Greenblade - creation - faith - justice

Chs. 6-10: In which Sara takes her first communion

These chapters are, for me, the core of this book. Sara begins her journey as a Christian and as an Episcopalian at St. Gregory of Nyssa,  a famously un-typical Episcopal church. There the founders have opened up worship, "reclaiming the ancient Middle Eastern roots of the liturgy." The result is a setting where the wind of the Holy Spirit blows freely, ready to knock over someone like Sara who, blessedly for the rest of us, is articulate enough to be able to describe the experience. In the chapters we are discussing this week she takes us along for the ride.

Her journey happens within a particular community but within the context of her particular life, with the particular attachments, relationships, and history she brings. It is all going to mean that what begins to happen in chapter 10 makes perfect sense. Just as Gregory of Nyssa celebrates the Eucharist within a living, breathing community, the experience of the ... MORE

Take This Bread: first impressions

My first impression was somewhat less positive than Stephanie’s, though I started to come around in the end.

The problem is that Take This Bread has a pretty awful cover.  It features a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a large cross etched into it, and then this graphic is haloed by a gush from Anne Lamott: “*The* most amazing book!”  Hokey design and superlative blurbs make me suspicious, and I wonder if I would have gone further if I’d been browsing in a bookstore rather than reading for this discussion group.

Also a little cringe-worthy is that Miles begins the Prologue with two pages breathlessly describing how her conversion to a progressive liturgical tradition inspired her to found a bunch of urban programs to feed the needy.  This would have been fine if we’d already gone through the whole story and seen where she came from and how this vocation ... MORE

The First Five Chapters (and Prologue)

I'll admit: I was hooked before I even finished the Prologue.  Sara Miles' "spiritual memoir" in full of themes that are so real and vivid that I felt like she was writing this directly to me.  Of course we know what the ending will be - a food pantry is established in a relatively unlikely place and someone shares her conversion story.  However, the journey, the interactions, the beauty and the ugliness that all intertwine are the surprises.  Miles weaves in the relevant political background, as well as those lines from the Bible that influenced her, and provides inspiration for us to make these connections as well.

The first five chapters give us an introduction into the life of the author before the day that she set foot into a church.  These chapters give us some insight into the "food and bodies" that were important to her and how she is now able to think about these ... MORE