WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.040 --> 00:00:04.480 What do a pop up cafe, a low income housing 2 00:00:04.480 --> 00:00:07.919 project, a soup making business, and an improv 3 00:00:07.919 --> 00:00:11.440 troupe all have in common? Well, in one corner of 4 00:00:11.440 --> 00:00:14.820 Northern Virginia and Maryland, all these groups call themselves 5 00:00:15.280 --> 00:00:18.835 expressions of church. Does that sound a little weird? 6 00:00:19.215 --> 00:00:23.055 It might, since most of us hear the word church and we conjure 7 00:00:23.055 --> 00:00:26.574 up a mental image that likely includes a mass of 8 00:00:26.574 --> 00:00:30.160 people gathered on a Sunday morning and a preacher given a 9 00:00:30.160 --> 00:00:33.700 sermon and offering plates and some pageantry 10 00:00:33.840 --> 00:00:37.520 and music and nice clothing. And while these images 11 00:00:37.520 --> 00:00:40.820 are familiar, the church itself has long advocated 12 00:00:40.879 --> 00:00:44.495 for a little different understanding of church. In 13 00:00:44.495 --> 00:00:48.195 fact, one of the first songs I ever learned invites us to sing, 14 00:00:48.495 --> 00:00:51.855 I am the church. You are the church. We are the church 15 00:00:51.855 --> 00:00:55.695 together. The idea is that church is not 16 00:00:55.695 --> 00:00:59.510 an event nor a place. Church is the community of faith, 17 00:00:59.510 --> 00:01:02.949 it's people. As the song goes, the church is not a 18 00:01:02.949 --> 00:01:06.790 building. The church is not a steeple. The church is not a resting 19 00:01:06.790 --> 00:01:10.549 place. The church is what? It's it's the people. I know someone out 20 00:01:10.549 --> 00:01:13.485 there just did a bunch of hand movements to coincide with those words. 21 00:01:14.045 --> 00:01:17.805 The innovative ministries that I mentioned a moment ago, the 22 00:01:17.805 --> 00:01:21.245 pop up cafe, the housing complex, the soup 23 00:01:21.245 --> 00:01:25.005 makers, and the improv troupe have all leaned 24 00:01:25.005 --> 00:01:28.620 back into the understanding of church being 25 00:01:28.780 --> 00:01:32.620 a connection of people. I'm Ryan Dunn, and I had 26 00:01:32.620 --> 00:01:36.220 the good fortune of participating in these unique expressions of church 27 00:01:36.220 --> 00:01:39.980 recently. And in this episode of Compass, I'm gonna share those 28 00:01:39.980 --> 00:01:43.435 experiences as well as the thoughts of those who helped to give 29 00:01:43.435 --> 00:01:46.975 life to these expressions of church. And I hope 30 00:01:47.195 --> 00:01:50.875 we can give you a sense of what it's like to participate in these 31 00:01:50.875 --> 00:01:54.570 expressions as well. These experiences may get us 32 00:01:54.570 --> 00:01:57.870 rethinking what it is that we think about when we think 33 00:01:57.930 --> 00:02:00.990 church. All that is coming up on Compass. 34 00:02:04.170 --> 00:02:07.855 We saw it as a need. We started, trying to work on 35 00:02:08.155 --> 00:02:11.035 what it was going to take to be an outreach in the community, and we 36 00:02:11.035 --> 00:02:14.875 decided the church is not the building. The church is the people outside. And 37 00:02:14.875 --> 00:02:18.635 so we wanted to be out in the community and, have 38 00:02:18.635 --> 00:02:22.480 a better impact. So the congregation for a number of 39 00:02:22.480 --> 00:02:26.319 years has been, you know, trying to get out and be engaged. And when 40 00:02:26.319 --> 00:02:30.000 you go out in the community, you actually see things that you don't normally see, 41 00:02:30.000 --> 00:02:33.680 especially if you do it intentionally. That was Jean Cross, who I 42 00:02:33.680 --> 00:02:37.245 met while making sandwiches in the all purpose fellowship hall of 43 00:02:37.245 --> 00:02:41.084 Central United Methodist Church in Ballston, which is a neighborhood 44 00:02:41.084 --> 00:02:44.924 in Arlington, Virginia. I know it's Jean and a group of friends, some 45 00:02:44.924 --> 00:02:48.605 who are official members of Central UMC in Ballston, and others 46 00:02:48.605 --> 00:02:52.299 who aren't, get together early on Friday mornings to make sandwiches 47 00:02:52.299 --> 00:02:56.060 for the local homeless shelter. There's a lot of kidding back and forth 48 00:02:56.060 --> 00:02:59.659 in this group and a lot of coffee. At different times, the 49 00:02:59.659 --> 00:03:03.495 Friday morning group has done different feeding activities. For a while 50 00:03:03.495 --> 00:03:07.015 during the COVID lockdown, they ran a bodega out of the back of the church 51 00:03:07.015 --> 00:03:10.855 facility. At another time, they did a breakfast cafe. When you once you get to 52 00:03:10.855 --> 00:03:14.295 know and you get to know the stories, you get a better connection with the 53 00:03:14.295 --> 00:03:17.580 folks and you can understand what their problems are and what we need to be 54 00:03:17.580 --> 00:03:20.540 working on as a, you know, society so that it's, 55 00:03:22.220 --> 00:03:25.980 it's it's kind of a it's a way to live out your faith 56 00:03:25.980 --> 00:03:29.340 basically. Several years ago Central UMC had a 57 00:03:29.340 --> 00:03:32.925 problem. Their building was about a 100 years old and in need of 58 00:03:32.925 --> 00:03:35.265 repair, like a lot of repairs. 59 00:03:37.805 --> 00:03:41.345 And so we recognized that we had a building that was crumbling 60 00:03:41.644 --> 00:03:45.350 very literally, and we said, well, what could God 61 00:03:45.350 --> 00:03:48.810 do with what we have on this corner of Stafford and Fairfax 62 00:03:49.750 --> 00:03:53.530 and what the people need, which is housing? This is Central UMC's 63 00:03:53.590 --> 00:03:57.110 pastor, Sarah Harrison McQueen. So I'll use the 64 00:03:57.110 --> 00:04:00.785 phrase that our lay leader used many years ago when she told the 65 00:04:00.785 --> 00:04:04.485 story, because this is a 17 year story that I'll tell you in 17 seconds. 