There's Something to Eat

One way Vine Street is at work in the community

By Melanie Gao

When Jesus heard that John the Baptist had been beheaded, he tried to get some time alone (Matthew 14). He went off by himself, but a throng of people followed him. When he saw them he gave up his quest for time alone and began healing them.

Eventually the sky began to darken and Jesus’ disciples encouraged him to send the people away so they could get dinner for themselves. But Jesus said, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

Something similar happened at Vine Street once. People often knock on the door asking for something to eat, and for years the folks who answered the door would typically descend into the depths of the church basement searching for something to give them. They scratched together whatever they could find. But they heard Jesus’ voice from Matthew 14—“give them something to eat”—and decided they wanted a better system for fulfilling his command to us.

And thus the program called Something to Eat was born.

Something to Eat has been a tradition at Vine Street for over a decade now. There is a basket next to the door and it is stocked with individual lunch bags. When someone knocks at the door asking for food, our staff can reach into this basket and give them a bag for each person. The bags typically contain foods that require no refrigeration or heating, and that can be eaten on the steps of the sanctuary or in a car. The contents are things like a large box of saltines, a jar of peanut butter, fruit cups, bottled water, Vienna sausages and a set of plastic silverware. It also contains information about Second Harvest Food Bank. We distribute about 20 of these bags each month.

Hope Hodnett, director of youth ministries and education, recalls that once a man approached the church as she was leaving one evening. When he asked for something to eat she gave him one of the bags. The next morning when she returned she found a food bag tied to the handrail by the outside door. In it were two fruit cups. “I smiled,” she said. “I don’t like canned peaches either.”

The goal of Something to Eat isn’t to solve world hunger and it isn’t to give anyone a long-term supply of groceries. The goal is to satisfy an immediate hunger so that someone gets the strength and energy they need to make it to the food bank or shelter or social services or their home.

When you give to Vine Street, you’re giving Something to Eat to people who need it.

Anniversary Celebration Sunday

Gather your family, invite old friends and join us on June 1 as we celebrate the Rev. Thomas Kleinert and his 10 years of service as senior minister of Vine Street Christian Church.

We’ll gather for one worship service at 10:45 a.m. In addition to the Chancel Choir offering a new anthem, our guest preacher will be the Rev. Dr. D. Newell Williams, president and professor of modern and American church history of Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University. Steeped in the stories of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Williams will speak to the richness of our shared ministry in service to Christ.

Following worship, everyone is invited to enjoy a summer picnic-themed luncheon and great music from choir members, featuring Gabe Dixon and Kyle Collier. And did we mention there will be cake? Come join us, together in Christ!

Please note: We will not have an 8:30 a.m. service on June 1.

Vine Street at Work

A look at how together we make a difference
By Ashley Dumas

A wonderful way Vine Street both shares its facilities while providing important ministry is through the Pastoral Counseling Center of Tennessee (PCCT). Vine Street founded PCCT in 1985 to provide affordable, professional counseling in
 middle Tennessee. PCCT
 has several locations in the
 Nashville area, but its main
 office is on Vine Street’s
 campus in the Fitzpatrick 
House. It has been our
 neighbor for the last 29 years.

The work at PCCT is unique 
in that the counselors are not only licensed clinicians in a mental health field, but they also have in-depth religious and theological training. The mission of PCCT is “to restore lives to wholeness—mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.” The staff provides individual, marital and family therapy, and services for Spanish-speaking clients are offered, too. 
Last year the Vine Street location served 400 clients, totaling 1,596 sessions of counseling and $125,000 of financial assistance. In addition, you may recall Vine Street donated $7,500 last year to PCCT, which was made possible by a generous gift left by Mrs. Hallie Warner. This gift provided 111 sessions to senior adult clients in need of financial assistance. PCCT is committed to helping all who are in need of counseling regardless of their financial situation, and it offers a sliding scale fee option for those who need financial assistance.

Pastoral Counseling Center of Tennessee is a major ministry Vine Street Christian Church supports right here on our campus.

Just City 360

Dynamic growth in our city has meant new opportunities for Nashville’s residents, and yet a severe lack of affordable housing continues to plague the Metro area. Major changes to Nashville’s downtown and urban neighborhoods signal what some call revitalization, while others worry about what such change means for the homeless and for low-income residents whose neighborhoods have become hip.

Growth and change may be signs of a robust local economy, but how can we make sure they signal a just local economy? And how does all this connect to the church’s mission? These are some of the questions we’ll explore during Just City 360.

The series kicks off on Sunday, March 9 at 9:30 a.m. in Fellowship Hall as Vine Street welcomes Dr. Jim Fraser, a professor at Vanderbilt University’s Department of Human and Organizational Development (Peabody College). An engaging and thought-provoking teacher, Dr. Fraser will walk us through an Urban Planning 101 conversation with a particular focus on affordable housing.

