Moravian Stars

I was attempting to sermonize last Saturday on the topic of disenchantment. The fact that I had just finished a stressful week of reading and writing (“academizing,” if you will…) meant that my few functioning synapses were running on empty. I ended up being disenchanted with the sermon and much more enchanted with the Apartment Therapy website. Now that the sermon has been preached, I thought I might try to combine some of my liturgical and home deco interests into one blog entry. Ready?

The image above comes from the Moravian Bookshop website. I learned about Moravian stars when I first became interested in Moravian influences on Methodist hymnody. This particular type of star was first crafted around 1850 in a handiwork class at the Moravian boys’ school in Niesky, Germany. The design became quite popular and for many years was produced exclusively in Germany.

Glass stars make excellent Advent/Christmas gifts, while paper stars would serve as cheery, homespun additions to Christmas trees in either home or sanctuary. Lighted plastic stars could brighten a house or apartment year-round, especially in a nursery or a child’s bedroom.

For additional info:
www.moravianbookshop.com
www.moravianstars.com
www.lenox.com Even Lenox now sells a small, lighted Moravian star. Incidentally, it’s the least expensive one I came across.

Faithful Food

Several years ago, I served as co-coordinator of the Methodist student group at Yale Divinity School. One of my favorite responsibilities of this position was planning and leading worship every few weeks. While I was a student at YDS, there happened to be several individuals in the student body who were interested in food. I mean REALLY interested in food, especially the connection between food and faith. It was this gastronomic dynamic combined with my love of the annual "Hearty Eucharist" that gave me the idea to throw a biblical feast. I searched the scriptures for references to food, noting how and by whom the food was used. I then put together a service which essentially consisted of an alternation of scripture readings and the partaking of a biblical food. We sampled pomegranates, cheese, bread, olives, etc. We had great attendance, including quite a few non-Methodist students (mostly Lutherans... I don't know what that means). I imagine that such a service would work well for family-oriented worship, or perhaps as an expanded version of a love feast.

Suggested hymns from The United Methodist Hymnal:

97 "For the Fruits of This Creation"

599 "Break Thou the Bread of Life"

621 "Be Present at Our Table, Lord"

629 "You Satisfy the Hungry Heart"

632 "Draw Us in the Spirit's Tether"

Suggested hymns from The Faith We Sing:

2061 "Praise Our God Above (Harvest Song)"

2132 "You Who Are Thirsty"

2265 "Time Now to Gather"