66 00:04:05.105 --> 00:04:08.944 She said the congregation went from an attitude of serve 67 00:04:08.944 --> 00:04:12.440 us to service. And that at its core is 68 00:04:12.440 --> 00:04:16.120 what got this congregation to be willing to say goodbye to 69 00:04:16.120 --> 00:04:19.660 their 100 year old building to allow for 70 00:04:20.040 --> 00:04:23.800 a multi use building that includes folks who they 71 00:04:23.800 --> 00:04:27.425 never would cross paths with otherwise. The church's property sits in a 72 00:04:27.425 --> 00:04:31.185 pretty well trafficked area of Arlington. It's a busy street. There's 73 00:04:31.185 --> 00:04:34.945 an IHOP across the street and a sports bar next door. The local high 74 00:04:34.945 --> 00:04:38.560 school is about 3 blocks away. There's a pretty consistent flow of 75 00:04:38.560 --> 00:04:42.340 people walking by and a non stop flow of car traffic whizzing by. 76 00:04:42.800 --> 00:04:46.320 There's a lot of people to get to know in the area. All these people 77 00:04:46.320 --> 00:04:50.160 have their own unique needs, of course. But one need the church members 78 00:04:50.160 --> 00:04:53.975 kept hearing through their connections in the community was a need for 79 00:04:53.975 --> 00:04:57.815 affordable housing. Carmen Romero is the 80 00:04:57.815 --> 00:05:01.335 CEO of True Ground Housing, a non profit affordable 81 00:05:01.335 --> 00:05:04.635 housing developer in Arlington. She summed up the need. 82 00:05:05.175 --> 00:05:08.950 Really, in the nation, there were 7,000,000 affordable homes behind. 83 00:05:09.170 --> 00:05:12.690 Half American renters are rent burdened. Low income 84 00:05:12.690 --> 00:05:16.390 renters are severely rent burdened, paying 50 to 80% 85 00:05:16.450 --> 00:05:20.290 of their income on housing. In Arlington, that's very 86 00:05:20.290 --> 00:05:23.885 much the case. Many churches would balk at blowing up their facilities. 87 00:05:24.265 --> 00:05:28.105 But what about when those buildings are old and no longer suitable for the 88 00:05:28.105 --> 00:05:31.785 church family or for the community? The leaders of Central 89 00:05:31.785 --> 00:05:35.280 UMC made that connection. Their buildings didn't work for the 90 00:05:35.280 --> 00:05:39.120 good of either their faith community nor their neighborhood. So they 91 00:05:39.120 --> 00:05:42.960 started a project of tearing the building down and starting over. In 92 00:05:42.960 --> 00:05:46.720 place of their antiquated facilities, they were going to right 93 00:05:46.720 --> 00:05:50.455 size their worship space and fellowship spaces. They also wanted to 94 00:05:50.455 --> 00:05:53.975 make sure that their facilities would be multi use. So there are a 95 00:05:53.975 --> 00:05:57.575 lot of adaptable features to their spaces, like movable 96 00:05:57.575 --> 00:06:01.255 chairs, open spaces, a commercial kitchen. The more 97 00:06:01.255 --> 00:06:05.010 traditional church facilities are on the ground floor. On the second level, 98 00:06:05.010 --> 00:06:08.550 our classrooms for Kin Haven, a member governed preschool. 99 00:06:08.850 --> 00:06:12.450 So Kin Haven has reserved 16 spaces for children with the 100 00:06:12.450 --> 00:06:15.990 childcare subsidy in Virginia. And so they've already enrolled 101 00:06:16.210 --> 00:06:19.985 six students from APA properties. So they're looking 102 00:06:19.985 --> 00:06:23.445 for 10 more students that that'll come in at that subsidized rate, 103 00:06:23.825 --> 00:06:27.125 and then we'll have room for up to a 100 students total. 104 00:06:27.505 --> 00:06:30.979 Above all this is Unity Homes, 144 105 00:06:31.199 --> 00:06:34.879 affordable housing units, community rooms, a business center, 106 00:06:34.879 --> 00:06:38.319 laundry facilities, and a really nice terrace that one of my co 107 00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:42.159 producers, AJ Thurman, got really excited about using for 108 00:06:42.159 --> 00:06:45.895 hosting barbecues. Carmen Romero summed it up. It's a 109 00:06:45.895 --> 00:06:49.355 way for 2 nonprofits, that are serving the community 110 00:06:49.895 --> 00:06:53.575 to amplify each other's mission. Here, we have some tree 111 00:06:53.575 --> 00:06:56.935 United Methodist Church who is gonna have a new church facility, a new 112 00:06:56.935 --> 00:07:00.780 daycare, and TrueGround is going to be able to develop a 113 00:07:00.780 --> 00:07:04.460 144 units in an area of high opportunity where we couldn't otherwise have 114 00:07:04.460 --> 00:07:07.900 access to land. Projects like this always come with a case of 115 00:07:07.900 --> 00:07:11.580 nimbyism. That is people who say that developments like this 116 00:07:11.580 --> 00:07:15.355 are good, but not in my backyard. Pastor 117 00:07:15.355 --> 00:07:18.735 Sarah. This process challenged some of our neighbors 118 00:07:19.035 --> 00:07:22.715 to be willing to have neighbors they wouldn't have 119 00:07:22.715 --> 00:07:26.320 otherwise. And so there was a group who wanted to 120 00:07:26.320 --> 00:07:29.920 use historic preservation as a way to stop an affordable 121 00:07:29.920 --> 00:07:33.620 housing project, but thankfully, we made it through that process 122 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:37.460 with a compromise where we retained some of the 123 00:07:37.600 --> 00:07:41.404 historic elements that we hadn't originally planned to keep. Ultimately, God. There are 124 00:07:41.404 --> 00:07:44.665 so many ways that this process unfolded that only God could have foreseen. 125 00:07:45.044 --> 00:07:48.585 You know, we have a very small congregation. 