The Stations of the Cross is a Catholic devotion that commemorates fourteen images or stations from the last day of Jesus’ life. Participants meditate on each station and may recite specific prayers. As a processional liturgy—whether contained within a church or displayed in yards in a neighborhood—the Stations of the Cross is a kind of miniature pilgrimage in which the faithful engage in embodied meditation on the Passion of Jesus. (more…)
The late afternoon matinee was packed full of middle and high schoolers buzzing with one obsession at the moment: Avengers: Endgame. Only ten minutes before show-time, I wandered around with my young boys looking for seats while my brother waited for the sold-out popcorn. We broke up and scattered ourselves into the front row. Popcorn was very delayed. I didn’t know it would be this crowded. Despite watching several of the Marvel movies at home, I would soon discover that there was a lot I didn’t know. Most of all, I didn’t know where I was. I didn’t know that I had just found a seat at the Church of Marvel. Popcorn arrived just in time. (more…)
This summer, Dr. Cindi Beth Johnson, Director of The Intersection, Wilson Yates Center for Theology and the Arts, was asked to work with a group of students in the Theology and the Arts concentration to write a litany for the United Church of Christ’s National Board of Pensions. The request was to gather a group of students to study the lectionary texts and write a liturgy that would be available to all of the churches of the UCC as part of a bulletin insert during the liturgical seasons of Advent and Christmas. Here is an excerpt for the first week of advent: (more…)