Water to Wine

We began our "Water to Wine" journey last week with a general discussion and planning. We started our journals and learned a prayer. The prayer is a paraphrase of one I learned several years ago while taking a spiritual development course called Miracles & Mountains. The original was:

Beloved Divinity within,
I let you infiltrate every cell of my being.
I think with your mind.
I love with your heart.
I surrender to the highest truth within.

For kids, this seemed a bit cerebral and not as, perhaps, meaningful. I tried something to make it more conducive to the essence of God within.

Loving God,
I know you are inside me.
Please become a part of everything I am.
I want to think with your mind.
I want to love with your heart.
Help me see the truth that I know is inside me.

This felt better. I am open to suggestions.

We continued our journey yesterday with the actual wine making process. Some of the kids had seen the process before. They wound up being a big help for those (particularly the very young) who were totally unfamiliar with what we were doing.

We began talking about the juice itself. We tasted it and determined that it tasted like very sweet and concentrated juice. Though some could get a sense of a wine taste, most of us found it didn't taste much like what we thought wine tastes like.

We put the juice in the primary fermenter (just a big plastic bin that had been sterilized). Then, we added water to raise the level to the 23 litre mark. Then began the Great Bentonite Shake. Bentonite is a mineral that is added to the fermentation process to help with both the fermentation as well as clearing the wine after fermentation. It is basically some dirt (though special) that is added to water to make what I like to call "mud." It is difficult to get it to disperse in the water. This is where we all got a chance to shake it until we got totally tired of doing so. We added what we were able to get dispersed and then I finished the process later, adding it to the must.

Once we had all that, we took a hydrometer reading (for density or specific gravity) and the temperature (to ensure that the yeast would live to start the fermentation) and then added the crushed grapes that came with the kit. They seemed to really get a kick out of this part as the mixture was really thick and gooey.

Then, we added the yeast. I think that the kids were expecting an instant reaction. They were disappointed. I tried to let them know that it would take some time and that today we would know if everything was ok by whether the juice started to bubble and foam.

After the service was over, I added the oak shavings, the rest of the bentonite, and set up a space heater in the room. I was just a bit worried that the room was too cold to allow the yeast to start its work.

This morning I took a photo. As you can see, the bubbling has begun! It looks rather unsavoury, but I am certain everything will continue as it should. As the week progresses, the yeast will continue to consume the sugars in the must and that process will produce heat as well as alcohol. As the hydrometer reading lowers, I will rack the must into a carboy for the next stages.

This project seemed to attract a bit more attention. We had a much larger group yesterday, though some of those attending mentioned that they could not be regular attendees because of other activities they pursue. I will see how that proceeds as we continue. I don't want to exclude anyone because of other commitments. At the same time, I am hoping that we can have some continuity so that we can deepen our process of growth. I assume that is what we are here for.

I was excited by the reaction of the older members of the congregation to the music I played for our part of the service. I used the Switchfoot song "Something More (Augustine's confession)." The story within scripture was the story of Lazarus and the rich man. The lyric seemed appropriate.

Augustine just woke up with a broken heart. All this time, He's never been awake before.
At thirty-one his whole world is a question mark. All this time, he's never been awake before.
Watching dreams that he once had feed the flame inside his head.
In a quiet desperation of the emptiness he says...

"There's got to be something more than what I'm living for. I'm crying out to You."

"There's got to be something more than what I'm living for. I'm crying out to You"

Augustine, all his fears keep falling out. All this time, he's never been awake before.
Finding now his old dreams aren't panning out. All this time, he's never been awake before.
But he's mad to be alive. And he's dying to be met. In a quiet desperation of the emptiness he says...

"There's got to be something more than what I'm living for. I'm crying out to You."

Something more….

"Hey, I give it all away
Nothing I was holding back remains
Hey, I give it all away
Looking for the grace of God today"

"There's got to be something more than what I'm living for. I'm crying out to You"

"There's got to be something more than what I’ve been before. I'm crying out to You"

Several people came to me after the service to tell me how much they enjoyed the music and that the lyric was "so beautiful!"

I love that the world and the universe continues to surprise me!

In the beginning.....

In the beginning, I wish there had been more light!

I am just beginning my new job as child and youth coordinator here at Knox United Church in Calgary. I have been a member of this church for about 20 years. I have found it a wonderful home in which I can explore and develop my sense of spirituality. At the same time, I have watched children grow and leave the congregation - at least leave the activity they once exercised within this community. I am aware of some of the reasons and will try to respond to what I have been told as well as try to figure out whether my hypotheses are accurate.

What this is will hopefully help respond to some of those concerns. I am hoping that this blog can gather some of the people who might come to Knox, but who are not yet coming, or who have changed from this place. I invite you to participate. Perhaps we can use this to start a conversation and an exploration into how we can make this church more responsive to youth. The church should be a place where youth feel safe, feel at home, feel like they are valued, honoured, respected, and where they have a voice.

If you are wondering about the "Huda Hakawi" aspect of this.....

I hated the idea of going to "Sunday School" when I was a child. I rejected it even more strongly as an adolescent. This is why I refuse to see my job as a director of Sunday School.

When I was an adolescent, I was far more involved with trying to figure out who I was, what I believed, where I was going, and what I wanted to do in my future. There were few places for me to go to explore that. I was lucky. I met some very radical thinkers. These people were also people of ACTION. Incidentally, they were involved with my church. They were NOT, however, people who "preached" to me or my friends. They were not, what we referred to as "bible thumpers." They did challenge us to think and feel.

I am hoping to be more like these mentors of my past. So "Huda Hakawi" is what I am trying to establish as a child and youth program at Knox. Huda Hakawi is simply "Who the heck are we?" written to seem like something else. It does, however, signal people that my aim is to take direction from the youth or children who become a part of what we do.

So:

Who are you?
Who do you want to be?
How do you want to become those people?
What role do you want?
What do you want to do?

I open the conversation to anyone who wants to participate. You don't need to be connected to our church or any church. You don't need to actually come to be physically present. I only ask you to join in the discussion. Let's see where it leads.

Who am I targeting?

• Youth: 13 - 25.
• Preferably near Calgary Alberta, but you don't have to be to engage in this discussion.
• You likely are Christian or your family is so, but let's not limit this space to those who are Christian. Let's share who we are and get to know more about the diversity of the world. My daughter describes herself as not believing in anything. I would not close her from this conversation. She might have the questions and comments that stimulate real thought and growth.
  
• Someone who is exploring their spirituality. Someone who wants to grow in her/his spirituality. Someone who wants to know themselves as a spiritual being.
• Someone who doesn't mind "being in the process of growing".

I will not pretend to have the answers to all questions. I know that I am still growing in my own spirituality. I don't even know if I will have any answers to questions. I will, however, commit to exploring with you.

So, Who am I?

• Staff Associate coordinating Children and Youth at Knox United Church.
• Part of Knox United Church in Calgary Alberta
• A former teacher and public school administrator
• a father of two
• Dr. Dan (this link will take you to my facebook page. You can get lots of info - likely more than you want.)

So let's see where we go. Please feel free to join in!