spring 2022
Apr. 17 - may. 8, 2022
Life is full of seasons and rhythms. In Ecclesiastes, the Teacher shares this wisdom as he expresses some of the bitter ironies of life. He seeks meaning in work, pleasure, new endeavors, rest, and even death, but comes up disappointed each time. Nothing is ever new. Everything ends. Old things get brought back again. All of it, as the Teacher writes, is meaningless.
But he learns that all have their time, all are a part of life. Alone, they are meaningless, but it is when we meet God in these rhythms that we find meaning. Join Damascus Road as we dive into Ecclesiastes and learn to encounter God in the Four Seasons.
Mar. 20 - Apr. 10, 2022
As an observant Jew, Jesus would have celebrated Passover each year, just like all Jews did to remember God's deliverance of them from slavery in Egypt through the sacrifice of a lamb. But in the Gospels, we specifically get to see four of the Passover celebrations in Jesus' life -- one in boyhood, and then the three Passovers during his three years of active ministry before his crucifixion. Passover has always been rich in meaning and symbolism for God's people, but it is especially so for us, viewed through the lens of Jesus the Messiah, the sacrificial lamb slain for our deliverance from slavery. And crucially, during these pivotal times in Jesus' life, we see signs and wonders that point to his last Passover and the majesty of what he will do for us beginning that last night -- and then what he does three days later.
Join Damascus Road for Passing Over as we explore the Passovers of Jesus' life.
Feb. 6 - Mar. 13, 2022
To terraform means creating a livable world out of an inhospitable one. It’s a common theme in science fiction, terraforming planets like Mars to have the same atmosphere and qualities that earth possesses naturally to propel us into the future. This is similar to the task God gave humans, to reign over the earth and steward it well so that it may sustain the life God has given it. How can we begin to reshape our homes, friendships, communities, and politics to support and sustain abundant life? If we are the culture, what will be the culture we choose to make?
Join Damascus Road for Terraform as we explore these questions of how God has called us build a better world.
Jan. 9 - Jan. 30, 2022
What are our bodies for? We get some negative messages from the Church. Either, the message we hear is to ignore the body in favor of a disembodied spirits-floating-on-clouds spirituality or to focus all our attention on policing and denigrating the body as a dirty source of evil, sin and brokenness. But culture isn’t much better and gives us two other dangerous messages. Either, our bodies are meant to be used up and abused--let's just get as much out of bodies as possible no matter how quick we burn up and burn out, or our bodies are meant to be worshiped for their beauty or strength. Because of all these different messages, we have some complicated relationships with our bodies.
But what does God say? How does God speak of our bodies, which were formed out of the dust and had life breathed into them by God? Join Damascus Road for Altared Carbon as we consider our bodies and seek an embodied spirituality.