New Humans

"Sweet Sweat Spots" (cotton, sugar & paper)

"The international expansion in consumption of sugar and cotton is deeply embedded in colonial history as these goods were crucial to the establishment of empire in the Americas, Asia and Africa. The history of sugar continues to have great relevance because of its defining role in shaping world history and culture."

Artist: Raksha Parekh

This Seasons Theme is: New Humans, New Identity, Economy for new humans, New Humanity, Unity Not Uniformity, Reborn Better, Created Good, The Tensions Remaining.

Based on (verses, story, quote, etc.): HERE are some verses on Renewal

Click HERE for the PM Plan outline and details


Music & Tech
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space where our community can use music as one way of worshiping God together.

• Find ways to collaborate with the community in the music making process.
• Create a sound that allows the community to be a part of the choir.
• Create a set that is well organized and easy to fallow.
• Make sure all understand the language we are using (other cultures and "christianese").

This Season’s Music Project: Looking for new songs in other languages. Extra points if it connects with our theme of "New Humans".  

Here are a few links to get you started:

http://www.folkways.si.edu/albumdetails.aspx?itemid=3024 

www.youtube.com/user/ShilohWorshipGroup.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QB8Tecfapmw Hakuna mungu kama wewe
http://www.youtube.com/user/KaraokesChile#p/a/f/1/XT7HDolXo_0 Quédate en mi, Santo Espiritu

Poke around on our network music log and see if you can "barrow" some other language songs from there.

This Season's Music Process (when, who & how):

• Jan. 1st (Julius) was called in to sub last minute.
  
• Jan. 8th (Greg) Di Wanga Morena from CD called Heart Sounds (can be found in COH song of the week archives)
• Jan. 15th (Jonny) Purify Us (new Broken Walls song)
  
• Jan. 22nd (Carl) Yo te Busco
• Jan. 29th (Greg) Ke Rata Jesu 
  Lyrics (N. Sotho)
  Jesu ka mo rata
  I love Jesus
  Ga gona wa go swana nae
  For there is none like Him
  http://www.youtube.com/user/HSIOM?feature=watch

• Feb. 5th (Jonny) John L. wrote new song called "In you we are one"
• 
  
• Feb. 12th (Carl) Christe Lux Mundi
  Christe lux mundi,
  qui sequitur te,
  habebit lumen vitae,
  lumen vitae 

         Christ, light of the world, whoever follows you will have the light of life

• Feb. 19th (Greg) Tulasizwe (Be Quiet)

Arts 
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space for our community to use art as one way of worshiping God together.

• Find ways to collaborate with the community in the art making process.
• Provide materials, designate a space and give simple and clear directions on how to engage in the art making process.

This Season’s Art Project: 

• This season's theme is  "New Humans". Create one piece of work that develops over the season. I do not want to see individual pieces of work week to week, rather one piece of work created by the group over time. 
• What do humans look like when they become new spiritually and/or physically? What does humanity look like when newness takes place?
• The community must be able to be a part of the creating process in some way.
• Consider incorporating layers of some kind (layers of materials, hanging layers, layers of sound, layers of light or images, etc.)

This Season's Art Process (when, who & how):

Materials

·         Brown Underline paper

·         Shower Curtains

·         Paint

·         Safety Pins

·         Fabric of various colors

·         Fresh Flowers

·         Flower seeds

·         Incense

·         Candles

Space – Wall between the tech booth and the supply door

• Jan. 1st (Dawn)
  Preparation for week 1
  ·         Around December 26^th Rob will start sewing together the brown underline paper, which will be the start of the installation and will be used throughout the season.
  ·         Print intentional words
  ·         Sheet should be hung up before the 5 PM on Sunday, January 1^st
   