Additional guest speakers will share this work with us, and many events will happen during Christian Education on Sunday morning and during Wednesday Nights at Vine Street. Here are some highlights:

March 5           Ash Wednesday Prayers: Worship at Vine Street Christian Church

March 12         Below the Surface: Scott Potter (Metro Water Services)

March 16         The City in the Old Testament: Jonathan Redding (Vanderbilt University)

March 19         Affordable Housing in Nashville: Rev. Bill Barnes

March 23         The City in the Gospel of Luke: Dr. Amanda Miller (Belmont University)

March 25         Nashville Next: Dr. Rick Bernhardt (Metro Planning Department)

March 26         Planning With Neighbors: Julia Landstreet (Nashville Civic Design Center)

March 30         A Guided Walk Through Downtown: Rev. Lindsey Krinks (Street Chaplain)

April 6              A Guided Walk Through Chestnut Hill and Napier neighborhoods

April 9              Cohousing Comes To Nashville: Diana Sullivan (Germantown Cohousing)

April 13            Jesus and the City: Dr. A. J. Levine (Vanderbilt University) (Palm Sunday)

April 18            Walking the Stations of the Cross on Nashville’s Streets (Good Friday)

For additional details, visit www.vinestreet.org/just-city-360.

To Not Be Silent Continues

Music and education series features Andra Moran in March.

By Katie McLaughlin

The adult education and music series To Not Be Silent is back with some exciting guests joining the Vine Street community the first Sundays of March, April and May.

On March 2^nd we will welcome singer/songwriter and worship leader Andra Moran. The soulful Mike Farris kicked off the season on Feb. 2.

The annual To Not Be Silent series explores the role of music in our spiritual life and in all the ways people worship. This year there are four events, each one featuring a Nashville musician who joins the Vine Street community in Fellowship Hall for conversation during the 9:30 a.m. adult education hour. Along with a moderator, they discuss their career and how spirituality has impacted their music, plus they share a few songs with us. The artist then serves as our guest musician during the 10:45 a.m. worship service.

No stranger to the Vine Street community, Andra Moran will join us on March 2^nd. A woman of many talents, she now adds author to the list. We look forward to catching up with Andra and learning about her new book, Brim: Creative Overflow in Worship Design, co-authored with Suzanne Castle. She continues to be a sought after clinician at worship music conferences all over the country, while serving as creative director for The Bridge at Woodmont Christian Church. And, of course, she’ll sing us a few songs from her latest album, Harmony Grove.

If you attended the Concert for Clean Water last September, then you’re already familiar with our guest for April 6^th. Country songwriter Erin Enderlin has penned cuts for Alan Jackson, Lee Ann Womack, Luke Bryan, Randy Travis, Terri Clark and others. As a solo performer, she recently made her Grand Ole Opry debut, has twice been a member of Willie Nelson’s Country Throwdown tour and her latest album, I Let Her Talk, is gaining rave reviews. A master of the story song—and not afraid to take on weighty subject matter—Erin’s music will surely strike a chord with any listener.

Our May 4^th guest will be announced soon. Please make plans to join us on March 2^nd.

Musicians who have joined To Not Be Silent in the past for conversation, performance and worship include Gabe Dixon, Julia Callaway, Jason Eskridge, Dave Perkins, Julie Lee, Dave Barnes, the GHS Performers, Shawn Tate and David P. Sartor.

To Not Be Silent

Vine Street's 2014 music series, To Not Be Silent kicks-off with a bang on February 2 as we welcome critically acclaimed singer-songwriter Mike Farris.

The 2008 recipient of the Americana Music Association's New and Emerging Artist award, Farris's music blends roots-gospel with the sounds of New Orleans, Stax, and the blues. His soulful voice and energetic live performances (often backed by the 9-piece Roseland Rhythm Revue) have cemented his spot as a favorite among concert-goers, music critics, and fellow musicians. 

Farris has recorded with the likes of Patty Griffin, Sam Bush, and the McCrary Sisters, and has appeared on Nashville's Music City Roots and PBS's Austin City Limits. His 2009 album, SHOUT! Live, earned him a Dove Award for Traditional Gospel Album of the Year. 

Join us on Sunday, February 2 at 9:30 a.m. as Mike discusses his career and unique blend of music during our adult education hour. We all look forward to his gift of music during our 10:45 a.m. worship service that morning.

The series will continue with Andra Moran on March 2 and Erin Enderlin on April 6 before wrapping up on the first Sunday in May. 

Here are three videos for a taste of Mike:

Christmas Eve

by Thomas Kleinert

I love worshiping in our sanctuary. I love the large windows, the open view on the changing patterns of sky and clouds, the trees giving shape and color to the seasons.

I love worshiping in our sanctuary any time of year or day, but I have some favorites. Christmas Eve is one of them. The darkness outside. Inside, the hushed voices of worshipers before the services begin, the eyes of old and young reflecting the light of the star. The tiny flame topping candle after candle as the light travels from hand to hand in the beautiful circle of Silent Night. And the songs, the carols, the music blending ancient hope and childhood memories with the miracle of birth, proclaiming once more the wonder of the night of nights when the word of God became a human being. I hope that many of you who read this will join us this year for one of our Christmas Eve worship services.

The service at 4:30 p.m. is designed with small children in mind. At the center are the nativity scene and the birth stories from the gospels of Luke and Matthew, and around it we sing our favorite carols and light our candles.

The service at 11 p.m. tells our story from creation and fall to the birth of our Savior with scripture lessons, carols, and gifts of music. We share the Lord's Supper to proclaim God's faithfulness beyond all that sin divides and destroys, and we give thanks for the birth of Christ. And right around midnight we pass the flame from candle to candle in a circle of joy: the light of Christ will fill the world!

