happy finals week.

We were truly honored to worship and explore Scripture with all of you this past school year.  For those of you returning to SPU, we hope you will continue to join next year's Chapel team on Tuesday mornings!

And now, a quick photographic glimpse into the last rehearsal of the 2010-2011 Chapel team...

Our fearless leader:

The team, minus Bob, Lyndsay, and our sound guy duo!

Go in peace.

may 31.

Text:  Romans 15:14-16


Speaker:  Katie Kresser, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Art History


Big picture:  We plan to explore in our last service of the year the ways Paul's address to individual believers in the early Christian church might apply to us today, many years after its original writing.  Specifically, Katie will be leading us in a reflection on both the freedom and sacrifice involved in becoming the people of God.  As many of us look forward to either graduation or perhaps a new chapter of our student careers, we anticipate this message as being timely for many members of our congregation.

may 17.

Text:  Romans 13

Speaker:  Kelsey Holloway, M.Div., Administrative Assistant for the Center for Biblical and Theological Education.  

Big picture:  In our service this week we will be reading from Romans 13, where Paul encourages us to love above all, precisely because the world's redemption is drawing near. As he says in verse eleven, "Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed." To read (or listen) to this week's Romans commentary by Professor Daniel Castelo, visit spu.edu/lectio.

may 10.

Tomorrow we have another unusual Chapel service.  Our regular service time is also functioning as the kick-off for the Embracing the (W)hole Gospel conference hosted on our very own campus!

Our service speaker will be Steve Haas, Vice President and Chief Catalyst at World Vision.  Haas works with church leaders, contributes to strategic planning on major issues, and serves as spokesperson for World Vision’s worldwide humanitarian work.  Haas will be introducing the overarching theme of the (W)hole Faith conference through his address Getting Your Heart Checked.  A forty-five minute Q-and-A session with Haas will follow the regular Chapel service.


For a more detailed schedule of the event, go here.
For more details on both Haas and keynote speaker Richard Stearns (who also serves as President of World Vision) go here.

april 26.

Tomorrow is an unusual but exciting Chapel service featuring special guest John Perkins!

Dr. Perkins has been an active participant in the civil rights movement and is the founder of multiple organizations working for Christian community development, most recently through his founding of the John M. Perkins Foundation for Reconciliation & Development, Inc.  This organization exists for the sole purpose of supporting their mission of advancing the principles of Christian community development and racial reconciliation throughout the world.


There are several speaking events on the SPU campus this week featuring both Dr. Perkins and author Shane Claiborne.  

Event 1:  Premiere of new documentary about the life of Dr. Perkins, Let Justice Roll Down

Monday, April 25 at 7 pm in Upper Gwinn Hall

Event 2:  The Perkins Annual Lecture

Tuesday, April 26 at 9:30 am in FFMC

Event 3:  Community Forum (with author Shane Claiborne; Dr. Darrell Guder of Princeton Theological Seminary; and Dr. Kim Segall of Seattle Pacific University)

Tuesday, April 26 at 1 pm in Demaray 150.


Event 4: group service (only Shane Claiborne)
Wednesday, April 27 at 8:30 pm

For more details, check out the SPU event web page on Perkins here!

reflection: tyler.

As we study Romans in Chapel together this quarter, we have been exploring this tension in the Christian experience: the strangeness of being declared righteous by God--simply by faith, defying reason--yet simultaneously, being broken people in desperate need of restoring.  In other words, even as God declares us to be righteous in his sight because of Jesus, he also asks us to be open to the transforming and healing work in our lives of sanctification.

Drummer and core member Tyler Scott shared a reflection on his personal blog this week that we'd like to share with the Chapel community, because we feel it captures this essence of this tension:

"My decision to pick up a minor in reconciliation here at SPU has allowed me to take some really great classes, I otherwise would not have needed to take. Last quarter I took Eschatology (the study of the end times). This class, and the subsequent conversations and discussions, have completely changed the way I read, think, pray and live. Having a direction and a hope to live towards, and live into will dramatically change the way live your life. What is it you hope for?

This quarter, I have been taking a cultural anthropology class with Dr. Neuhouser—one of the best professors at SPU. Dr. Neuhouser has spent extensive time in Brazil, studying culture and helping many villages develop. The other day, during a lecture about ‘language,’ he shared a story about Brazilian culture.

Often times, there is not a word-for-word translation that can be used in translating some languages. In fact, the Portugese language (which they speak in Brazil) has a word that does not exist in English, unless there is much explanation.