126 00:07:51.870 --> 00:07:55.470 It's 2017 when we did our capital campaign. We needed to raise 127 00:07:55.470 --> 00:07:59.230 $500,000 in order to hire architects and to begin the 128 00:07:59.230 --> 00:08:02.750 legal process of getting approval for this project. That's a 129 00:08:02.750 --> 00:08:06.450 big ask for most churches, but particularly our church. 130 00:08:06.965 --> 00:08:10.724 And we worked with a fabulous campaign consultant. And on 131 00:08:10.724 --> 00:08:14.565 the day of the commitment Sunday, we had hoped 132 00:08:14.565 --> 00:08:18.245 to get, a good response. And we got more than 133 00:08:18.245 --> 00:08:22.020 50% of our goal on that day pledged. And I 134 00:08:22.020 --> 00:08:25.460 burst into tears when she told me because that was so far outside of what 135 00:08:25.460 --> 00:08:29.219 I expected. One of 136 00:08:29.219 --> 00:08:32.600 the features of Central UMC's renovation is a commercial 137 00:08:32.659 --> 00:08:36.135 kitchen. This kitchen has helped to give life to another 138 00:08:36.434 --> 00:08:39.875 unique expression of church. My name is Alyssa 139 00:08:39.875 --> 00:08:43.715 Dintem, and I am the pastor of Provision Church, a 140 00:08:43.715 --> 00:08:47.395 new United Methodist church plant here in Northern Virginia. We 141 00:08:47.395 --> 00:08:51.190 launched on January 1st 2023. Yeah. So Provision 142 00:08:51.190 --> 00:08:54.630 Church is a missional faith community and we live out that mission through Provision 143 00:08:54.630 --> 00:08:58.390 Kitchen. We operate what we call community cafes. They're they're 144 00:08:58.390 --> 00:09:01.690 basically day centers where folks who are housing insecure 145 00:09:02.305 --> 00:09:05.905 can find a safe place to linger for as long as they 146 00:09:05.905 --> 00:09:09.665 want, find nutritious and delicious chef curated meals 147 00:09:09.665 --> 00:09:13.185 and light snacks, and then they also have access to 148 00:09:13.185 --> 00:09:16.945 help to navigate some of those really hard resources that 149 00:09:16.945 --> 00:09:20.260 they need to survive. So over the course of the week, we operate 150 00:09:20.720 --> 00:09:24.100 3 different cafes. Right now, we're standing in our Ballston 151 00:09:24.160 --> 00:09:27.840 Cafe, which is our only indoor cafe. We're here on 152 00:09:27.840 --> 00:09:31.440 Wednesdays, and then we have 2 outdoor cafes that we operate in the 153 00:09:31.440 --> 00:09:35.245 Springfield area, so not far from here, but on Thursdays Fridays. 154 00:09:35.705 --> 00:09:39.545 Provision Church uses Central UMC's commercial kitchen to prepare 155 00:09:39.545 --> 00:09:43.225 food for the pop up cafes. Instead of a worship event being 156 00:09:43.225 --> 00:09:46.800 the central point of the community life for Provision Church, the 157 00:09:46.800 --> 00:09:50.240 cafes are the central events of their community life. Because 158 00:09:50.240 --> 00:09:53.760 Jesus because Jesus I mean, at the end of the day, that's isn't that the 159 00:09:53.760 --> 00:09:56.340 answer all the time. That's what we do at Sunday school. 160 00:09:57.680 --> 00:10:01.375 Jesus said, feed my sheep. And then Jesus also said, 161 00:10:01.375 --> 00:10:05.135 tend my sheep and you kinda have to do both of those things if you're 162 00:10:05.135 --> 00:10:08.975 gonna live and walk and try to follow the way of Jesus and so 163 00:10:08.975 --> 00:10:12.735 we gather at tables because that's what Jesus did. To have meals with 164 00:10:12.735 --> 00:10:16.560 people because that's what Jesus did So that we can learn more 165 00:10:16.560 --> 00:10:20.400 about what it means to be in community, not just with God, 166 00:10:20.400 --> 00:10:24.080 who we love, but with our neighbors, who we need to know better. 167 00:10:24.080 --> 00:10:27.920 Much like Central UFC, as provision church members got to know 168 00:10:27.920 --> 00:10:31.615 their neighbors, They asked questions about what their neighbors needed 169 00:10:31.915 --> 00:10:35.535 and in listening, they found that their neighbors needed assistance in navigating 170 00:10:35.915 --> 00:10:39.675 some of the administrative and social barriers to get what they 171 00:10:39.675 --> 00:10:42.895 need. They needed companionship and an advocate 172 00:10:43.470 --> 00:10:46.610 In the hierarchy of church staffing hiring, 173 00:10:47.149 --> 00:10:50.990 often churches start with hiring a pastor. Provision Church is 174 00:10:50.990 --> 00:10:54.750 no different there. Pastor Alyssa was the first employee. But from 175 00:10:54.750 --> 00:10:58.465 there, the church might hire an administrator or a worship 176 00:10:58.465 --> 00:11:02.245 leader or a youth pastor. Provision Church hired a social worker. 177 00:11:02.305 --> 00:11:05.665 Specifically, they hired Jesse Lee. My role as 178 00:11:05.665 --> 00:11:09.345 director of community connections, which 179 00:11:09.345 --> 00:11:13.070 originally was to basically pull, resources 180 00:11:13.209 --> 00:11:16.970 from different, organizations within the community, and 181 00:11:16.970 --> 00:11:20.810 then it kind of turned more into case management. As I hung 182 00:11:20.810 --> 00:11:24.524 around at one of the cafes, Jesse helped 1 cafe participant 183 00:11:24.524 --> 00:11:28.205 locate a muffler for his van so he could use it at his handyman 184 00:11:28.205 --> 00:11:31.885 business. Jesse also helped another participant get times 185 00:11:31.885 --> 00:11:35.660 and locations for citizenship classes. Another participant got 186 00:11:35.660 --> 00:11:39.500 help in putting together a transportation plan for getting children home from 187 00:11:39.500 --> 00:11:43.260 school while she went to a counseling session. But Jesse notes that the 188 00:11:43.260 --> 00:11:46.880 biggest rewards come when it's not just the church staff helping people. 