Come and worship with us. Come and take part in bringing the good news of great joy to all. Merry Christmas!

Advent Is Here

At Vine Street, we have a beautiful tradition to mark the beginning of Advent; it’s our very own version of the Hanging of the Greens.

Early in the season, at the end of the day, women, men, and children of all ages gather in the sanctuary. We sing some of our favorite carols and we listen to stories that tell us how bells and stars, candles and poinsettias became part of our holiday traditions.

As part of the service we also decorate the sanctuary with wreaths and garlands – hence the name, Hanging of the Greens. We prepare our hearts by preparing the space. This is no sit-quietly-in-your-pew service, but a walk-around-and-help-add-beauty service. Toward the end of this special time together, though, we quietly watch the great star as it rises over the baptistery and we say a prayer that our hearts may be prepared to welcome the coming of Christ.

Our Hanging of the Greens is a simple and festive time of worship and preparation for all generations, and we hope you will join us this year.

Sunday, December 1, 4:30pm
Hanging of the Greens

The service is short enough for our youngest friends to enjoy, and after the closing carol, those of us who aren’t too tired go downstairs to the fellowship hall for a little hot cider and a cookie, and all are invited to make a family advent wreath to take home with them.

Thanksgiving Together

"Come, ye thankful people, come..." The tradition goes back longer than most of us remember: every year, congregations from churches and synagogues in west Nashville gather for an interfaith Thanksgiving worship service. Every year, the service is hosted by a different congregation and a different set of clergy and lay leaders offer prayers, readings, songs and reflections. 

This year, the service will be hosted by our friends at West End Church of Christ, and they are very excited, because this is their first year as a host congregation. "Join us for this wonderful opportunity to worship with our neighbors and give thanks for all of God's blessings."

This year's service will be on Sunday, November 24 at 6 p.m., West End Church of Christ, 3534 West End Avenue, with a reception immediately following.

Thanksgiving Offering

Your gift to the annual Thanksgiving offering helps to underwrite the education of students attending the fourteen colleges and seven seminaries or divinity houses of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). You are helping to ensure that when students from Vine Street go away to study they will come home to a Disciples institution.

Coming home to a Disciples college or theological school is possible through the scholarships and grants that are made available by generous individuals, the Disciples Mission Fund and your gifts to the Thanksgiving Offering. Together we can make coming home to Disciples educational institutions more affordable. For generations thousands of students have attended the colleges and universities of the Christian Church,  receiving both a quality education and the opportunity to remain within our Disciples  heritage. The Thanksgiving Offering helps continue this tradition.

Consider how important teaching and learning is to our faith community.

Then, consider your investment not just in the student’s opportunity to learn but also as an act of stewardship for future generations.

Likewise, consider the many generations of pastors, who, if not for the support of faithful congregations and individuals over the ages, would not have flourished as our pastors, teachers and leaders. Have you considered the impact of the pastor in the life of your church, community or region? Our institutions help prepare our pastors for the service and leadership they provide to our communities. Let’s thank them by supporting the Thanksgiving Offering.

Historically, our denomination has led in founding and supporting higher education. Today, the colleges, universities, seminaries and divinity houses find themselves in a transformational time, much like the Church. Your gifts will give students an opportunity to Come Home to a Disciples college or seminary and help lead our ongoing transformation.

The Thanksgiving Offering benefits the colleges, universities, seminaries, and divinity houses affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). These learning communities are an extension of the church, challenging students to understand and respond to God’s call to serve. Your support provides scholarships, church relations programs, and chaplaincy offices. Most importantly, your support of the 2013 Thanksgiving Offering helps Disciples Come Home!

Music for a Mission

Grab your blanket, lawn chairs, and a picnic dinner, a bottle of wine or some snacks to share with friends, and join us on the back lawn for an evening of great music with Gabe Dixon, Julie Lee, and Erin Enderlin!

On Saturday, September 14 we will gather “in the round” behind the Fitzpatrick House, starting at 6pm - time for dinner and drinks with friends! - and the concert will begin at 7:30pm. We will also have beverages available for purchase. 

We will not be selling tickets or charge admission, but we will ask for donations to help us raise funds for Vine Street’s water project with Living Waters for the World. More than a billion people around the world don’t have access to water that is clean and safe. We want to raise $5,000 as a first installment to train leaders and purchase materials to help build a community-based and community-operated water treatment system. The ball is starting to roll, and this fundraising event will give it a good push forward! The suggested donation per adult is $25, but we’re certain many of you will be able to reach a little deeper.

So, come on out on September 14, and join us “in the round” for a fun evening of music and fellowship! 

The Facebook event page makes inviting Facebook friends really easy!

You can also download the poster and put it inside your car window or on your neighborhood bulletin board!

The Stormy Question

The Christian Church and the Slavery Issue

In a 3-week adult education series, we will explore how Disciples of Christ reacted to the slavery controversy and the subsequent Civil War in the mid nineteenth century. 

Based on the interpretive exhibit on display at the Disciples of Christ Historical Society (an online version of the exhibit is also available) this topic commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation.

Class discussions will include biographical sketches and the philosophies of Disciples chaplains, soldiers, abolitionists, pacifists, war hawks, and defenders of the slavery system. Comparisons to today's social justice issues will also be examined.

