{"id":7887,"date":"2018-04-20T07:47:03","date_gmt":"2018-04-20T12:47:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/?p=7887"},"modified":"2026-02-26T13:42:38","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T19:42:38","slug":"call-for-creative-communion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/2018\/04\/20\/call-for-creative-communion\/","title":{"rendered":"Call for creative communion"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Source: FreeImages.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

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I nearly skipped the liturgy. I almost didn\u2019t head out into the cold night.<\/p>\n

After two full and exhausting days at the Festival of Faith and Writing in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I wasn\u2019t sure if I had any energy to interact with another person, especially any of my literary heroes.<\/p>\n

Yet, I made my way through the slushy streets and into a dimly lit restaurant, with a copy of Presence clenched under my stiff arm. I found a seat, snug between strangers, tucked tight into rows of chairs facing a simple microphone and small table.<\/p>\n

Others stood on the edges of the room, sipping wine and eating hors d\u2019oeuvres. I looked around the space, and felt too shy to offer my customary grins and waves to any face I recognized, because my body was tight with the feeling that…<\/p>\n

[This is the beginning of my latest column for the online newspaper,\u00a0<\/em>Global Sisters Report<\/a>. Continue reading\u00a0here<\/a>.]<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"  I nearly skipped the liturgy. I almost didn\u2019t head out into the cold night. After two full and exhausting days at the Festival of Faith and Writing in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I wasn\u2019t sure if I had any energy to interact with another person, especially any of my literary heroes. Yet, I made my...","protected":false},"author":4071079,"featured_media":7907,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6469729,115341],"tags":[177,2416,43475486,198878,698755374,789,43837,5762248,221895935,7816,6406728,13777,1861871,145558,853,1598985],"series":[698756626],"class_list":["post-7887","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-and-activism","category-equity-and-justice-equity-and-justice","tag-art","tag-church","tag-church-in-action","tag-communion","tag-community","tag-creativity","tag-democracy","tag-festival-of-faith-and-writing","tag-global-sisters-report","tag-god","tag-gospel-living","tag-liturgy","tag-poetry-2","tag-poetry-reading","tag-prayer","tag-prophetic-voices","series-messy-jesus-business"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/microphone-1561272.jpg","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/wp-content\/plugins\/seriously-simple-podcasting\/assets\/images\/no-album-art.png","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/feed\/podcast\/messy-jesus-business","embedCode":"

Call for creative communion<\/a><\/blockquote>