This Sunday, we will welcome our own music director, Christian Clough, into the pulpit. I hope you can be there to learn from Christian and hear Jesus' parable of the Good Samaritan, in which a priest and a Levite ignore a wounded man on the side of the road but a Samaritan stops to help. I always thought that this was a simple story about helping our neighbors until I read the interpretation of Amy-Jill Levine, my favorite contemporary New Testament scholar. Levine argues that humans naturally think in threes: If I say "Moe, Larry," you say "Curly." If I say "Father, Son," you can add "Holy Spirit." So if I name two of the three patriarchal lineages of Judaism -- "priest, Levite" -- can you complete the phrase?
Levine writes, "For Jesus’ audience, and for any synagogue congregation today, the third of the group is obvious. Mention a priest and a Levite, and anyone who knows anything about Judaism will know that the third person is an Israelite. The audience, surprised at this lack of compassion, would have presumed both that the third person would be an Israelite and that he would help. However, Jesus is telling a parable, and parables never go the way one expects. Instead of the anticipated Israelite, the person who stops to help is a Samaritan [a member of an enemy tribe]. In modern terms, this would be like going from Larry and Moe to Osama bin Laden."
As ever, Jesus uses his stories to provoke and challenge us. Just when we think we know where he is headed, he upends the story and pushes us to imagine: How much are we willing to humble ourselves to accept help? How much are we willing to embrace discomfort in order to offer it? And what does it truly mean for us to answer Jesus' uncomfortable question about whom we call neighbors?
Yours,
Catherine
Summer Inspirations: New Art Exhibit
A new art show will be up in the chapel beginning July 7 and will be on display through August. The show will exhibit art works by SPR parishioners on the theme “Summer Inspirations." For details, contact Jim Wright.
Register for Vacation Bible Camp
It's that time of the year! This year's VBC will be Monday, July 29 to Friday, August 2, from 9am to 12pm each day, plus a special service on Sunday, August 4 at 10am. Our theme will be "Who Is My Neighbor?: Learning to Love Like Jesus." Registration is $40 per child; scholarships are available. Click here to register your child as a participant or volunteer, or sign up in the narthex. For details, contact Cynthia Bagrowski.
Extension of Search for Director of Youth Formation
We have extended the search for our next Director of Youth Formation, and will now accept applications until Wednesday, July 31. Please share the opening with anyone you think might be a good fit. Click here for the position description.
20’s/30’s Concert in Millennium Park
SPR members in their 20’s and 30’s will be gathering for a summer lawn concert in Millennium Park on Monday July 29 at 6:30 for a concert by Rev. Seoki (Memphis soul and pentecostal steel guitar) and Cha Wa (New Orleans brass band-meets-Mardi Gras Indian funk). Bring lawn chairs or blankets, snacks, and beverages, and enjoy listening to music and hanging out in the summer breeze. RSVP to Sarah Hallett.
Refugee Program Update
The family our parishioners have been visiting in Rogers Park are moving to Niles, IL. The final visits to them will be on July 20 and July 27. Two or three visitors are still needed for the 7/27 visit. To volunteer for this date (10am-12pm or 2-4pm), please sign up in the narthex or by emailing Bob Bator.
Love in a Dish
Please consider bringing a meal to the Foiles family as they welcome baby Edmond. Sign up in the narthex, or contact Megg Hoover.
Hunger Walk 2019
Save the date for this year's Greater Chicago Food Depository Hunger Walk on Saturday, September 7 at Jackson Park. For each walker, the SPR food pantry receives a $12 credit. Last year, we raised over $1,600, enabling us to purchase food from GCFD for six months. Please sign up in the Narthex. Registration will be open from mid-June to mid-August. For details, contact Shirley Knight.
Register for Women's Retreat
Join the women of SPR on retreat from October 26-27, 2019 at the Loyola University Retreat & Ecology Center in Woodstock, IL. This year's theme, led by Rev. Catherine Healy, is "Beyond Mary vs. Martha: Exploring Biblical Models of Womanhood." Registration is $100/person for a double room and $130/person for a single room; scholarships and ride shares are available, and participants may choose to arrive Friday evening for extended retreat time. Click here to register (deadline September 22). There are openings still available! For details, contact Richelle Stackert.
Summer Choir
Join us for summer choir every Sunday at 9:15 am in the church, July 16 – September 1. Learn the morning’s hymns and a simple anthem. No experience is necessary. Everyone is welcome, adults and school-age children alike. For details, contact Christian Clough.