189 00:11:47.045 --> 00:11:50.725 They help each other. One guy said, you wanted to go to 190 00:11:50.725 --> 00:11:54.085 detox. And, another 191 00:11:54.085 --> 00:11:57.865 guy said, I'll take you on the bus. 192 00:11:58.485 --> 00:12:02.260 And they're both unhoused, and they're, like, using all the resources 193 00:12:02.260 --> 00:12:06.100 they can to help each other. And they got so they took him on 194 00:12:06.100 --> 00:12:09.860 the bus, and then they got off at the wrong stop. The guy 195 00:12:09.860 --> 00:12:12.200 who he's a really huge guy, like, £300, 196 00:12:13.460 --> 00:12:16.965 to, like, mostly muscle, carries the guy into an 197 00:12:16.965 --> 00:12:20.725 Uber that he pays for, to take him the rest of the way to 198 00:12:20.725 --> 00:12:24.405 the detox program. Now in some ways, this begins to 199 00:12:24.405 --> 00:12:28.245 sound like a social service. So I asked people, what makes provision 200 00:12:28.245 --> 00:12:32.089 church a church? Pastor Alyssa offered this. I think 201 00:12:32.089 --> 00:12:35.769 most people come because they think they're gonna get a free meal, and 202 00:12:35.769 --> 00:12:39.370 they do. That's that's why we offer it. Right? But what 203 00:12:39.370 --> 00:12:43.130 they show up here and they receive, and they then begin 204 00:12:43.130 --> 00:12:46.815 to participate in is a community. We have 205 00:12:46.815 --> 00:12:50.575 folks who a year ago didn't know each other, like, 206 00:12:50.575 --> 00:12:54.255 literally didn't know each other, and right now if there wasn't a cafe, still would 207 00:12:54.255 --> 00:12:57.855 have no reason to know each other, but when somebody is in 208 00:12:57.855 --> 00:13:01.279 crisis, they come along each other, come come 209 00:13:01.279 --> 00:13:04.880 alongside each other in a way that you 210 00:13:04.880 --> 00:13:08.720 only do because you feel like you know someone and you trust 211 00:13:08.720 --> 00:13:12.500 them really well. And the space of the cafe offers that to people. 212 00:13:12.885 --> 00:13:16.325 Once community and connection are established, it quickly turns 213 00:13:16.325 --> 00:13:20.085 spiritual. Jesse told me this story. I can tell you a 214 00:13:20.085 --> 00:13:23.925 million stories, but something that was really special to me was 215 00:13:23.925 --> 00:13:27.225 we were just chatting at the cafe in Springfield, 216 00:13:27.605 --> 00:13:31.420 and this other guy next to me was 217 00:13:31.420 --> 00:13:34.779 having some separate side conversation while I was having some other 218 00:13:34.779 --> 00:13:38.540 conversation. He turns and looks straight at me and says, I wanna get 219 00:13:38.540 --> 00:13:41.900 baptized right now. I you need to take me to the 220 00:13:41.900 --> 00:13:45.475 church, and I need to be dunked. He he used that word. 221 00:13:45.775 --> 00:13:49.615 And, that was just really cool to have a community 222 00:13:49.615 --> 00:13:52.975 member kind of just have that, like, oh, I need to have 223 00:13:52.975 --> 00:13:55.154 this happen right now moment. 224 00:13:57.030 --> 00:14:00.810 Speaking of being in the moment, improv comedy 225 00:14:00.950 --> 00:14:04.630 is an experience of total immersion in the moment. There is no 226 00:14:04.630 --> 00:14:08.390 script. There's only impulse in reaction. One of the rules 227 00:14:08.390 --> 00:14:12.045 of improv is that there are no bad ideas. I wish we 228 00:14:12.045 --> 00:14:15.645 embrace that ethos a bit more within the church, especially in 229 00:14:15.645 --> 00:14:18.945 relation to people. The Vine Church in Dunloring, 230 00:14:19.085 --> 00:14:21.665 Virginia lived through that perspective. 231 00:14:22.685 --> 00:14:26.340 1, 2, 2, 3. 1, 2, 232 00:14:26.340 --> 00:14:30.100 3. What did you put on top of that? What did you 233 00:14:30.100 --> 00:14:33.540 put on top of that? Well, I'll never. Well, I'll 234 00:14:33.540 --> 00:14:37.140 never. That is the improv church crew getting 235 00:14:37.140 --> 00:14:40.795 ready for one of their monthly sets. Here's how the 236 00:14:40.795 --> 00:14:44.235 night goes at improv church. This scene is the 237 00:14:44.235 --> 00:14:47.915 worship space of the vine church from the outside. The church building 238 00:14:47.915 --> 00:14:51.595 looks fairly stereotypical church building. It's a brick 239 00:14:51.595 --> 00:14:55.230 rectangle with a steeple, some stained glass inside the 240 00:14:55.230 --> 00:14:59.070 sanctuary. The pews have been removed though. Platform serves as a 241 00:14:59.070 --> 00:15:02.590 short stage. A cool feature that I enjoyed was the 242 00:15:02.590 --> 00:15:06.430 mocktail slash coffee bar near the side entrance. On 243 00:15:06.430 --> 00:15:09.904 the particular evening, our team visited improv church. There are 244 00:15:09.904 --> 00:15:13.365 about 60 people in attendance. Vine Church's pastor, 245 00:15:13.504 --> 00:15:16.725 Katie Phillips, begins the gathering in performance time 246 00:15:16.944 --> 00:15:20.785 describing what this evening is about. So here's what's gonna 247 00:15:20.785 --> 00:15:24.340 happen tonight. We're gonna use a form of improv comedy that's called 248 00:15:24.640 --> 00:15:28.240 a long form. It's called an Armando. And in Armando, you go to see it 249 00:15:28.240 --> 00:15:31.940 in comedy clubs across the country. Normally, they find a local celebrity 250 00:15:32.800 --> 00:15:36.160 who comes up and gives a monologue, tells a true story about their 251 00:15:36.160 --> 00:15:39.945 life, and then the improv comedians use that as inspiration for a night 252 00:15:39.945 --> 00:15:43.305 of comedy. Right? Partway through the show, the 253 00:15:43.305 --> 00:15:46.665 monologist comes back up, gives another short monologue, and the 254 00:15:46.665 --> 00:15:50.265 improvisers do a couple of other scenes. Because you're an improv 255 00:15:50.265 --> 00:15:54.070 church, instead of a local celebrity giving a monologue, we're excited 256 00:15:54.070 --> 00:15:57.510 tonight to welcome a pastor to give a sermon. What? A 257 00:15:57.510 --> 00:16:01.350 sermon. A sermon and 258 00:16:01.350 --> 00:16:05.050 comedy, and one night, you're lucky. You're lucky. A short sermon or homily 259 00:16:05.110 --> 00:16:08.805 follows. Tonight, it's given by a guest preacher, Reverend Jonathan 260 00:16:08.805 --> 00:16:12.105 Page. But, hey. We're gonna, read a scripture 261 00:16:12.245 --> 00:16:15.525 today, from the gospel of Matthew. So, 262 00:16:15.845 --> 00:16:19.145 Matthew chapter 5 verses 38 through 42. 