We are very fortunate to have Sara Harwell, Vice President and Chief Archivist and the curator of the exhibit, as our teacher on Sunday mornings (August 18 and 25, September 8); we meet each Sunday at 9:30am in the Fellowship Hall.

William Tolman Carlton "Watch Meeting Dec. 31st 1862, Waiting for the Hour" | White House Art Collection

Stormy Questions

Public forum on May 18 explores issues of slavery and mass incarceration

As the 2013 event in the Wayne H. Bell Lectureship on Ministry, Vine Street Christian Church and the Disciples of Christ Historical Society invite the public to a forum wrestling with the historical issue of the church and slavery, the modern parallel of mass incarceration, and ways in which the church can recover its prophetic voice by forming communities with those condemned by the criminal justice system.

Saturday, May 18
9 AM - 2 PM
Vine Street Christian Church
4101 Harding Pike
Nashville, TN 37205

FREE TO THE PUBLIC
Box lunch provided

To reserve your free space & box lunch, call or email
Vine Street Christian Church 615-269-5614
stormyquestions@vinestreet.org

150 years have passed since the Emancipation Proclamation. By examining the church’s response - or lack thereof - to slavery, we can see more clearly the oppression resulting from a war on drugs that has spanned four decades and resulted in unprecedented numbers of people, mostly minorities, being incarcerated. Informed by the past, the church must discern how to respond in the present to systemic injustice.

As Michelle Alexander has pointed out in her book, The New Jim Crow, we have an analogous evil in our midst today, which is the mass incarceration that has resulted from four decades of a drug war that has almost exclusively targeted poor communities of color, and a punitive, adversarial criminal justice system that defines justice in terms of process, not outcome, and provides little opportunity for healing and reconciliation. If the church is to take seriously the gospel of following a condemned criminal who proclaimed freedom for prisoners, we must acknowledge that we are failing in the same way as our nineteenth century predecessors did.

Topics:

• The Churches and Antebellum Slavery
• The New Jim Crow: The War on Drugs, The Prison Industrial Complex/Mass Incarceration
• Visits with people who have experienced and are experiencing injustice firsthand
• The Response of the Churches Today – What Can We Do?

Panel discussions, workshops, and question and answer sessions featuring church historian and archivist Sara Harwell, former prosecutor Preston Shipp, former death row inmate Ndume Olatushani, minister Thomas Kleinert, prison chaplain Jeannie Alexander and community organizer Janet Wolf.

Moderated by Glenn Thomas Carson, President, Disciples of Christ Historical Society.

To reserve your free space & box lunch, call or email
Vine Street Christian Church
615-269-5614
stormyquestions@vinestreet.org

Exploration | Music

Vine Street Music Series 2013

On Sunday,  April 7, Vine Street begins a five-week exploration of the place of music in worship and spirituality. Each Sunday, Nashville singer/songwriters and music professionals will talk about the influence of church music on their faith and their music careers, and will share some of their music.

As part of the vibrant Nashville music and faith community, we joyfully welcome all guests to join our conversations. All sessions will be held on Sunday mornings at 9:30a.m. in the Vine Street Fellowship Hall, followed by music during our 10:45a.m. worship service. We will post more information and video updates at vinestreet.org/musicseries2013.

April 7 - Session 1 

The guest to kick off the series will be Dave Barnes. Dave is a Nashville based singer/musician and Grammy nominated songwriter. He is the son of a minister, growing up in Mississippi and Knoxville TN before coming to Nashville. He released his first EP in 2002. His September 2004 release Brother, Bring The Sun was critically acclaimed for Dave's songwriting and overall high-quality presentation for an independent release. Through its release, he gained notability among singers Amy Grant (who later performed on Dave's wedding song "I Have and I Always Will"), Vince Gill and John Mayer.

In 2005, Dave co-produced the five-song EP Today & Tomorrow for his friend Matt Wertz; he also co-wrote one of the songs on the EP.

Dave's songs were featured on the show What I Like About You, including his song "On a Night Like This", which was featured on the "Three Little Words" episode.

In April 2010, Dave released his fourth full band studio album What We Want, What We Get after having released his single "God Gave Me You" from the same album. The single rose into the top-five Contemporary Christian music chart by June. Blake Shelton released the song as his second single on his album Red River Blue in fall of 2011. It became Blake's fifth number one song at country radio and has sold over one million units. In 2012, Dave Barnes was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Country Song for writing the song "God Gave Me You."

Dave is a friend and songwriting colleague of Vine Street’s own Gabe Dixon. They will have a conversation about songwriting inspiration, as well as sing some of their favorite songs. Dave will perform a couple of his own songs during morning worship at 10:45.

April 14 - Session 2  

Our guest this Sunday is Jason Eskridge. Jason was born and grew up in Rockwood, TN. After high school he attended college at Tennessee Tech University where he played football and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. After college he accepted an engineering job in Huntsville, AL where he worked for approximately a year and a half. During that time Jason could never shake his passion to make music. So he packed up, left Huntsville, and moved to Nashville, TN where he currently resides with his family.