Saudade (pronounced saw-daj-ay) is a word that means both pain and joy. It is a memory which is both sad and joyful, of things distant and gone, and is accompanied by the desire to once again see or have them.

When Dr. Neuhouser shared this word with us, all I could think about was themes of hope and the Kingdom of God. What would it mean if we held this pain and joy in tension in our day-to-day lives. What if we lived right in the middle of pain and joy? When we feel weighed down by the weight of the world, what if we looked forward to the possibilitys of the future renewal. And when we feel ecstatic and joyful, what if we also remembered the past, where we came from to get to this current joy."

Thanks for sharing, Tyler!

april 19.

Text:  Romans 5-6

Speaker:  Celeste Cranston, M.A., Director of the Center for Biblical and Theological Education 

Big picture:  This text from Romans lays out a glorious and easily understood reason to celebrate in the first two verses: we’ve been justified, we have peace with God, we have gained access into this grace in which we now stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.  However, the second half of the passage lays out another kind of celebration and another work of grace in our lives.  It’s not so easy to rejoice in our sufferings, but as we do so we are formed into the very people God wants us to be.  This inward work is not something done to us, but rather something that happens in us as we allow God’s love to be poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.  

april 12.

Text:  Romans 4


Speaker:  Bob Zurinsky, advisor to SPU's Chapel and Group teams


Big picture:  As we continue in our study of Romans, we arrive at the complex and nuanced argument of chapter four. Paul declares that Abraham was the model of a kind of right-ness that comes through faith. And faith, in this case, means a simple trust in God’s promise to bring life out of death. In the example of Abraham and Sarah, the promise was for a child to be born from bodies that were too old to make children. But Paul expands and explains this hope for us: we place our lives in the hands of the God who raised Jesus from the dead. For those who would believe it, this is the "good news" that changes everything.

april 5.

Text:  Romans 1-3


Speaker:  Daniel Castelo, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Theology at SPU.


Dr. Castelo is a member of the Steering Committee of the Pentecostal-Charismatic Movements Consultation of the American Academy of Religion as well as the Intercultural Studies Chair of the Wesleyan Theological Society. 


Big Picture: Prepare for an exciting introduction to the book of Romans!  Perhaps no book of the Bible has had a greater influence on the course of Christianity than Paul’s Epistle to the Romans.  A fascinating feature of this epistle is that it is a letter and then some.  As seen in the break from normal letter writing in 1:2–6, the Epistle to the Romans is mostly a discourse, a “big ideas” document, and so an expansive statement of Paul’s account of Christian belief. This quality has led many to label Romans “the core” or singular summary of Christian theology, thereby prompting its use as a “road to salvation."  


We're excited to study with you this spring.

heaven and hell.

Check out this great video made by Chapel's Luke Clum 

and Group's Aaron McConkey for their Eschatology final!  

It is beautiful and thought-provoking.

chapel applications 2011-2012.

If you are interested in studying Scripture, 
wrestling with theology, 
designing worship services, 
playing music,
and/or creating art--
all as a part of a close-knit community of friends--
you might want to consider applying for a position on the 2011-2012 Chapel team.


In fact, you definitely should.

Download the Coordinator application 

(due April 18, 2011)

or

Download the Staff application for all other student positions 

(due April 27, 2011).

march 8.

Text:  Matthew 26:1-28:20

Speaker:  Joy J. Moore, Associate Dean for Black Church Studies and Church Relations at Duke Divinity School.

Moore is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church. She previously taught homiletics, and provided pastoral ministry and administrative leadership in the UMC before joining the Divinity School. A frequent speaker and retreat leader, Moore has held pastorates in rural urban and suburban Michigan.

Big picture:  In the last section of Matthew we find Jesus facing the consequences for his teaching. His challenge of the current systems is requited with judgment and condemnation. Yet, through his willing death, Jesus fully and completely lives into his attested kingdom of selfless generosity. When all hope seems lost and his words appear empty, Jesus is resurrected as a final, victorious proclamation of the success of God's kingdom. The resurrection offers hope and assurance that our work is not in vain.  

lectio.

You may have heard us mention the lectio readings during Chapel services and wondered what we're talking about.  Here's a little background on the program that's going on at SPU:

This free online weekly reading program allows you to explore God's Word with the guidance of an outstanding biblical scholar who has a deeply personal Christian faith.  You can read the Lectio, listen to a podcast, or both.

Over the course of four years, you'll encounter a majority of the Bible – and do so in tandem with the Seattle Pacific  community as students, faculty, and staff focus on the same weekly Scripture in Chapel, community Bible studies, and other weekly worship events.

