Weekends

One of the first things that I have come to understand about seminary is that weekends really aren't weekends as I used to know them.  For me a weekend is a time to get caught up on reading, paper writing and homework for following week's classes.  Classes may end on Friday but the work doesn't.  This weekend is no exception.
I have my first six to eight page paper due in History of Christianity I this coming Friday.  In the paper we are expected to take a primary source document that we have read in class, and write a paper exploring the environment when it was written, the issues surrounding the document and the importance of the document in history.  I decided to challenge myself and write a paper on the Nicene Creed.  Now mind you, I cannot use the Nicene Creed as we know it today but rather the Nicene Creed that came out of the Council of Nicea in 325.  That version is all of eight lines long.  My thesis for the paper is The Nicene Creed of the fourth century is a transitional point in the formation of Trinitarian Doctrine within the catholic church.  Sounds fun doesn't it!  I currently have three pages written and have come to a block in my writing so I am hoping that by changing what I write, I will break the block.  I really need to finish the first draft of the paper tonight because this week is a week full of activities and I don't have much spare time.

This is Sunday and so that means that I went and explored a new church today.  This morning Rob, another first year seminarian, and I attended St. Mark's Episcopal Church right here in Berkeley.  The parish is directly across the Cal Berkeley campus so it was short ten minute walk to get there.   We arrived around 9:30 just in time for their blessing of the animals service on the front lawn.  I would guess there were about 20 animals present, mainly dogs but there was one cat and three rats that I saw.  It was a nice blessing and then we, animals of all kinds, proceeded to the sanctuary for the main service.  The building looks Spanish mission from the outside but on the inside it is very open and inviting.  The Choir loft is in the back of the parish and there is still a high altar against the front wall, but it wasn't used during our service.

This parish had a very large choir similar to my Trinity, my home parish, and the choir sang beautiful.  This was the first parish that I have been to out here where I recognized the service music.  I felt like I was back home again.  I could tell we were at a parish close to seminary because there were two professors in the congregation with us.

I'm now off to continue writing my paper so until next time, Peace