churches do across time and currently. I apologize if I made any sweeping remarks about the liturgical calendar in the Reformed tradition if it is not true in your tradition. My life has been greatly shaped by the rhythm of the liturgical calendar, and I feel very attached to it... or to the PCUSA version of it, I should say.
Isn't that cool, though?!?! The Reformed leaders felt so strongly about the need for preaching, teaching, and staying true to the Bible that they almost completely changed the rhythm of the year for everyday people.
This is why I'm at Princeton Seminary... because every day I'm challenged and grow in my faith and understanding of living the Christian life!

Veni Sancte Spiritus

 Once during my college years I walked into a Christian bookstore in early February and asked for Lenten Bible studies. The sales associate looked at me almost in shock and asked me to repeat my request. I said I was looking for a Lenten Bible study for the upcoming Lent. The sales associate said he would ask his manager and began to scribble something on a piece of paper, and then looked up at me and very seriously asked "How do you spell 'Lent'?"

I'm only in my first year of seminary, but I'm going to give this a shot because I think Lent is incredibly important.

Lent will be different in different Presbyterian churches. Different pastors and different communities will emphasize different things. Some will ask you to give something up (like meat or soda), some will ask you to add something on (such as a specialized Bible study), some will ask you to spend more time in reflection and silence, and some will leave it completely open to you about what you do. Some churches offer Taize services during Lent. Some offer special prayer groups. Some will offer services of lament and healing. Some will spend more time on the calls to confession, prayers of confession, and assurances of pardon.

Honestly, what you do or don't do during Lent isn't nearly as important as WHY we do Lent. Just as the Israelites spent 40 years in the desert and just as Jesus spent 40 days being tempted in the desert, we spend 40 days each year in Lent. This is a time to look at our discipleship. Really examine it. It's a time to think. It's a time to repent and be forgiven. It's a time to prepare ourselves for the Passion and the Resurrection. We are disciples of Jesus, and we live in a broken world where our sin keeps us from God.

Now, some of us don't like to admit we're sinful. I certainly don't... and then the minister of the Chapel here at PTS goes and challenges with with this: "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:8-9). Oftentimes people associate Lent with punishing ourselves because of our sin. I'm not of that camp. God loved us so much that he decided he would rather die than be separated from us. The Incarnation changed everything. "We are dead to sin. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:11). In Lent we choose to be more alive in Christ. We choose to somehow take one step closer to living a life like Christ did by changing something in our lives and taking the time to attend special services dedicated to the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We cannot have Easter (the resurrection) morning without first going through Good Friday (the death).

Furthermore, while Lent is a fixed time period on our liturgical period, we all go through Lents at other times in our lives... times of immense grief or suffering or exile or illness or loneliness. Because we walk together as a faith community during our yearly Lent, I believe we help each other through those times in our lives. We can better sit with people during their grief if we have been through grief before and have seen God on the other side. Today my New Testament professor asked us this question about Jesus' crucifixion: "What is faith? Is is when the lights are on and all's right with the world and God's smiling down on us? Or is is when you're beaten up and hanging on by a thread and praying to a God who you're not sure is there anymore?"

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
       Why are you so far from saving me, so far from the words of my groaning?"

Psalm 22:1

Jesus turns to the Psalms while on the cross because they give us the words when we are so down and out that we don't even have the words to describe what we're feeling. There have been times in my life where I have wondered if God had forsaken me. I have had Lents, and I have walked through our liturgical Lent several times. I am here at Princeton Seminary today because of the Psalms and because of the community of faith that has surrounded me since the time I was small. They helped guide me to seeing God working in my life in ways I hadn't seen during my Lent. I am very, very blessed this Lent to be walking only through the liturgical Lent. I prayed Psalm 13 so often. Now I pray Psalm 107. Thanks be to God.

That's part of my Lenten story. I urge you this Ash Wednesday to start your own Lenten story. Go out and figure out what Lent means to you and in your community. You might be surprised what you find.

