Faith in Progress

In seminary, there was a group of folks that would bring drums to campus and sit and play when the weather was nice.  Before long, they were generally surrounded by a big crowd of impressed on-lookers.  I don't know about the rest of the people watching, but I always assumed that drumming was something that only very hip, talented, coordinated types of people could do well.  But then, at the St. Aidan's campout this past weekend, we brought in a woman to lead us in a drum circle.  She started us out easy -- tapping our toes, snapping, clapping.  Then moved us on to easy rhythm instruments -- sticks, shakers, cow bells.  But then we finally got to delve into the dozens of beautiful drums we'd been eyeing.  Tall and short, metal and wood, natural and painted.  We each got to pick one and she taught us how to make a beat with the flesh of our hand and a tone with our fingers.  She taught us how to stay on the beat, how to riff our own rhythms within the beat, how to listen t

Pentecost 17, Proper 20 Luke 16:1-13 September 19, 2010 Last Sunday I headed to Shadowlands with nine high schoolers from the youth group to play Lasertag. I put on the heavy pack, picked up my phaser and joined the group in the dark warehouse. I started lurking around corners and up into the walkways overhead, seeking someone to aim at. Sometimes I’d feel the vibration that meant I’d been hit. But every once in a while, I got to be the aggressor instead. And I have to say, it was pretty exhilarating, even if almost everyone I shot was either a parishioner or a little kid at a birthday party. “Good shot” my screen would announce. At the end, we came out into the lobby to wait for our scores. (I came in 18th the first round, but then developed a shrewd and defensive strategy for the second round and came in 8th place.) As I came out of the dark room and re-entered reality, the oddness of our activity hit me. Here we were, a church group, pretending to shoot each other. And, as if