Since moving to Nashville Jason has served as a studio vocalist for such acts as Lyle Lovett, Randy Travis, Jonny Lang, Nicole C. Mullen, Marc Broussard, eLi, Micah Dalton, Grits, Verbs, Circadian Rhythm, Sammy Ward, DJ Maj, and Toby Mac. Jason has also traveled opening or singing backup for Lyle Lovett, Nicole C. Mullen, eLi, Micah Dalton, Grits, Knowdaverbs, and Pigeon John. He has been featured as a guest vocalist on numerous projects, including singing on one of Gabe Dixon’s albums, and just released a six song EP entitled, "the ep...".

Jason has traveled across the country playing for youth groups and campuses as well as playing at various music venues. He has also had the opportunity to take his music abroad as he has traveled to South Africa, Amsterdam, and England. Jason’s desire as a musician is to create music that causes the listener to love God, love themselves, love their fellow man, think harder, think deeper, think broader, laugh until they cry, laugh when they want to cry, try something new, remember something old, and ultimately live life to the fullest.

Jason and Gabe Dixon will talk and share music with us at 9:30 in the Fellowship Hall, followed by a couple of songs during our morning worship service.

April 21 - Session 3

Our guests this Sunday will be the Gallatin High School Performers, conducted by T.J. McLaughlin, Vine Street’s Chancel Choir Director. The Gallatin High School Chorus Program consists of three talented and hard-working ensembles: GHS Performers, Ladies Ensemble, and General Chorus. The choirs perform many times throughout the year; including seasonal concerts, community events, MTVA Contest, a Coffeehouse Night, and a full-scale Broadway musical. The GHS Chorus Program has been under the direction of T.J. McLaughlin since 2007.

The GHS Performers are a vocal ensemble comprised of thirty-four mixed voices that perform a wide variety of music with a high degree of difficulty. Throughout the year they can be found working on pieces from the medieval time period through modern vocal jazz. They have consistently received Superior marks at the Middle Tennessee Vocal Association and Tennessee American Choral Directors Association contests. Many individual choir members have been selected for the Mid-State and All-State Choral Festivals. The GHS Performers are held in very high regard throughout Sumner County and the surrounding area, and they are in constant demand for performances at private and community functions.

T.J. and the choir will demonstrate and discuss the characteristics of many different styles of worship music, including Renaissance music, a Romantic Period setting of an ancient hymn tune, American revivalist songs, and African-American spirituals in the Fellowship Hall at 9:30am. The choir will sing full versions of the songs during the 10:45a.m. worship service and will combine with the Vine Street Chancel Choir for a special offertory anthem.

April  28 - Session 4

Our guest, Julie Lee, is a singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist originally from Maryland, now living in Nashville. She is also a member of the band Old Black Kettle, with Sarah Siskind, and has collaborated with Sarah Masen, Ron Block, Mike Farris, Vince Gill, Tim O'Brien, and Kenny Vaughan. Her songs have been covered by a wide range of artists, but most notably by Alison Krauss. "Away Down the River" and "Jacob's Dream" were recorded on Allison's collection album, A Hundred Miles or More: A Collection (2007). Julie has toured extensively in the UK and US as an Americana Folk Artist. Most notably, she has opened for Alison Krauss & Union Station at The Ryman Auditorium in 2001, and played her own set at The Newport Folk Festival (2007).  

"Julie Lee is a winning combination of folk, bluegrass, gospel and a touch of blues that establishes her as an artist to watch."
- No Depression

" As a vocalist, she's a powerhouse, owning a solid gold tremolo laced with attitude and blessed with range that she wields with style...a world-class singer."
- Billboard Magazine

"Her soprano sounds conversational, even confidential, but it grabs the high notes and milks them dry. Her songwriting strikes a perfect balance between sharp details and universal resonance, confessional lyrics and sing-along melodies, earnest spirituality and self-effacing humor."
- Washington Post

Julie has ties to Vine Street, most recently playing a concert in November 2012 to raise funds for Week of Compassion water projects. She counts Senior Minister Thomas Kleinert as a friend and fan. They will have a conversation about music and inspiration, interspersed with many of Julie’s songs. Julie will share her music with us during worship at 10:45.

May 5 - Session 5  

Our guest, David P. Sartor is a concert music composer and conductor, and is Adjunct Professor of Composition at Trevecca Nazarene University. Sartor's compositions have been recognized with prestigious awards that include the American Bandmasters Association's Ostwald Prize for Symphonic Wind Ensemble Music, the National Fine Arts Award, a New Music for Young Ensembles composition prize, twenty-four consecutive ASCAP awards for compositions of unique prestige value, and a “highly commended” award in England’s Oare String Orchestra's Third Annual International Music for Strings Composition Contest.  He was a Finalist in both the Columbia Symphony Orchestra’s American Composer Competition and the Fauxharmonic Orchestra's Adagio Composition Contest, and the First Prize winner in the Burlington, VT Chamber Orchestra’s Composer Competition. Most recently, he received double honors in the 2012 American Prizes, national awards celebrating American excellence in the arts, garnering Third Place in the Choral Composition Division and Finalist status in the Orchestral Composition Division.

Dave believes that "Composition is an act of faith. While most composers strive for artistic excellence in their work, music also serves to communicate. Without willing players and attentive audiences, any composition is merely a complex set of instructions. Every piece of music, whether new or historical, is a testament to its composer's faith in the partnership among composer, performers, and audience."  