Who says first year seminary students can't preach?

Doylestown Presbyterian Church

Yesterday I went with the PTS touring choir to Doylestown Presbyterian Church located in beautiful Doylestown, PA. We had the privilege of singing at both their services and meeting with several members of the congregation and staff. All three pastors are PTS grads, and our alumni relations director was their guest preacher. I really like getting out to see more of the East Coast and all the wonderful Presbyterian churches around here. Doylestown Pres has several beautiful stained glass windows, and I'll be showing you the windows in the coming weeks.

Miren Qué Bueno!

SNOW DAY!

It has already been announced that tomorrow will be a SNOW DAY! YAY!

Today after choir I called my friend Alicia to come out for snow prayer. It was wonderful. If I could capture the essence of what our snow prayer was, it would make a really great prayer technique, but it was too spontaneous.

 

¹O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
   for his steadfast love endures for ever.
²Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
   those he redeemed from trouble
³and gathered in from the lands,
   from the east and from the west,
   from the north and from the south.<sup>*

4</sup>Some wandered in desert wastes,
   finding no way to an inhabited town;
⁵hungry and thirsty,
   their soul fainted within them.
⁶Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
   and he delivered them from their distress;
⁷he led them by a straight way,
   until they reached an inhabited town.
⁸Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
   for his wonderful works to humankind.
⁹For he satisfies the thirsty,
   and the hungry he fills with good things.  

Psalm 107:1-9

Spring Long Term 2010

Second day of the Spring Long Term 2010. Here's the lineup.

Systematic Theology--Surprisingly not as scary as once though
New Testament--Thus far just studying the cultural background against which the New Testament was written
Worship in the Reformation--Looks like someone will be using their historical training after all!!
Speech--We'll be working on poems during part of the semester! I love poetry!
Greek translation--translating verses about resurrection of the dead. Just approached 2 Maccabees 7. Wow. Serious martyrdom and resurrection text. Not for the weak of Greek skills. Luckily for me, we translated it in class together.

Today I discovered what One Note is. Now, I've had One Note on my computer for a couple of years; but I never bothered opening it. I just used Word for my notes. One Note is AWESOME. So much easier to arrange by class, topics, dates, etc.! And then I can search for a certain word, and it gets highlighted in all my notes! Apparently it can also record things and then playback later what you were hearing when you wrote something.

I will also be taking the Bible Content Exam this Friday morning. It is the first ordination exam Inquirers take. It is multiple choice, but that doesn't mean it's easy. To pass I only need 70%, but I've only gotten that on one of my practice exams... and I thought I knew the Bible pretty well! So I'm studying, and I'll keep studying. The good news is there is no penalty to try again (except I would have to pay the fee again). I'd really like to pass on the first try. Standardized tests cause a rise of anxiety in me that I'm trying really hard to curb. If I may ask, prayers, please. Especially for Paul's letters. I've been doing really well on the Gospels and Wisdom Literature portions, so I hope I can get an overall 70%.

Also, I miss Colorado and my family!

One of my hats

One of the hats I wear here at Princeton Seminary is that of a sexton. Now, some of you might be thinking of Hamlet when a gravedigger refers to himself as a sexton, but let me assure you that's not what I do. A sexton is a person or team in a church or synagogue in charge of the grounds and buildings which can include a graveyard but not necessarily. At PTS the sextons are students who work for the Chapel Office. Sounds official, right? Anytime there's a special event whether by a campus group or an off-campus group a sexton is assigned to make sure everything is in its right place at the right time and then is put back where it belongs. We make sure the lights are on, the doors unlocked, everyone can find the bathrooms, and the pulpit doesn't move. I've only worked concerts and worship services, but the sextons also work with weddings, lectures, and anything anyone else can use Miller Chapel for.

This afternoon I'm the sexton for the Dryden Ensemble and their "Bach Looking Back" concert that begins at 3pm. If you're in the area, the tickets are very affordable, and judging by their sound check it's going to be awesome.