We believe that Art matters - that it influences how we perceive truth, beauty, love, and renewal; that it profoundly shapes our lives and culture. We think Art speaks to our hearts, that it makes great claims about the way things are and the way things ought to be. So we think Art is also deeply linked to spirituality.
This summer we're launching a series of informal discussion groups to explore these connections. Each Friday night we'll experience great art firsthand, and then discuss it together - not as experts, but as friends. We'll watch movies, share stories. We might even have a guest speaker or two. We'll almost certainly throw some parties along the way. It should be a lot of fun.
Why are we doing this? It's not just to enjoy great art (although that's certainly part of it!). We also desire to deepen our understanding of how art shapes culture and influences us: What is it asking us to believe about reality? What hope does it offer? What does it reveal about the artist's worldview? About our own? Most importantly, how might a deeper understanding of art actually foster and fuel our own personal spirituality?
Sound interesting? Here's what's on the schedule...
Friday, June 15 - Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (PG-13, 2012) - follows a group of British retirees who decide to "outsource" their retirement to less expensive and seemingly exotic India. Enticed by advertisements for the newly restored Marigold Hotel and bolstered with visions of a life of leisure, they arrive to find the palace a shell of its former self...
Meet outside the Wilma at 6:45 PM.
Drinks & discussion at El Caz afterwards.
Friday, June 22 - "So F---ing Beautiful: Seeing and Portraying the Glory of the Lord in Dark Places" - Jail chaplain, gang pastor, and writer Chris Hoke leads a discussion on faith and art. He will tell stories of how both he and the violent men he works with have been won over by a kind of beauty that is often found in the ugliest places, as well as their attempts to bear witness to this spiritual beauty through rap and creative nonfiction.
Meet at Christian & Marilyn's (2307 River Road) at 6:30 PM. Bring snacks and drinks to share. Call 529-5568 for details.
Friday, June 29 - Moonrise Kingdom (PG-13, 2012) - tells the story of two twelve-year-olds who fall in love, make a secret pact, and run away together into the wilderness. As various authorities try to hunt them down, a violent storm is brewing off-shore -- and the peaceful island community is turned upside down in more ways than anyone can handle...
Meet outside the Wilma at 6:45 PM.
Drinks & discussion at El Caz afterwards.
Friday, July 6 - Beer & Brat's Grill Party! - We'll provide a keg, some amazing brats, and shrimp on the grill! Throw in some live music w/ Ron Dunbar, with an open mic for after that, and it should be a pretty spectacular! Kids and friends welcome. You bring sides or drinks, and if you're a creative type - some music, poetry, or readings to share! RSVP if you're coming, so we know how much food to prepare.
Meet at Christian & Marilyn's (2307 River Road) at 6:30 PM. Bring snacks and drinks to share. Call 529-5568 for details.
Friday, July 13 - Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (PG-13, 2011) - Oskar Schell is an inventive eleven year-old New Yorker whose discovery of a key in his deceased father's belongings sets him off on quest for the lock it will open. A year after his father died in the World Trade Center on what he calls "The Worst Day," Oskar is determined not to lose his vital connection to his father, even if it means distancing himself from his heartbroken mother...
Meet at the Cryders (2307 River Road) at 6:30 PM.
Friday, July 20 - The Addiction (Unrated, 1995) - A vampire movie like you've never seen before. When graduate philosophy student Kathleen Conklin (Lili Taylor) is bitten by an aggressive female vampire her life spirals into a nightmarish world of blood addiction and existential angst as she seeks various ways of coping with her condition. Co-starring Christopher Walken, this film explores parallels with drug addiction and the essential evil latent in human kind...
Meet at the Cryders (2307 River Road) at 6:30 PM. [It's air conditioned!]
Bring snacks and drinks to share! Ryan will lead the discussion.
- Friday, July 27 - Open Ceremonies of the London Olympics!
- Friday, Aug 3 - TBD.
- Friday, Aug 10 - Music Party @ Bob & Laura’s ???
Friday, Aug 17 - "The Significance of J.R.R. Tolkien" - listen to a 2002 lecture by Dr. Timothy Keller as he considers how an obscure Oxford don by the name of J.R.R. Tolkien actually became one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. In other words, "What was Tolkien up to when he decided to write the Lord of the Rings? And how did his faith shape his writing?" The answers might surprise you...
Meet at the Cryders (2307 River Road) at 6:30 PM.
Friday, Aug 24 - Pan’s Labyrinth (R, 2006) - A haunting fantasy-drama set in the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War and detailing the strange journeys of an imaginative young girl who just might be the long lost mythical princess of an underground kingdom. This movie changed the way I read Scripture...
Meet at the Cryders (2307 River Road) at 6:30 PM.
- Friday, Aug 31 - Fall Kickoff Party ???
These groups are open to anyone, regardless of your spiritual convictions (or lack thereof). You can come to one group, or come to all. You're welcome to bring friends, but childcare is not provided.
Got questions? Want to know more? Contact Christian (christian.cryder@gmail.com | 529-5568) for more information. Adult themes and content, so use your discretion.
