Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 7, Issue 11, November 2003
Copyright 2003 Seattle Sun. Please feel free to use the article below in your research. Be sure to cite the Seattle Sun as your source.
LIVE IN NORTH SEATTLE!
Spirit Cafe serves coffee,
music, film clips, fellowship
By CLAYTON PARK
If you thought "The Matrix" was just a mindless Hollywood action flick, Julie Blum says think again.
In the hit science-fiction movie, the character Neo, played by star Keanu Reeves, is shocked to learn that everything he thought was real was just a facade when finally confronted with the world as it really is.
It's a situation minus the kung fu fight scenes that those who believe in an eternal spiritual afterlife can relate to, according to Blum, pastor of Maple Leaf Lutheran Church.
Blum shared her observations, not from the pulpit on Sunday morning, but over coffee in the basement of church on a recent Saturday evening to a gathering of about 30 people.
Her talk was part of the proceedings of a weekly "alternative worship service" called Spirit Cafe, which the church launched four months ago.
Spirit Cafe offers a coffeehouse setting, complete with bistro-style seating, dim candle-lighting, a house band that leads the audience in group sing-alongs of contemporary Christian songs, occasional performances by guest entertainers, a weekly showing of clips from popular movies accompanied by comments from Blum, and, of course, plenty of coffee and snacks.
There's even a neon blue-and-red sign that lets patrons know when the Spirit Cafe is "open" for business.
"The congregation for years had been talking about the need for adding a second service," said Blum, who became pastor of the church last year. "We wanted to offer a different kind of service an alternative to the traditional, normal church service."
A task force of Maple Leaf Lutheran members visited "alternative services" at other area churches as well as checking out various church Web sites for ideas. The format they liked best was a weekly coffeehouse-style service held at Grace Lutheran in Des Moines called "Sunday Night at Gracie's Cafe."
Maple Leaf Lutheran members Roland Viera and Randy and Ron Gangnes volunteered to form a house band for Spirit Cafe called Milagro, which means "miracle" in Spanish, Viera explains.
Viera, who plays acoustic guitar and sings, is the band leader. Both Randy and her husband Ron are singers, with Ron pulling double-duty as the band's sound man. The band is rounded out by musicians who are not members of the church: Larry Jones on drums, Paul Fischer on electric bass, Ciaran Coyne on lead guitar and vocals, and Kristinmerri G'selle on vocals and percussion.
Jones, who lives in the neighborhood, is director of YATMA (Youth Advancement Through Music and Art), a nonprofit group that offers art and music classes for youths from low-income families to help raise their self-esteem and give them a sense of accomplishment. YATMA (www.yatma.org) holds its after-school classes during the week at Maple Leaf Lutheran.
The lyrics to the songs that Milagro sings are flashed on a screen via Power Point display so the audience can sing along.
Blum says in place of a traditional sermon, she uses movie clips, tells stories and has even performed skits to convey that week's message. "Sometimes it's really participatory, hands-on things," she says. Other movies she has shown snippets from include "Toy Story," "Contact," "Monsters Inc." and "Lord of the Rings."
"We try to tie in a Biblical message that relates to it," she explains.
Because it is a worship service, Maple Leaf's Spirit Cafe includes prayers, announcements and a time where everyone is encouraged to "introduce yourself to somebody you don't know."
Spirit Cafe also serves gourmet "fair trade" coffee, meaning coffee that does not come from "oppressed peasant farmers."
Attendance has varied from turnouts as small as a dozen people to as many as 60. "We really do get a different mix of people," said Blum, noting that the Spirit Cafe has managed to attract some who don't regularly attend the church's Sunday morning services, including several from the Meadowbrook community, where the church is located. The turnout, while intended to appeal to a younger audience, has surprisingly proven popular among some older people as well, Blum said.
A brochure produced by the church offers a "road map" that explains the concept behind Spirit Cafe: "1. People are strange and so are you ... deal with it. ... 2. Free your mind and the rest will follow. ... 3. Love is the prime directive. ... 4. There are no fashion police at Spirit Cafe. ... 5. Worship aerobics are completely and totally optional."
On Nov. 1, Spirit Cafe will feature a performance by guest musician Agape, a visiting Christian hip-hop artist from Minneapolis who combines "Eminem's rap style with Dr. Martin Luther King's message."
* * *
Spirit Cafe is held on Saturdays, 5:30 p.m., at Maple Leaf Lutheran Church, 10005 32nd Ave. NE. For more information, call 524-2448, or visit the church Web site at www.reachoutchurch.org.
Hip-Hop Artist Agapé
DATE: Saturday, Nov. 1
TIME: 5:30 p.m.
COST: FREE!
PLACE: Maple Leaf Lutheran Church, 10005 32nd Ave. NE
INFO: 524-2448
www.reachoutchurch.org
www.hiphopoutreach.com.