263 00:16:19.525 --> 00:16:23.180 What I wanna preface this with is that for a long time, 264 00:16:23.180 --> 00:16:26.540 this has been one of my least favorite passages in the entire 265 00:16:26.540 --> 00:16:30.080 body. Then hilarity and hijinks ensues. 266 00:16:30.300 --> 00:16:34.000 First up, we have the Chanel model doing their 267 00:16:34.060 --> 00:16:37.475 lovely dance down the runway, and we've heard this one is 268 00:16:37.475 --> 00:16:41.095 really special. Oh, yes. It's giving 269 00:16:41.475 --> 00:16:44.615 playtime. It's giving it's giving 270 00:16:44.915 --> 00:16:47.014 colors and primary color. 271 00:16:48.834 --> 00:16:52.330 Thank you so much, Chanel Model. The skits 272 00:16:52.330 --> 00:16:55.770 or acts include some elements or visualizations from 273 00:16:55.770 --> 00:16:59.610 Reverend Jonathan's sermon. He preached on the portion of the Sermon on 274 00:16:59.610 --> 00:17:03.390 the Mount where Jesus talks about how if we are struck on the right cheek, 275 00:17:03.690 --> 00:17:07.355 we should turn and offer the left cheek as well. Or if we're forced to 276 00:17:07.355 --> 00:17:11.194 walk 1 mile, we should walk another. There's a skit that 277 00:17:11.194 --> 00:17:14.974 includes a fight club scene with people being joyfully struck. 278 00:17:15.115 --> 00:17:18.875 There's another skit where a family begrudgingly takes 279 00:17:18.875 --> 00:17:22.530 on a hike and picks up more hikers on their group as 280 00:17:22.530 --> 00:17:26.369 they add on mile after mile. Pastor Katie is one of 281 00:17:26.369 --> 00:17:30.050 the improv performers, but she also easily moves into a 282 00:17:30.050 --> 00:17:33.510 pastoral role when inviting improv church congregants 283 00:17:33.810 --> 00:17:37.524 into receiving communion. This dual role that Katie plays 284 00:17:37.524 --> 00:17:41.365 has an impact on the congregation in providing a personal sense of 285 00:17:41.365 --> 00:17:45.144 connection to the improv events. It also has a fascinating 286 00:17:45.365 --> 00:17:49.140 effect on Katie's fellow performers. This is improviser Peter 287 00:17:49.140 --> 00:17:52.039 Bergen. It's great to see my friend Katie, who I know is a great improviser, 288 00:17:52.260 --> 00:17:55.700 great at something else, and that's being a pastor. And what I think she's great 289 00:17:55.700 --> 00:17:58.760 at is making church and religion 290 00:17:59.539 --> 00:18:03.355 accessible while not making it 291 00:18:04.135 --> 00:18:07.975 stuffy, but the message never gets compromised. Like 1st, we wanna invite you to this 292 00:18:07.975 --> 00:18:11.735 communion table. This is a worship service. We know it's different probably than other 293 00:18:11.735 --> 00:18:15.575 worship services that you have been to, but, this is 294 00:18:15.575 --> 00:18:19.149 Vine Church, and we fundamentally believe that God is 295 00:18:19.149 --> 00:18:22.510 good, that God calls us and invites us into a 296 00:18:22.510 --> 00:18:26.350 community, and that in this work of sharing and learning and growing 297 00:18:26.350 --> 00:18:30.190 and caring for one another, that we get to learn and experience more of who 298 00:18:30.190 --> 00:18:33.885 God is. The improvisers concluded with one last segment, which 299 00:18:33.885 --> 00:18:37.265 included audience participation through suggested lines. 300 00:18:39.085 --> 00:18:42.845 The night was fun. I enjoyed getting a look behind the scenes in an event 301 00:18:42.845 --> 00:18:46.605 like this. I wondered though, how was this perceived by 302 00:18:46.605 --> 00:18:50.440 some of the congregants? Was it a performance for them? Was it a fun 303 00:18:50.440 --> 00:18:54.120 night out? Or was it church for them? We spoke 304 00:18:54.120 --> 00:18:57.740 with Jeremy Hancock after the event about his perceptions 305 00:18:58.120 --> 00:19:01.895 of improv church. Yeah. I think you still get all the same elements of church. 306 00:19:01.895 --> 00:19:05.175 You get a little bit of a a little bit of a sermon. You get 307 00:19:05.175 --> 00:19:08.875 communion and a lot of stories in between that all 308 00:19:09.015 --> 00:19:12.715 ultimately get connected. And I think ultimately, it's a way to 309 00:19:12.940 --> 00:19:16.540 connect with with people, and that's what, you know, what church is all about on 310 00:19:16.540 --> 00:19:20.320 Sunday mornings. A congregant named Cara added this. I think 311 00:19:20.460 --> 00:19:24.240 the the upfront mini sermon, kind of grounds 312 00:19:24.460 --> 00:19:28.065 what this is all about. And then we we bring it back to 313 00:19:28.065 --> 00:19:31.285 that, in the middle with another short, 314 00:19:32.305 --> 00:19:36.145 sermon by the an ordained minister. And then 315 00:19:36.145 --> 00:19:39.750 the communion, of course, is the way that we remember that we're all 316 00:19:39.830 --> 00:19:43.590 connected to God and, that that 317 00:19:43.590 --> 00:19:47.190 this is another way that we can worship our Lord. Some people within the 318 00:19:47.190 --> 00:19:50.710 larger church may still question whether or not Improv 319 00:19:50.710 --> 00:19:54.170 Church is church. I think Improv Church participants 320 00:19:54.390 --> 00:19:57.885 might suggest that the event is part of 321 00:19:57.885 --> 00:20:01.105 church. It's a way to begin a pathway towards discipleship 322 00:20:01.565 --> 00:20:03.745 and belonging in the community of faith. 