T.J. McLaughlin and Dave will lead us in exploring the place of music in worship, spirituality and inspiration. During the 10:45a.m. worship service, Vine Street’s Director of Music Emerita, Julia Callaway will present one of Dave’s compositions for organ, and the Chancel Choir will sing Dave’s setting of Psalm 67, both of which were commissioned for Vine Street Christian Church.

Cinematic Savior

Cinematic Savior: A 5-week study of Jesus in Film

Movies have a profound impact on our imagination, and we're not always aware of that. Many 20th-century Americans, when they heard a story about Moses, saw before their inner eye the face of actor Charlton Heston. And there are many, more subtle interplays between movies and the religious imagination. 

During Lent this year, you will have a great opportunity to explore the relationship between Scripture, imagination, and film with Rev. Casey Sigmon.

This five week Lenten study has two primary goals: 1) to make us more attentive readers and interpreters of Scripture and 2) to make us a more attentive film audience, especially when viewing films that interact with the icon of our faith-Jesus.

What makes achieving both tasks fun for the next five weeks is the use of various representations of Jesus in film—from Cecil B. DeMille’s King of Kings, to The Greatest Story Ever Told…from The Life of Brian and Jesus Christ Superstar, to Jesus Film and beyond! Since the advent of cinema, Jesus has been making an appearance on the big screen. You will even have a chance to test your own film making skills before the series is through!

Come join us on Wednesday nights beginning February 20^th for dinner, fellowship, and, starting each night around 6:30pm, conversations about our Savior on the silver screen.

Schedule

February 20 | Intro, Road Map, Terms

We talk about movie lingo, the road ahead, and other things.

February 27 | Jesus Films

We discuss King of Kings (1961), The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965), The Gospel According to Saint Matthew (1964), and The Jesus Film (1979)

March 6 | Monty Python's Life of Brian

We all watch together Monty Python's Life of Brian (1979)

March 13 | Scandal Films

We discuss Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), Jesus of Montreal (1989), and Life of Brian (1979)

March 20 | Experimental Film Making

We grab the camera and play!

About our Leader: Casey Thornburgh Sigmon is a lover of all things pop culture and theology. She studied Film as an undergraduate at the University of Kansas and then went to McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago to whet her appetite for theology. She was ordained in the Disciples of Christ Pentecost Sunday 2011 in Chapel Hill, NC. These days Casey is working on two projects: a PhD in Homiletics and Liturgics at Vanderbilt and growing the first addition to the Sigmon family (due in June). She and her husband Phill are new members to Vine Street and very much look forward to getting to know the community better!

The Stormy Question

On January 1, 2013 the nation observed the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. The Disciples of Christ Historical Society, located in Nashville, is participating in that commemoration with an interpretive display in the Oscar Haynes Exhibit Hall. 

The special exhibit, "The Stormy Question: Christian Churches and the Slavery Issue" showcases the Society's collections documenting the various positions taken by the Disciples of Christ on slavery, the Civil War, and emancipation.

James H. Garrison, editor of Christian Evangelist

Taken together, these documents, books, illustrations and artifacts tell a compelling story of a faith community struggling with the momentous issues and events of the nineteenth century in the United States. Many items will be displayed for the first time. The exhibit is free and open to the public.

An expanded version of the exhibit will be placed online at www.discipleshistory.org in the spring. For more information please contact the curator, Sara Harwell.

Remembering Dr. King

We encourage our members to honor the memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by familiarizing themselves with the work of Michelle Alexander, this year’s speaker at Vanderbilt University's Martin Luther King Commemoration. Her keynote address will be a good introduction to her important book, The New Jim Crow, which has received excellent reviews and won the 2011 NAACP Image Award for best nonfiction.

The book is a stunning account of the rebirth of a caste-like system in the United States, one that has resulted in millions of African Americans locked behind bars and then relegated to a permanent second-class status—denied the very rights supposedly won in the Civil Rights Movement. The New Jim Crow tells a truth our nation has been reluctant to face.

Michelle Alexander

author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness

Monday | January 21, 2013 | 7PM
Langford Auditorium
Vanderbilt University

Following the keynote and a book signing, members of the Divinity School and other community partners will lead a brief prayer vigil.

Please note: This is a ticketed event. A limited number of free tickets are available through the church. Individuals may also get no more than two tickets from the box office at the Sarratt Student Center 343-0371

Michelle Alexander, a graduate of Stanford Law School and Vanderbilt University, is a highly acclaimed civil rights lawyer, advocate, and legal scholar. In recent years, she has taught at a number of universities, including Stanford Law School, where she was an associate professor of law and directed the Civil Rights Clinics. 

Merry Christmas!

We wish you and all a happy New Year! May we grow in our knowledge of God's peace and learn to dwell in it. We have our regular worship services on Sunday, December 30. On January 6, we have a special conversation about our Children's Ministry during the Adult Education hour. Most other programs will resume the following week. 

***

The funny thing about the church calendar is that there are so many. Our program and budget year runs July 1 to June 30. The year for the annual tax statements runs from January 1 to December 31. But our worship cycles wisely ignore those beginnings and endings, and center our lives in the life of Christ.