  Intentions Part 1- Dawn will lead a 2 minute meditation based on clarifying our intentions for our growth as new humans. Direct folks to choose a bold print intention word to pin onto the sheet.
• Jan. 8th (Amanda & Tiffany)
  Preparation for week 2
  ·         More intentional words need to be added to sheet
  ·         Various slits will be cut into the sheet
  ·         Strips of fabric need to be cut out
  Color Sensation - Amanda and Tiffany will incorporate colors onto the sheet to represent a metaphor of adding color to ourselves or our renewed vision of ourselves. Strips of color fabric can be woven into the sheet. Direct congregation to weave more strips of fabric to the sheet.
• Jan. 15th (Dawn)
  Preparation for week 3
  ·         More fabric needs to be added
  ·         2^nd sheet needs to be hung up
   
  Looking back - Dawn will start cutting holes in the 2nd sheet to represent looking back and gaining insight from the past/looking forward and projecting wisdom to the future experiences. Direct congregation to cut holes into the sheet, look towards the 1^st sheet, focus on an intentional word, and mediate on it.
• Jan. 22nd (Rob)
  Preparation for week 4
  ·         Print black and white images related to intentional words from week 1
  Intentions Part 2 - Rob will pin black and white images onto the sheet representing our intentions.
• Jan. 29th (Amanda & Tiffany)
  Preparation for week 5
  ·         Pin more images onto sheet
  ·         Newspaper needs to be laid out
  ·         Paint and paint brushes need to be placed out
  Colorizing Photographs – Amanda and Tiffany will start painting over the images. Adding colors can be a changing process – another transition of life. Mentioning how mammals see very little color ranges and we have been gifted to see the colors around us. We are changing into something that can see more and be more. “What have you not been seeing?” Direct the congregation to add a transparent layer of paint to the sheet. Do it so that the words are still visible.
• Feb. 5th (Dawn)
  Preparation for week 6
   
  ·         Maybe add a 3^rd sheet with cut out holes that represents another transition to becoming a new human
   
  Creation as destruction – Cutting pieces out of the sheet – Adding scent and sound
  ·         Incense burning
• Feb. 12th ( Rob)
  Preparation for week 7
  ·         Have a more intentional bold words printed out – small and large
  Intentions Part 3 - Rob can add more intentional bold words to the sheets. It can be placed on top of all the other layers. Small and large words (get the feel that our intentions are growing ... we are growing into New Humans) Direct the congregation to add more words to the sheet.
• Feb. 19th (Amanda & Tiffany)
  Preparation for week 8
  ·         Have various scriptures printed out that are based around renewal of life
  ·         Candles or low lighting
  ·         Place flowers onto the main sheets and put flower seeds under the chairs
  Renewal -Tiffany and Amanda will tie everything together with scripture focused around renewal. We can reflect on the past weeks. Either have the lights turned out and candles lit or low lighting, while members of the congregation take turns reading lines of scripture that relate to new vision ... "popcorn effect.” While this is happening members of the congregation can take flowers away from the sheets. Reached a place where we have new life.

Solidarity Prayer
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space for our community to use prayer as one way of worshiping God together.

• To be informed, and to inform others about what is going on in this day and age, and to use prayer as one way of remaining connected with our brothers and sisters around the world.
• Here is a simple Solidarity Prayer format:
• Hi my name is ____and I am here to tell you about_____.
  Create 3-5 sentences to explain who we are praying for.
  Create 3-5 sentences to explain why we are praying for them.
  Offer 2-4 visual aides (slides, maps, props, etc.)
  
  Finish with “Please rise with me now and hold hands as I pray” or “Please rise and join me in saying this prayer together (show slide of pre-scripted prayer)”.

This season’s solidarity prayer project is: "Kids as Humanitarians". I'd love for us to highlight kids or organizations that empower children to make change in themselves, their families and in their community, in the United States and around the world.

