My name is James Martin, and I am a student worker at the 787 Collective. I am in my first year of seminary, and before coming to seminary I was a middle school science teacher in a small town called Douglas, AZ on the U.S./Mexico border. The past five years I lived in the border…
During our March Communal dinner, we did a tiny art/reflection project around the things that we felt called to let die in our lives during the Lenten season. Collective Member Caitlin Parsons shared that she was working to let go of negativity in her life, and shared this article about releasing “junk emotions” with the…
For this next post in our Proclaim series, we chose a particularly insightful sermon from Caroline Barnett, a Senior Mdiv student from Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary (APTS). She addresses a complicated passage from the Bible and how it is that we wrestle with these tough things. Senior Sermon: The Word of God? by Caroline Barnett…
Written by: Martha Lynn Coon This Easter season, as we consider the story of the Resurrection, I’d like to spend some time thinking about linen. More specifically, the fabric that bound the body of Jesus and on which his body lay in the rock hewn tomb in Jerusalem. I’m not sure why this piece of…
In March, members of the 787 leadership team attended the Young Adult Initiative Consultation (in other words, a conference that brings together all the organizations doing similar work as the 787 Collective for assessment, sharing, and reflection) hosted by the Lilly Endowment in Indianapolis. One of our young adults, Evan Hearn, shares his thoughts about…
Once in a while things come across our radar from all sides, and so it was with Priya Parker’s book The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters. The day after ordering my copy, I walked into my colleague Mikala’s office and saw it sitting on her desk. Mikala McFerren coordinates all…
Written by young adult guest blogger: K.K. On March 12 & 13 I attended the Young Adult Initiative Consultation in Indianapolis as a member of the 787 Collective. This was my first time at this conference, the fourth year it’s taken place, and on the flight up from Austin I read a packet of information…
“I think people often come to the synagogue, the mosque, the church looking for God, and what we give them is religion, and I think that is a huge mistake. And sometimes we let our fussing around with the institution get in the way of what people came for, which is help in facilitating their…
The first in our Proclaim Series is a sermon is from Gary Mathews, who is the Director of Alumni and Church Relations at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary. He preached it last September on Theological Education Sunday at Grace Presbyterian Church is San Antonio. Enjoy! Nostalgia: This Is Your Space, Not Mine 1 Samuel 3:1-10; Philippians…
Occasionally we hear a sermon that resonates deeply with the core of the 787 mission. In an effort to celebrate the art of proclamation, we decided to start sharing those with you and considering for ourselves what proclamation looks and feels like in and among the communities we serve. A quick Google search about the…