In the Christmas cycle we are shaped by the mystery of the incarnation, "The Word became flesh and made his home among us" (John 1:14). In the Easter cycle we are shaped by the resurrection for life in the new creation, "If anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation. Everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!" (2 Corinthians 5:17)

And so we begin the year with Advent, with waiting and with wonder. We invite you to join us for our Advent worship services, seasonal adult Christian education opportunities,  and all the special celebrations on the road to Christmas...

Download pdf of schedule 

Wednesday, November 28 ★ 6:30pm
MBA Choir Christmas Concert

Advent 1 ★ Sunday, December 2 ★ 4:30pm
Hanging of the Greens

Friday, December 7 ★ 7:00pm
Naming our Losses

Advent 2 ★ Sunday, December 9

Thursday, December 13 ★ 7:00pm
Brass Band of Nashville Christmas Concert

Saturday, December 15 ★ 2:00pm
TNT Christmas Party

Advent 3 ★ Sunday, December 16
Boards & Staff Christmas Party

Wednesday, December 19 ★ 6:00pm
Christmas Program with Children’s Choir

Advent 4 ★ Sunday, December 23

Christmas Eve ★ 4:30pm
Family Christmas Worship

Christmas Eve ★ 11:00pm
Lessons, Carols, Candles & Communion

Thursday, December 27 ★ 7:00pm
Madrigal Singers Christmas Concert

Thursday – Sunday, December 27-30
Church Retreat at Christmount

water:360

We drink it. We swim in it. We wash our bodies, clothes, dishes, and cars with it. We spend the first months of life immersed in it. We are baptized in it. We dam it. We pollute it. We waste it. We thirst for it. We drown in it. We can’t imagine life without it. We take it for granted. Water.

When we do a 360 at Vine Street, we look at something from every possible perspective and address it with as many of our senses and capacities as possible. We have done hunger:360, homelessness:360, prison:360, aging:360, and now it’s time for water.

We may well have discovered the one thing that touches every dimension of our life: physical, spiritual, political, economical, theological - or can you name one aspect of life that doesn’t participate in water’s flow?

Every 360 contains elements of study, worship, art, fellowship, and service. Take a deep breath. Dive in:

On Wednesday, October 17, we meet for our regular Wednesday Nights at Vine Street dinner at 6pm, and at 6:30, we turn the dining room into a studio. We'll use sheets and sheets of water color paper, water colors and brushes, scriptures with a water theme, and our imagination to create paintings for the sanctuary. This is a fun activity for people of all ages!

On Sunday, October 21, our worship will immerse us in remembering our baptism, listening to and touching water, and reflecting on Paul's words in Romans 6:3-11, and more (think about the paintings we created the Wednesday before). On the following Sundays, we will continue to include water in our worship services: the threatening waters of the flood, the absence of water in the desert, and the deeply human gesture of sharing a cup of water.

On Tuesday, October 23, we will watch the first of several movies, Blue Gold: World Water Wars. We meet at 7:00pm in the Fellowship Hall.

Wars of the future will be fought over water as they are over oil today, as the source of human survival enters the global marketplace and political arena. Corporate giants, private investors, and corrupt governments vie for control of our dwindling supply, prompting protests, lawsuits, and revolutions from citizens fighting for the right to survive. Past civilizations have collapsed from poor water management. Can the human race survive? 

On Wednesday, October 24, after our 6pm dinner, we will learn about the watershed our church is located in. Monette Rebecca will be our guest speaker, and she will tell us about the Richland Creek watershed and how to take good care of it. Monette is the Executive Director of the Richland Creek Watershed Alliance.

On Saturday, October 27, we will have a wonderful opportunity to tour the Omohundro water treatment plant in Nashville. This is a special treat, since Scott Potter, the Director of Metro Water Services, will lead the tour in person. If you love great architecture (!), or have a thing for giant cast-iron pipes that have been in service since 1873, or are just curious about how your water gets from the river to your tap, this is a can't-miss experience. In order to participate, you must be 13 years of age or older, and you need to sign up (that too is part of keeping our drinking water safe). [Thomas did a brief pre-tour, and he won't stop talking about how great it was; the editor] Sign-up form

On Sunday, October 28, during our 9:30am Adult Education hour, G. Dodd Galbreath will talk to us about water as a limited resource, and the political and economic implications of that reality. You may remember that during the most recent drought in the South East, legislators in Georgia wanted to reopen the debate about where exactly the border between Tennessee and Georgia runs, and it was all about the water of the Tennessee river. Dodd Galbreath is the Executive Director of the Institute for Sustainable Practice at Lipscomb University. Serving two former Tennessee governors of different parties, Galbreath led efforts to implement a nationally recognized wetlands conservation plan; to create one of the nation’s first environmental justice plans; and to pass five legislative proposals for sustainable use of Tennessee’s water supplies and native rivers. 

On Tuesday, October 30, at 7:00pm, we watch another great movie in the Fellowship Hall, Flow: For the Love of Water

Water is the very essence of life. It sustains every living being on this planet and without it, there would be nothing. Literally. In her film, director Irena Salina sounds the alarm: our life-giving water is a resource in peril across the planet. The film highlights the local intimacies of a global crisis.

