ReVision - What do we do with Christianity? by Michelle Chapman

A couple weeks ago Mary Gurley and I traveled to Albuquerque for the Center for Action and Contemplation’s (CAC) conference entitiled “ReVision – What do we do with Christianity?” If you are not familiar with the CAC, you can find them at www.cac.org. They have many spiritual, soul-searching courses to help bring you closer to God and you can subscribe to a daily meditation.

The conference was overwhelming! Held in a humongous conference room with a center stage and huge video screens all around the stage and the room so that no matter where the speaker turned, everyone saw him/her speaking directly to them! When there was no speaker, there were beautiful videos of nature set to ethereal music. The audience of over 1600 souls were seated all around at round tables of eight with interactional activities in the center for anyone who needed to use their hands – a zen sand box or tiny Lego sets (I built a mini golden bonzai tree for our table one day).

Father Richard Rohr did come and speak on two days. Even from a wheelchair with his faithful dog Opie, he spoke eloquently on faith, contemplation and right action – recentering Jesus as a prophet in this age of outrage. We need to center ourselves in Christ and act with love for our neighbors.

Different modes of prayer were demonstrated: song; lectio divina- using scripture, poetry or any wise saying; chanting; and silent meditation. All are good ways to get into contemplation and come closer to God while stilling the mind. 

One of the speakers that I found especially interesting is Diana Butler Bass, author and historian. She spoke on the effect of stories on our view of the world. All our stories have many sides. The story of Christianity and how it has diverged over the years is a big one. On one hand there is the BIG CHRISTIANITY – Christ ®Constantine (legalized Christianity), ®Christendom (church and state are one), ®Calvin, ®Christian America: conquest, earthly victory through strong leaders, imperial, warrior Christianity of winning and NOT losing. On the other, there is the small c Christianity that also starts with Christ, then continues to community (Jesus dining with sinners), compassion for others, courage to stand up for what is true, contemplation to center the mind, and creativity to change the hearts and minds of civilization. I feel that St. Patrick’s is heartily centered in little c Christianity!

St. Patrick's Kitchen: Chicken Salad

Blessing
We look to you, O Lord,
for food to nourish our bodies,
for grace to strengthen our spirits,
for love to enrich our life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen


Chicken Salad
This week’s recipe is from Wendy McAllister
6 - boneless and skinless chicken breast halve, poached and either cut into small cubes, or shred.
Canned chicken will also work.
3/4 - 1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
Sliced grapes (sometimes I use peeled and chopped apple)
12 cup chopped parsley
1 cup mayonnaise (or enough to moisten to your preference)
1 - 2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 - 2 T lemon juice
Salt and Pepper to taste
Toasted, slivered almonds


Sprinkle the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and poach in water or broth, covered until just done. You may flavor the poaching water with any aromatics. Cool and chop. Mix everything (except almonds) together, adding more of whatever you think it needs,, (like more crunchy stuff, mayo, lemon juice, salt and pepper) Refrigerate. Sprinkle almonds on top.


Sometimes I make this a curried chicken salad, using green onions instead of red, and flavoring the poaching liquid with garlic, scallions and ginger. Then I add some sweet curry powder to the mayo (rest to let it bloom for a bit) before stirring into the salad.
Sometimes I like to serve this salad stuffed into 1/2 of a tomato or avocado, or serve on a bed of lettuce with sliced mango or other fruit on the side. Delicious!