kairos [ community ]

This Sunday, Feb. 21, we’ll meet at Karthaus’ at 4 pm. Our worship/discussion will be on Tokbox at approx. 5:30 pm. We hope you’ll join us! Read on to see what we’ll be discussing to prepare for the conversation, and if you can’t be with us on Sunday leave your thoughts and comments on the blog so we can include them. Here’s a taste:

Penance as guilt is just what our monkey minds want.  The part of our brain stem that focuses on survival and preservation of the status quo often gets its way by imposing anxiety and fear, and guilt just piles on to its agenda.  But repentance — the ultimate aim of “doing penance” — is about taking action. The word literally means to “turn around,” to “head in a new (right) direction.”  Guilt, though, feeds on our insecurities and need to blame and, left unchecked, leads us to despair.  It is the root of thinking that we’re not good enough, that we can’t do anything to solve a larger problem that causes the guilt, and so leads to inaction — the exact opposite of repentance. 

Read on for more reflections and discussion questions. (more…)

Daily Reading for Monday (2/8)
Click the [M] link to read The Message or [NRS] for New Revised Standard
⇐ Please click the number to the left to read comments or leave one of your own!
Mark 6:53-56 [M] [NRS]
“Immediately the people recognized Jesus”

Daily Reading for Tuesday (2/9)
Mark 7:1-13 [M] [NRS]
“You have a fine way of rejecting the commandments of God”

Daily Reading for Wednesday (2/10)
Mark 7:14-23 [M] [NRS]
“Out of the heart come evil thoughts”

Daily Reading for Thursday (2/11)
Mark 7:24-30 [M] [NRS]
“You may go your way; the demon has left your daughter”

Daily Reading for Friday (2/12)
Mark 7:31-37 [M] [NRS]
“He has done all things well; he even makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak”

Daily Reading for Saturday (2/13)
Mark 8:1-10 [M] [NRS]
“Can one feed these with bread here in the desert?”

Daily Reading for Sunday (2/14)
Luke 6:17,20-26 [M] [NRS]
“Do good to those who hate you, pray for those who abuse you”

Tomorrow Kairos will gather at 4 pm at Barbette’s (Call or email Bob at 267-702-4262 for directions/info.)

Our focus will be “Imitating Christ’s humility,” drawing on Paul’s beautiful description of Jesus’ emptying himself for us, taking the form of a slave, in Philippians 2. We’ll look at how our response to Jesus’ kenosis (emptying) plays out on the global stage (as in aid to Haiti and Africa) and how we might express similar solidarity with the poor and marginalized.

Read on for more about the gathering.

(more…)

There are many people who approach faith and their relationship with the Holy as hunters. We scan our environment looking for the places and people and events in which the Spirit is active, not just for truths and ideas about God. When we find those spaces we can drop everything to “pounce” — to explore what the Spirit is up to and join in. We may not be as good at tilling the fields of religious life, listening to sermons waiting for God to speak (which Brian McLaren points out is a spiritual discipline), serving on committees, perpetuating institutions.

This is what we are trying to do at Kairos Community. We’re trying hard to be open to those who are watching and waiting and noticing and want to embrace the movements of the Spirit even if they don’t buy the whole package. We serve side by side, people who “believe” and those who balk, and share our journeys and honor those that are not explicitly Christian as well as those that are. We’re hunters and farmers. And we want to sharpen the hunter skills, to foster our awareness of how God is working in and around us every day, and learn to appreciate those moments of distracted noticing and movements of the Spirit amid daily life.

Want to read more? Check out Bob’s blog.

Join Kairos Community for a day of connecting with the Source.

Where: Upper Tinicum Lutheran Church Parish House 1426 Bridgeton Hill Road, Upper Black Eddy (Lat/long for GPS 40.561731, -75.114597)

When: Sunday, February 28 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Chronos, not Kairos time). Please plan on arriving early so we can get our coffee*, etc.  We would like to start promptly at 9 a.m.

Who: Interested adults and teens. Feel free to invite others or bring a friend.  This is an adult event. No child care will be provided.

Leader: Pat Herbst has been a spiritual director for many years and formerly was a pastoral assistant and educator at Assumption B.V.M. parish in Colesville, outside Bethlehem. She’s excellent!

Cost: Asking for donation of $25 per person to cover costs.

For more information contact Bob via email.

Daily Reading for Monday (2/1)
Click the [M] link to read The Message or [NRS] for New Revised Standard
⇐ Please click the number to the left to read comments or leave one of your own!
Mark 5:1-20 [M] [NRS]
“Tell them how much the Lord has done for you”

Daily Reading for Tuesday (2/2)
Luke 2:22-40 [M] [NRS]
“The favor of God was upon him”

Daily Reading for Wednesday (2/3)
Mark 6:1-6 [M] [NRS]
They took offense at Jesus and he marveled because of their unbelief

Daily Reading for Thursday (2/4)
Mark 6:7-13 [M] [NRS]
“They anointed with oil man that were sick and healed them”

Daily Reading for Friday (2/5)
Mark 6:14-29 [M] [NRS]
“Some said, ‘John the baptizer has been raised from the dead’ ”

Daily Reading for Saturday (2/6)
Mark 6:30-34 [M] [NRS]
“Jesus had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd”

Daily Reading for Sunday (2/7)
Luke 5:1-11 [M] [NRS]
“Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men”