All Saints Day

Find this stole here.

Historically on November 1st (today!) the Church honors all saints, known and unknown. Personally, when thinking of saintly people that have crossed my path, I think of the people that have infused my life with the Word of God, who have demonstrated that God is love through unselfish acts of kindness, and who have been patient with my growth as a disciple. I could go on and on! Are some specific people coming to your mind? 

One of our clients will be celebrating "All Saints" with her church congregation this coming Sunday. She's chosen this stole to wear on that day. We created the stole for those that serve in Children's Ministry and its focal point is the border of children of the world. This pastor did a good job perusing our ministry stole website and thinking outside the box as to how this stole as a visual connection to those that she ministers to, 

While Carrot Top Studio is always striving to connect the visual to the Word sometimes we are inspired by the visual images that dance in our head instead of on a vestment. For example the beginning of this poem conjures up some especially wonderful imagery. 

The Saints Are Standing Row on Row

The saints are standing row on row

engulfed in light and peace,

stand face to face with God their King

whose love will never cease...

Author unknown, from the Dutch Gracia Grindal

Blessings for your celebration of the saints!

Reformation Sunday

Reformation might have started out as celebrating division.  Today it seems healthier to celebrate the movement of the Holy Spirit in our Church and our hearts. It is this movement of the Holy Spirit that brings us newness and renewal, both in our personal lives and in the life of the Church. When we pray, "Come, Holy Spirit!" we know that the whole Church is always in need of reform, and we each are always in need of dying again in Christ.

This poem by Hildegard of Bingen comes to mind:

The Holy Spirit is life that gives life,

Moving all things,

It is the root in every creature

And purifies all things,

Wiping away our sins, anointing wounds,

It is radiant life, worthy of praise,

Awakening and enlivening all things.

Knowing a little bit of what worship might be like this coming Sunday I keep humming "I Mighty Fortress" in my head. Here's an interesting contemporary version of this much loved hymn.

Pumpkins

Does my hair color
inspire my love for pumpkins?

I feel a connection to pumpkins. Is it my hair color? Maybe it's the variety of colors pumpkins come in. The variety of color in nature (such as in a pumpkin) is truly magnificent. I'm trying to focus on things to be thankful for and today as I write and look at the pumpkin on my front stoop I am thankful for color. 

Why are we drawn to pumpkins? One reason might be is that the color is hard not to notice especially in the fields at harvest time. The orange round squash like fruit dotting the dark ground surrounded by dull dying vines capped off with the contrast of a brilliant blue or stormy fall sky really stands out. This color theory applies to how we use color to draw us into worship. Liturgical color connects us to a specific time of the church year. We've been working on Advent stoles in anticipation of the upcoming season. The vibrant purples and blues are a great example of a color being a meaningful reminder of the life of Jesus. Churches that use purple textiles and vestments are recalling Jesus coming as Christ the King because this is the color of royalty. Those that focus on blue might be doing so as a reminder of the deep blue predawn sky.  This is symbolic of watching for the light so to speak....the promised light of Christ the only one that can fill our darkness.

The colors of Advent draw you in! See a ministry stole similar to this here.

During my day in the studio, you can see through this brief post, how I make thoughts connect. As I wrap up my work for the day I am looking forward to the pumpkin soup that is in the crock pot for my dinner tonight. It's obviously a total theme day for me!

P.S.--Haven't ever tried pumpkin soup? Click here for my new favorite recipe.

Principles of Design Applied to Worship Spaces

One of the first classes I had as an art student in college (way back when) was based upon the elements and principles of design. Even though that was quite a few years ago these basic artistic tools are still as applicable today as they have been for many years in the history of art. In this post we'll look at these principles as they might apply to our worship spaces.

Balance
Balance refers to the placement of various elements in the worship space. Your church may have formal or informal balance. This is important to recognize so you are consistent when you introduce new visuals.

This is the sanctuary in my home church. Not only is the architecture formal but so is the balance. To maintain this balance we wouldn't want to hang just one Carrot Top Studio banner. Two banners keep the balance.

Repetition
Repetition of a form or a shape creates a pattern. When patterns are small we call them textures. Patterns can enrich a surface, but they can also dominate and become loud or boring. Repeating pattern creates unity. This applies to the architecture like we've referenced but can also apply to the stoles worn by ministry leaders. The repetition of all the ministry leaders wearing the same stole (or at least the same color stole) creates unity and gives a visual impact that makes a great statement.

Variation
Variation creates interest. Too little variation makes a boring space; too much may make the space appear chaotic. 

For example, the variation of the red banners against the white wall is enough in this chancel. The curved architectural trim around the banners and stained glass window smartly echos the front shape of the chancel. It the trim had been painted an accent color it would have been too much variation.

Contrast
Contrast is needed to make certain elements stand out. If we're very used to our worship space it can be hard to see the contrast. A good tool is to take some photographs of the space and see what stands out. It's interesting to see what we notice in a photograph that we hadn't paid attention to before.

Harmony
Harmony deals with how all the elements in the worship space work together. Is there anything fighting for attention? Color can actually be the tool that unifies. Whether you follow the liturgical seasons or not, if the color that is the accent for worship carries from altar cover, to Bible book mark, to worship banner to stole then you will most likely have created harmony.

The use of this table cloth creates harmony. Despite the use of many colors in the table cloth  the repetition of red from the chair cushions, to the pew cushions to the carpet helps to create harmony. Does this make or break our faith? Of course not! But visual harmony can help us focus on what is most important--the worship of our Lord and Savior. If there isn't visual harmony our minds and hearts might not rest for the worship...at least for those of us that are visual learners.

Keeping in mind the principles of design as we look at our worship space will help to make sure the elements are supporting each other and not dominating. And in turn the space will call attention to God, not itself.

Book Review: Praying with Our Hands

The words of prayer are powerful but so is the kinesthetic and visual nature our bodies display as they move through times and types of prayer. Jesus modeled different types of prayer postures and I must say I feel more focused and engaged when I "change things up" and try a prayer posture that is not within my norm. Considering our body and prayer I'd like to share a book I stumbled upon. It is a delightful coffee table type book that focuses on our hands in prayer. What an interesting topic the book Praying with Our Hands has taken on. In this inspiring book of reflections and accompanying photographs, we see how our hands can give meaning to our prayers in a way that words alone cannot. The photographs are sensitive in their black and white values and should appeal to believers of many different faiths.This book is simple but given that I love the phrase, "tis a gift to be simple" I think the images and message of this book are inspiring and educational. See what you think of this book by Jon M. Sweeney!