Here are some links to get you started:

http://globalkids.org/#/our-programs/leadership 

http://www.cgpp.org/main_eng.html  

http://www.brazilkids.de/knowbrazil49.html

http://freechild.org/youth_activism_2.htm

http://foundationcenter.org/yip/youth_getinvolved.html

http://www.globalpeacenetwork.ca/what-we-do/overview.php

http://www.aymu.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=108&Itemid=154 

http://www.amalafoundation.org/?gclid=CPqQ0e6k66wCFWc65QodXUO6LQ 

Solidarity Prayer process is (when, who & how):

• Jan. 1st Emily Sowell Girl Scouts Beyond Bars.
• Jan. 8th Zach Woods Youth resolving violence issues in Camden
  
• Jan. 15th Colleen Keller Youth & Homelessness
  
• Jan. 22nd Joshua Grace Neighborhood Playgrounds and Green Spaces for kids.
• Jan. 29th Lauren Stichter Children with Special Needs
  
• Feb. 5th Jodie Kelly Issues in child abuse
  
• Feb. 12th Joshua Grace F&N Baby Blessing
  
• Feb. 19th Melissa Powell TBA

Design Team Summit (Nov. 2011)

Over 40 Musicians, Artists and Technicians came out to our first quarterly network Design Team Summit!

 We had workshops on incorporating the 5 Senses into our art making experiences, how to go from practice to PM in the music team, and shared drafts of sound board manuals as well as other tools and resources.

The afternoon culminated in a 45 minute music and art making set, where we learned songs from each congregation, continued the art making process that was started in our workshop earlier that afternoon.

Keep an eye out for our next summit in February!

Confronting Failure 2011 (Part 2)

Music & Tech

PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space where our community can use music as one way of worshiping God together.

• Find ways to collaborate with the community in the music making process.
• Create a sound that allows the community to be a part of the choir.
• Create a set that is well organized and easy to fallow.
• Make sure all understand the language we are using (other cultures and "Christianese").

This Season’s Music Project: Write a song based on the non-failure of your nights theme.

This Season's Music Process (who & how):

October 9th Meg/Greg G./Matt Healthy relationships with others and God

October 16th Eric & Amanda/Carl/ Mike God's yearning for all people

October 23rd Rob & Dawn/Jonny/Mathew Thanksgiving

October 30th Meg & Greg F./Carl/Mike Becoming a servant

November 6th Eric & Amanda/Greg/____ Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved

November 13th Rob & Dawn/Jonny/____ The poor you will always have with you

November 20th Meg/Carl/_____ Reliance on God instead of ourselves.

Arts 
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space for our community to use art as one way of worshiping God together.

• FInd ways to collaborate with the community in the art making process.
• Provide materials, designate a space and give simple and clear directions on how to engage in the art making process.

This Season’s Art Project:  

• Continue to use and reference the map. We have decided to leave it in the front of the space for the rest of the season. We will not be re-creating the rest of the season, but we will be adding and enhancing what is already going on.

• Consider blowing up parts of the map and having the community add something to that focused section of the map (have community members pull a prints over it, put a thumb print on it, collage it, paint it, stencil it, create a relief relief sculpture on it, etc.).
• Consider having the community physically move in some way (Rob demonstrated this on Oct. 2nd).

This Season's Art Process (who & how):

October 9th Meg & Greg F./Greg G./Matt We are still working out details of the Art part, but it will be using small clay figures-- when placed far apart and then a heavy weight is placed on them all (like a piece of plexi with a person standing on top of it), the clay figures are crushed. But if there are many figures and they crowd together, the overbearing weight does not crush them at all.

October 16th Eric & Amanda/Carl/ Mike Church communities in China

October 23rd Rob & Dawn/Jonny/Mathew Traditions of thanksgiving, an on your way out the door experience.

October 30th Meg & Greg F./Carl/Mike

November 6th Eric & Amanda/Greg/______ Small bundles of something gets distributed throughout the community. OR set up pictures of success stories around the room. Blurbs of from successful businesses. 

November 13th Rob & Dawn/Jonny/_____ Image from Indian culture that community interacts with. 