323 00:20:06.525 --> 00:20:09.890 All of the ministries we've explored thus far invite 324 00:20:09.890 --> 00:20:13.650 participation without strings attached. In order to receive a meal 325 00:20:13.650 --> 00:20:17.250 from Provision Church, there's no requirement that you attend a worship 326 00:20:17.250 --> 00:20:21.090 service or hear a sermon. In order to live at Central 327 00:20:21.090 --> 00:20:24.804 UMC's Housing Unit, there's not an addendum that you must also 328 00:20:24.804 --> 00:20:28.505 attend Sunday service at Central UMC. Improv Church 329 00:20:28.565 --> 00:20:32.085 is not for Vine Church members only. The 330 00:20:32.085 --> 00:20:35.465 ethos at work here suggests that a pathway of discipleship 331 00:20:35.765 --> 00:20:39.429 begins when people start to form relationships with 332 00:20:39.490 --> 00:20:43.250 disciples. In one of Provision Church's pop up cafes, I talked with a 333 00:20:43.250 --> 00:20:46.470 volunteer named Kathleen. She offered her job description. 334 00:20:47.010 --> 00:20:50.850 I have to sit with people. I try to start conversation. I try to smile 335 00:20:50.850 --> 00:20:54.265 as much as possible and be welcoming and learn people's names. 336 00:20:55.365 --> 00:20:59.045 They really have a philosophy of personhood and value and 337 00:20:59.045 --> 00:21:02.805 giving people worth, and I just try to manifest that. I don't actually 338 00:21:02.805 --> 00:21:06.085 do a ton. Maybe I'll pass somebody a meal or, you know, go get some 339 00:21:06.085 --> 00:21:09.760 extra supplies. But mostly I just try to make a lot of eye contact 340 00:21:09.760 --> 00:21:13.280 and make people feel valued and like I care about them. Improv 341 00:21:13.280 --> 00:21:17.120 church uses the allure of laughter as an opportunity to hang 342 00:21:17.120 --> 00:21:20.559 out with people and invite them to do what disciples of 343 00:21:20.559 --> 00:21:24.215 Jesus do. I spoke with pastor Katie at the end of the night 344 00:21:24.215 --> 00:21:27.735 after the crowd had cleared and the mocktails had been bust 345 00:21:27.735 --> 00:21:31.095 away. But I think the things that have surprised me is that this has been 346 00:21:31.095 --> 00:21:34.934 a place that members of our congregation have invited 347 00:21:34.934 --> 00:21:38.550 their spouse who otherwise is not interested in coming to church, or 348 00:21:38.550 --> 00:21:41.610 their teenager, or their young adult, kiddo, 349 00:21:42.390 --> 00:21:45.910 or their neighbor. Whereas the people who are bought in, who are church 350 00:21:45.910 --> 00:21:49.455 members, but who have not necessarily found the 351 00:21:49.455 --> 00:21:53.215 gumption to invite their people to something and or the things they've invited 352 00:21:53.215 --> 00:21:57.054 them to haven't been a good fit. Improv church seems to be. So we 353 00:21:57.054 --> 00:22:00.275 have a number of folks who this is where they worship with their spouse, 354 00:22:00.895 --> 00:22:04.300 or this is where they worship with their kids, and then they come 355 00:22:04.300 --> 00:22:08.060 alone on Sunday or to other expressions of worship. The 356 00:22:08.060 --> 00:22:11.740 other thing that has been surprising is the comedians. I've, in the 357 00:22:11.740 --> 00:22:15.580 beginning, was asking a favor of my friends and was like, I wanna give 358 00:22:15.580 --> 00:22:18.875 this a shot. Like, what do you think? And we'll buy you dinner, and we 359 00:22:18.875 --> 00:22:22.315 give them a $50 Visa gift card, which is, like, not worth their time, 360 00:22:22.315 --> 00:22:26.075 but something. Right? And they were like, yeah. We'll we'll do 361 00:22:26.075 --> 00:22:29.915 this. But some interesting things have happened. So we have more 362 00:22:29.915 --> 00:22:33.595 than one of the improvisers who attend now, Vine Church, one who 363 00:22:33.595 --> 00:22:37.350 joined in membership. I've officiated at the wedding 364 00:22:37.490 --> 00:22:41.330 of 2 different couples who are part of comedian couples who are part of Improv 365 00:22:41.330 --> 00:22:44.870 Church, and just kind of been invited into faith conversations 366 00:22:45.410 --> 00:22:49.145 with folks for whom attending church is completely 367 00:22:49.145 --> 00:22:52.525 countercultural and seemingly ridiculous otherwise. 368 00:22:53.145 --> 00:22:56.665 So that has been has felt really extraordinary to 369 00:22:56.665 --> 00:23:00.425 me. We have, one of the improvisers after the 3rd 370 00:23:00.425 --> 00:23:04.110 show sent me a text, like, at midnight back home 371 00:23:04.110 --> 00:23:07.950 after cleaning everything up. And the text message said, this is the 372 00:23:07.950 --> 00:23:11.549 3rd time I've heard you talk about this Jesus guy. I'm starting to wonder if 373 00:23:11.549 --> 00:23:15.169 there's something there for me. In the vein of hilarity and hijinks, 374 00:23:15.549 --> 00:23:18.805 here's my transition to our next topic. 375 00:23:19.425 --> 00:23:23.105 It takes a number of ingredients to pull church together, but 376 00:23:23.105 --> 00:23:26.805 maybe these various ingredients make church robust and exciting. 377 00:23:27.505 --> 00:23:30.945 Kind of like a good soup is the right blend of 378 00:23:30.945 --> 00:23:34.580 various ingredients. So let me tell you 379 00:23:34.580 --> 00:23:38.420 about Coop's Soups. Boom. Transition. As you can see, 380 00:23:38.420 --> 00:23:42.180 it gets a little messy. I'm happy to be here. We make big shapes 381 00:23:42.180 --> 00:23:45.940 like this. And, hopefully, it all comes together. It doesn't 382 00:23:45.940 --> 00:23:49.735 matter what every week we do this. All these things get all thrown out 383 00:23:49.735 --> 00:23:53.435 and then all of a sudden becomes an awesome soup. So That's Doug, 384 00:23:53.575 --> 00:23:57.175 one of the soup preparers who joined us for the preparing of a 385 00:23:57.175 --> 00:24:00.795 tomato lentil curry in the basement kitchen of a church in Maryland. 