On Sunday, November 4, during our 9:30am Adult Education hour, we will learn about water in the rituals and prayers of our Jewish and Muslim neighbors. In the Christian tradition, the ritual use of water has not always been limited to baptism and footwashings, and we will discover how some other ancient traditions have continued in Judaism and Islam. We have invited Cantor Tracy Fishbein from The Temple, Congregation Ohabai Sholom and Daoud Abudiab from the Islamic Center of Columbia to teach us.      

On Wednesday, November 7, after our 6pm dinner, Scott Potter will talk about how much he loves his job. Scott is the Director of Metro Water Services, and he will tell us about the joys and challenges of providing clean and safe drinking water to all Nashvillians. How much water do we use in Nashville on an average day? How long has the water been in the pipe before it comes out of your tab? You can ask him just about anything!

On Sunday, November 11, during our 9:30am Adult Education hour, Steve Young will introduce us to the work of Living Waters for the World. This non-profit, headquartered in Spring Hill, TN, trains and equips mission teams to share the gift of clean sustainable water with communities in need. We might decide to send a team from Vine Street! 

On Sunday, November 11, at 4:30pm we will watch Ponyo by Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli. The consensus among critics, according to wikipedia, is that "While not Miyazaki's best film, Ponyo is a visually stunning fairy tale that's a sweetly poetic treat for children and Miyazaki fans of all ages." [I agree; the editor] Bring the kids!

On Tuesday, November 13, we will watch The Milagro Beanfield War, one more movie (7pm, Fellowship Hall) from the inexhaustible treasure trove of Jim Carls's cinematic list.

In Milagro, a small town in the American Southwest, Ladd Devine plans to build a major new resort development. While activist Ruby Archuleta and lawyer/newspaper editor Charlie Bloom realize that this will result in the eventual displacement of the local Hispanic farmers, they cannot arouse much opposition because of the short term opportunities offered by construction jobs. But when Joe Mondragon illegally diverts water to irrigate his bean field, the local people support him because of their resentment of water use laws that favor the rich like Devine. When the Governor sends in ruthless troubleshooter Kyril Montana to settle things quickly before the lucrative development is cancelled, a small war threatens to erupt.

We are also working on scheduling a clean-up day along Richland Creek (watch for details in your e-mail box), but let us tell you about one more project we're very excited about: during the weeks of water:360, we will build a photography gallery at our website. Most of you have a digital camera or a phone with a camera. What we want you to do is document how you encounter water on a daily basis. The sink in the morning is an obvious starting point, but then we want you to keep your eyes open for the countless ways in which water is part of your day (please don't jump in the pool with your phone). You can pick a day and make it your Day of Water Attentiveness, or you can click away anytime you come across something with a water connection that may have gone unnoticed had you not remembered this public art project. Send your pics to fotoeditor@vinestreet.org, and the picture fairy will take it from there.

schedule for the fridge pdf and if you love to hear us tweet use #water360

About Us

Join us August 12 - September 29, as we reflect on Vine Street's story - including the larger historical and denominational narrative it is part of. We meet on Sunday mornings at 9:30am in the Fellowship Hall. This is a great opportunity for members and friends - really anyone who is curious about our story and the struggle for faithful Christian witness!

What's the Difference? 
Vine Street, the Stone-Campbell Tradition, and the Challenge of Social Change

The series will look at Vine Street's past, present, and future, exploring not only how the early Disciples carved out their tradition on the American frontier, but at how the congregation weathered controversies some members still recall, such as racial desegregation and the Vietnam War. We will also think and talk about Vine Street´s continuing witness in a time when not only mainline, but evangelical Christianity seems on the wane.

All are welcome from 9:30-10:30 in the Fellowship Hall as Ted Parks and Jack Wallace lead an interactive discussion based on the book Renewing Christian Unity, authored by Vine Street’s own Gary Holloway and others.

Copies of Renewing Christian Unity are available at Vine Street for $15. Please contact Hope Hodnett at hope@vinestreet.org for details.

Session 1 - August 12
What Difference Does History Make?
Renewing Christian Unity, chapters 1-2
 
Session 2 - August 19
Stone and Campbell
Renewing Christian Unity, chapters 3-5
 
Session 3 - August 26
Permission and Prohibition
Renewing Christian Unity, chapters 6-9
 
Session 4 - September 2
Science and Revelation
Renewing Christian Unity, chapters 10-12
 
Session 5 - September 9
Ebony and Ivory
Civil Rights: How did Vine Street respond? What are the implications for today’s church?
 
Session 6 - September 16
War and Peace
The Vietnam War: Our stand then, our stand now. What is our identity? Are we relevant?
 
Session 7 - September 23
Conflict and Community
The place of GLBT people, immigration, and other issues that divide us today.
 
Session 8 - September 30
What Difference Do We Make?
Renewing Christian Unity, chapters 13-14. What are the causes of the decline in church participation?

The goal of the class is for participants to reflect on Vine Street's story - including the larger historical and denominational narrative it is part of - with a view toward deeper ties to the community and a stronger commitment to the body of Christ as a witness to the world. 

This overall goal includes more specific objectives. After consistently taking part in the class, participants will be able to  

1. identify key leaders and evaluate foundational concepts in Vine Street's Stone-Campbell past;
2. analyze Vine Street's or the Disciples' response to pivotal social change; and
3. develop their own vision for Vine Street as it confronts today's challenges.