Lectio readings for this quarter can be found here.  

house of prayer: part II.

Who: SPU's prayer ministry Relinquish

What:  House of Prayer (open for students to come and go as they please, with two-hour sets focused on either intercessory prayer or Scripture meditation). 


When:  Now on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6-8 pm

Where:  Theology Graduate House (303 W. Dravus)

Contact: willim9@spu.edu with questions

march 1.

Text:  Matthew 24:1-25:46
 
Speaker:  Bonnie Brann, Executive Pastor, First Free Methodist Church

Big picture:  Throughout the book of Matthew we have become acquainted with the tensions between the kingdom of this world and the proclaimed kingdom of heaven. In these chapters Jesus asserts the coming fulfillment of his teaching and the ultimate failure of the current worldly systems. Therefore, through this hope in Christ we are able to live into God's promises in the midst of our current brokenness.

clothing drive.

Reminder: A group of SPU students has organized a clothing drive to benefit four Seattle-based homeless ministries. If you wish to make a donation, please bring new travel-size toiletries, tube socks, or men’s and women’s underwear to either Chapel or group this week!

Email spindler@spu.edu for more details.

february 22.

Text:  Matthew 21:1-23:39

Speaker:  Daniel Newby, M.Div., missionary and church consultant.


Fun fact:  Rev. Newby has done missionary work in Senegal, Gambia, Haiti, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Trinidad, and was the Conference Coordinator to States Cameroon!

Big picture:  The closer Jesus travels to Jerusalem, and to his death, the greater opposition he faces. With every sermon, Jesus further proclaims the responsibility that comes with understanding his teaching. By failing to follow the teachings set before us by Christ, we fail to take part in the community of God's people. Like Jesus' parables, understanding requires a proper response.

february 15.

Text:  Matthew 17:14-20:34
 
Speaker:  Richard Dahlstrom, senior pastor at Bethany Community Church (Fun fact: Bethany is listed as one of the fastest growing churches in America in 2009, according to Outreach Magazine).

Check out Richard's blog here and his two recently published books here.


Big picture: After reinforcing the importance of a community of faith, Jesus offers instruction on the life and work of this community. He expands upon the understanding of Torah and calls for a community of further humility, generosity, and forgiveness. For Jesus, Torah is not a set of rules but continually reshaping guidance for living into the kingdom of heaven.

february 8.

Text: Matthew 14:1-17:3

Speaker:  Dr. Philip Eaton, President of Seattle Pacific University.


 Big picture:  Through these stories of healing and miraculous feeding, we are encouraged to have faith in the identity of Jesus. For it is only through this faith that we, as the church, are able to respond correctly and live into God's promises for all creation.
 


Also, a reminder that Dr. Newby and the SPU Gospel Choir will be guest musicians this week--as well as the cast of Godspell!

"holy, holy, holy."

This is Sufjan Stevens' version of the classic hymn, "Holy, Holy, Holy." We'll be doing a similar arrangement in Chapel tomorrow morning.

Take a listen?

february 1.

 Text:  Matthew 11:2-13:52

Speaker:  Tali Hairston, Director of the Perkins Center and Special Assistant to the President.

Big picture:  Instead of reinforcing our certainties about God, Jesus' parables challenge our ideas of how we live into the kingdom of heaven. Throughout his teaching Jesus speaks through the mystery of parables as a way of eliciting a response from his audience, proclaiming that the kingdom comes only to those who are willing to see and hear the newness of God's word. We do not find crisp legalistic truths in Jesus' teaching but are instead convicted to listen to the ever expanding will of God.
 

Proof that Tali hangs out with VIPs.

january 25.

Text:  Matthew 8:1-11:1

Speaker:  Susan Lane, Director of Multi-Ethnic Programs at SPU

Big picture:  Immediately after his preaching, Jesus sets out to enact this newly revealed kingdom of love, generosity and justice. He does not stop at words, but instead seeks out the poor, heals the sick and raises the dead while continually calling others to do the same. In these actions we find a similar call to live out these realities within our own circumstances.

january 11.

Text: Matthew 1:1-4:17

Speaker: Dr. David Nienhuis, Associate Professor of New Testament Studies.

Check out details on one of Dr. Nienhuis's books about the Catholic church here.

Big Picture: In the beginning of Matthew we are introduced to the figure of Jesus as God's promised Messiah. These first chapters assert God's ongoing work in the world specifically through Jesus, who stands as a continuation of God's covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.