November 20th Meg & Greg F./Carl/Mike Axis Mundi (where our center of faith lies)

Solidarity Prayer
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space for our community to use prayer as one way of worshiping God together.

• To be informed, and to inform others about what is going on in this day and age, and to use prayer as one way of remaining connected with our brothers and sisters around the world.
• If you need it, here is a simple Solidarity Prayer format:
• Hi my name is ____and I am here to tell you about_____.
  Create 5-10 sentences to explain who we are praying for.
  Create 5-10 sentences to explain why we are praying for them.
  Offer 2-4 visual aides (slides, maps, props, etc.)
  
  Finish with “Please rise with me now as I pray” or “Please rise and join me in saying this prayer together (show slide of pre-scripted prayer)”.

This season’s solidarity prayer project is:  Trying to illustrate & celebrate group of people whoare a good example of the OPPOSITE of the week’s Fail theme.

-Be in contact with person in our community who is in connection with people
group; see how they can be involved (co-lead prayer/info, help plan, aid with info)

Solidarity Prayer process is:

October 9th Meg & Greg F./Greg G./Mike  The plan for this week is to pray for his friend Aaron who is going to be heading into Guatemala soon to work with a population down there who has been under a heavy foot of oppression for many years. 

October 16th Eric & Amanda/Carl/ Mike Church communities in China

October 23rd Rob & Dawn/Jonny/Mathew Wiconi International 

October 30th Meg & Greg F./Carl/Mike Pastors of Circle

November 6th Eric & Amanda/Greg/Mike Micro-Finance (building small businesses around the world)

November 13th Rob & Dawn/Jonny/Mathew India 

November 20th Meg & Greg F./Carl/Mike Faith within the American Church

Advent 2011 "Do Not Be Afraid"

 

Toilet Paper Roll Trees by: Yuken Teruya

This season’s theme is "Do not be afraid"

Based on Mathew 1-2 and Luke 1-2


Music & Tech
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space where our community can use music as one way of worshiping God together.

• Find ways to collaborate with the community in the music making process.
• Create a sound that allows the community to be a part of the choir.
• Create a set that is well organized and easy to fallow.
• Make sure all understand the language we are using (other cultures and "christianese").

This Season’s Music Project: To introduce one new celebratory, worshipful Christmas Song in another language each week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2SXELbHuic&feature=related
* http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/HTML/hymns_and_carols-non_English.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83AuQQCh97M&feature=fvwrel
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQJMBCtRHo0

http://www.worldwidechristmas.com/songs/
http://spanish.about.com/od/spanishchristmascarols/Christmas_Carols_in_Spanish.htm
http://french.about.com/od/christmascarols/French_Christmas_Carols_Chants_de_Nol.htm

This Season's Music Process (who & how):

• Nov. 27th Greg will do Gaudette  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2SXELbHuic&feature=related

• Dec. 4th Jonny Deilig Er Jordan http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKOgdhv7FJA

• Dec. 11th Carl "Mitt Hjerte Altid Vanker".
  
  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImW2R4cfTM8
  
  
   A summary in English is: 
  
  
  My heart always wanders to where Jesus was born, where my thoughts gather and is the home I long for, where my faith and treasure are. I can never forget that blessed Christmas night.
  When I close my heart, Jesus comes in. It (my heart) is a place for you (Jesus) that you have bought, so I will believe.
  I will gladly worship at your manger, for you only will I live and die for. Let my soul find joy in you (Jesus), as you have been born in my deepest heart.

• Dec. 18th Greg

• Dec. 25th Carl will do the first song on this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PfmTTR3iMT0

Arts 

PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space for our community to use art as one way of worshiping God together.

• Find ways to collaborate with the community in the art making process.
• Provide materials, designate a space and give simple and clear directions on how to engage in the art making process.