386 00:24:01.300 --> 00:24:05.060 It's here that we'll have our experience with coop soups. The way 387 00:24:05.060 --> 00:24:08.420 the soup started was it started in a dinner church in our 388 00:24:08.420 --> 00:24:12.260 apartment, and I started making soup because it's easy to add a 389 00:24:12.260 --> 00:24:15.945 potato to if you hear someone else is coming. It's also 390 00:24:15.945 --> 00:24:19.005 pretty relatively low cost. All the ingredients 391 00:24:19.304 --> 00:24:22.445 don't necessarily stretch a budget too far. 392 00:24:22.985 --> 00:24:26.445 And then now that I've been in the process of making soup a while, 393 00:24:26.745 --> 00:24:30.590 one of my favorite parts of that process is when all the ingredients 394 00:24:30.590 --> 00:24:34.350 are in the pot and there's nothing else for you to do and they 395 00:24:34.350 --> 00:24:38.190 do their own thing and turn into soup as we know it. And I 396 00:24:38.190 --> 00:24:42.015 just think that's such a beautiful metaphor for, like, 397 00:24:42.015 --> 00:24:45.695 our relationship with God that there's times when we're working 398 00:24:45.695 --> 00:24:49.295 in accordance, and then there's times when God is doing something, and we can 399 00:24:49.295 --> 00:24:53.055 kinda take a Sabbath rest. And the work will do 400 00:24:53.055 --> 00:24:56.570 itself, and there's a moment when we need to step back. That is 401 00:24:56.570 --> 00:25:00.410 Reverend Kristin Cooper, the founder of Coop Soups. We spoke just 402 00:25:00.410 --> 00:25:03.930 after she and a group of volunteers prepared several gallons of 403 00:25:03.930 --> 00:25:07.070 tomato lentil curry soup for a feeding ministry in Maryland. 404 00:25:07.530 --> 00:25:11.295 Preparing soup for those in need is part of what Coop Soups does, 405 00:25:11.295 --> 00:25:14.975 though there's something more to it as well. God, grace, thank you 406 00:25:14.975 --> 00:25:18.575 for this day, this opportunity to encounter your 407 00:25:18.575 --> 00:25:22.255 grace in the soup making process as we interact with 408 00:25:22.255 --> 00:25:25.790 tomatoes and cilantro and lime juice and 409 00:25:26.050 --> 00:25:29.890 also to encounter your grace in the faces of those we are going 410 00:25:29.890 --> 00:25:33.330 to cook with and those that are in spirit here with 411 00:25:33.330 --> 00:25:37.030 us that will be eating the soup beyond just today. 412 00:25:38.164 --> 00:25:41.705 We ask that we grow more into your love 413 00:25:41.845 --> 00:25:45.445 today and beyond. And you say all this in 414 00:25:45.445 --> 00:25:49.205 Jesus' name. Amen. You don't need to be a member 415 00:25:49.205 --> 00:25:52.980 of any particular church to be on Coop Soup's prep team. In fact, 416 00:25:52.980 --> 00:25:56.660 I met participants who didn't profess any kind of religious belief. They 417 00:25:56.660 --> 00:26:00.020 just wanted to participate in something meaningful that was helping other 418 00:26:00.020 --> 00:26:03.640 people and creating community. Probably a central 419 00:26:03.700 --> 00:26:07.434 part of our ministry is being at the farmer's market. So this 420 00:26:07.434 --> 00:26:11.274 is where we really practice loving God and 421 00:26:11.274 --> 00:26:14.955 loving our neighbor. And we believe that in that process of 422 00:26:14.955 --> 00:26:18.414 getting to know our neighbor face to face in the farmers market setting 423 00:26:18.660 --> 00:26:21.880 that we're that God is communicating to us and, 424 00:26:23.060 --> 00:26:26.360 encouraging us to to listen and discern to the spirit, 425 00:26:26.820 --> 00:26:30.260 and then we respond in accordance. We have a 426 00:26:30.260 --> 00:26:33.940 customer named John who has been with us from the 427 00:26:33.940 --> 00:26:37.455 beginning. So we launched in 2019. And in 2020, 428 00:26:37.915 --> 00:26:41.195 he, came up to us at the market and he said, I just looked at 429 00:26:41.195 --> 00:26:45.035 your website for the first time, and I saw that you're a church. And I 430 00:26:45.035 --> 00:26:48.610 have nothing good to say about the church, and I have everything good to say 431 00:26:48.610 --> 00:26:52.450 about what you're doing here. And his only experience of us 432 00:26:52.450 --> 00:26:56.049 was how we treated and related to our neighbors at the farmers 433 00:26:56.049 --> 00:26:59.890 market space. There's all these touch points, like, at the farmers 434 00:26:59.890 --> 00:27:03.645 market when we're talking about our week, in the soup making process, 435 00:27:03.705 --> 00:27:07.325 in the connecting to, like, our local farmer and what's in season. 436 00:27:07.625 --> 00:27:11.065 There's just all these moments of encountering God's 437 00:27:11.065 --> 00:27:14.520 grace and being invited, again, 438 00:27:14.520 --> 00:27:17.820 into deeper intimacy with God's love. And 439 00:27:18.440 --> 00:27:22.280 I believe that can happen in a traditional church setting and outside 440 00:27:22.280 --> 00:27:25.180 of a traditional church setting, but God is 441 00:27:25.800 --> 00:27:29.355 beyond both settings. The preparation is 442 00:27:29.355 --> 00:27:32.955 something of a holy process as well. Provision Church's 443 00:27:32.955 --> 00:27:36.655 Alyssa Densham noted that Jesus often met others around a meal. 444 00:27:36.875 --> 00:27:40.555 Pastor Kristen noticed that as well. In that process of making soup, it's 445 00:27:40.555 --> 00:27:44.140 just a really natural way to get to know one another and create a 446 00:27:44.140 --> 00:27:47.900 space of belonging. So I think it's something as practical as, like, 447 00:27:47.900 --> 00:27:51.660 when you're chopping a onion, you're not making eye contact. So 448 00:27:51.660 --> 00:27:55.340 there's, like, an invitation to kind of be a little more relaxed and a 449 00:27:55.340 --> 00:27:59.125 little more vulnerable. There's also the you 450 00:27:59.125 --> 00:28:02.884 hear a lot of people's health stories and stories around food 451 00:28:02.884 --> 00:28:06.725 and family food traditions. And so it's just this natural way to get 452 00:28:06.725 --> 00:28:10.440 a whole picture of, like, who is this person in front of you? And what 453 00:28:10.440 --> 00:28:14.200 excites them and what what's their history? And then we 454 00:28:14.200 --> 00:28:17.799 always eat the soup. So anytime I make soup with somebody, we 455 00:28:17.799 --> 00:28:21.639 always sit down and eat the soup. And that's really important to us because 456 00:28:21.639 --> 00:28:25.054 it again is about the like, this is about slowing 457 00:28:25.054 --> 00:28:28.575 down. It's worth noting that Coop Soups cares deeply for 458 00:28:28.575 --> 00:28:32.195 people, but they also seek a holistic care for the environment. 459 00:28:32.654 --> 00:28:36.254 The tomatoes, which form the basis of our curry were all second 460 00:28:36.254 --> 00:28:39.960 tomatoes, meaning that they were tomatoes that weren't going to market 461 00:28:39.960 --> 00:28:43.799 and would otherwise go to waste. Coop soups has connections with several 462 00:28:43.799 --> 00:28:47.480 area farmers who will donate produce like this so that Coop 463 00:28:47.480 --> 00:28:51.240 soups gets cheap ingredients and something good comes out of a product that 464 00:28:51.240 --> 00:28:52.860 would otherwise be thrown away. 465 00:28:56.255 --> 00:28:59.615 In a way, that's a bit of what these expressions of church are 466 00:28:59.615 --> 00:29:03.375 doing. Traditional church models can be wonderful, and they work for 467 00:29:03.375 --> 00:29:06.830 many people, but they don't work for everyone. It's true that 468 00:29:07.049 --> 00:29:10.570 these innovative approaches to church won't work for 469 00:29:10.570 --> 00:29:14.410 everyone either. Pastor Katie of Improv Church told me 470 00:29:14.410 --> 00:29:18.169 about meeting with her church council and being upfront that Improv 471 00:29:18.169 --> 00:29:21.885 Church would include words and scenes many would find startling 472 00:29:21.885 --> 00:29:24.865 in a church setting. They gave her the go ahead anyways, 473 00:29:25.245 --> 00:29:28.865 recognizing that the culture inside the church was not reflective 474 00:29:29.245 --> 00:29:32.945 of all the niches of society. We have this incredible 475 00:29:33.005 --> 00:29:36.280 opportunity and invitation to be, inviters, 476 00:29:36.900 --> 00:29:40.580 to be tellers, to be sharers, to be witnesses, to be 477 00:29:40.580 --> 00:29:44.340 community with folks in a unique way around the truth of who 478 00:29:44.340 --> 00:29:47.880 Jesus Christ is. So I really thought through, 479 00:29:48.065 --> 00:29:51.665 like, what is worship at its core? And so I went back to, like, 480 00:29:51.665 --> 00:29:55.505 Seminary 101, like a fourfold pattern of worship. So all of 481 00:29:55.505 --> 00:29:58.945 the expressions that Vine does here that are worship services, yoga 482 00:29:58.945 --> 00:30:02.680 worship, diner church, dinner church, improv church, like in 483 00:30:02.680 --> 00:30:06.520 any of the different things that we've tried in Biblers follows a 4 fold 484 00:30:06.520 --> 00:30:10.280 pattern of worship. So we we try to be really thoughtful about this work of 485 00:30:10.280 --> 00:30:13.740 inviting and what it means to share the word. Right? And how we, 486 00:30:14.235 --> 00:30:17.915 then respond to that and how we send people forth. We're sending you 487 00:30:17.915 --> 00:30:21.435 forth with that. If you're interested in learning more about any of these 488 00:30:21.435 --> 00:30:24.975 ministries, links are in the show notes for this episode at unc.org. 489 00:30:25.595 --> 00:30:29.230 I'd encourage you to reach out to the respective leaders of these ministries. They 490 00:30:29.230 --> 00:30:32.690 were all super responsive to me and willing to talk about the strengths 491 00:30:32.830 --> 00:30:34.769 and struggles of what they do. 492 00:30:37.630 --> 00:30:41.415 If this episode was meaningful for you, we've got a couple more 493 00:30:41.495 --> 00:30:45.335 Compass episodes that you're likely to enjoy. Our most recent 494 00:30:45.335 --> 00:30:48.855 episode to this one, episode number 140, is a talk with Reverend 495 00:30:48.855 --> 00:30:52.695 JJ Warren about church in digital spaces. Or 496 00:30:52.695 --> 00:30:56.470 you may also get something out of episode 111, which was a 497 00:30:56.470 --> 00:31:00.250 standalone episode I did about why people are leaving churches. 498 00:31:00.710 --> 00:31:04.470 Again, my name is Ryan Dunn. Thank you so much for joining me on this 499 00:31:04.470 --> 00:31:08.150 journey. For this episode, I need to give a big shout out to 500 00:31:08.150 --> 00:31:11.985 AJ Thurman who ventured over to Virginia with me and is responsible for 501 00:31:11.985 --> 00:31:15.825 all the recordings that you heard. I'm gonna shout out Ricky Barrow too, who's 502 00:31:15.825 --> 00:31:19.185 working on pulling all of our somewhat random video clips 503 00:31:19.185 --> 00:31:22.945 together into complimentary videos for each one of these 504 00:31:22.945 --> 00:31:26.485 ministries. So be on the lookout for those on umc.org. 505 00:31:27.720 --> 00:31:31.160 Compass is a production of United Methodist Communications. We do 506 00:31:31.160 --> 00:31:34.840 new episodes every 2 weeks. So I hope you'll join us 507 00:31:34.840 --> 00:31:38.200 again in 2 weeks time for another journey into the 508 00:31:38.200 --> 00:31:41.799 surprising ways we might notice God in our day to day 509 00:31:41.799 --> 00:31:44.965 lives. In the meantime, peace to you.