This Season’s Art Project: To create an art installation concept based on this season's theme that develops over 5 weeks. You may decide to start the installation, but starting on week 1 I want you to only provide materials, space and direction for the community to continue the art making process. 

• Consider the theme "do not be afraid". What makes us feel safe?
• Consider our solidarity prayer of alternative gift giving/making. Is this a time to teach people a new skill/craft? 
• Consider easy to find recycled materials.
• Consider something that is added to the ceiling (We will have art shop in the middle of the installation process, and things are less likely to be damaged if they are up and out of the way.)
• At our D&D on 11/7/11 it was decided that the artists would teach the community how to create a Christmas decoration or gift out of recycled materials. The decorations will remain hung and added to each week on the ceiling of the PM space, but the idea is that our community will walk away with new skills to create gifts for friends and family at home without needing to purchase too many things this holiday. Some of the new skills and decorations may be connected to that nights solidarity prayer.  
• Here are some Helpful Links:
• Cereal Box Ornaments
  Recycled Cards Garland
  Gift Cones
  Paper Wreath
  Spinning paper ornament
  Wine Box Light Fixtures 
 

This Season's Art Process (who & how):

• Nov. 27th Eric & Amanda 
• The Prophets
  based on Isaiah 1:1-5 & Jer. 23:5-6, both prophets refer to Jesus as a branch of David or of Jesse
  concept: Use branches or vines to create a garland to wrap around the pillars (possibly around the walls as well
  Smell: prophetic smell (still working that out)
  

• Dec. 4th Dawn " I wanted to co-create an art piece made of pine cones and leaves with the congregation. Kind of a standing web like assembly toward the art piece that will already have pine cones attached to a rope hanging from the ceiling and we will fill in the leaves. It ends up to make a beautiful art piece that looks very wild(just like John the Baptist was described). Because Jesus referred to John as his oil lamp, I will also be lighting an oil lamp and during the art creation, which will only take 2 minutes, there will be drumming. I have a few lines prepared about the wildness of God."

• Dec. 11th Meg & Greg "we're talking about feeling brave about becoming a new person after jesus has effected our lives enough for it to show
  so i think we're going to do some kind of layered ball so you can see inside layers.  and have them be decorations"

• Dec. 18th Eric & Amanda "We will be using jars or glasses and tea light to symbolize Irish tradition of putting a candle in the window to welcome Mary and Joseph. So we are going to ask people to take a jar and candle and fill our front windows to symbolize both welcoming and waiting for Jesus and well as welcoming others to come wait with us."
 

• Dec. 25th Dawn

Solidarity Prayer
PM Plan Goal: To create a safe space for our community to use prayer as one way of worshiping God together.

• To be informed, and to inform others about what is going on in this day and age, and to use prayer as one way of remaining connected with our brothers and sisters around the world.
• Simple Solidarity Prayer Format:
• Hi my name is ____and I am here to tell you about_____.
  Create 5 sentences to explain who we are praying for.
  Create 5 sentences to explain why we are praying for them.
  Offer 2-4 visual aides (slides, maps, props, etc.)
  
  Finish with “Please rise with me now as I pray” or  “Please rise and join me in saying this prayer together (show slide of pre-scripted prayer)”.

This season’s solidarity prayer project is: Alternative Gift Giving

• Highlighting alternative ways to give this season.  
• Do we have to spend money?  
• If we want to/have to spend money, how can we better spend/share it? 
• Global Fund for Women, Global Fund for Children, MCC, World Vision , Ten Thousand Villages, Art Shop

Solidarity Prayer process is:

• Nov. 27th Art Shop (Lauren & Jenna)

• Dec. 4th for (Dawn) our present is our presence. our interactions with family and friends through what may be a difficult holiday for some. 

• Dec. 11th (Jim Ingalls) World Vision (give a goat)

• Dec. 18th  (Eric & Amanda) something not monetary based; gift making; gift free (specifics to come)

• Dec. 25th (Dawn)