Last night I tried something very different for our teens. I’m starting them through a Tarentino-esqe chronology of the narrative of scripture. We’re starting in Genesis, skipping to Revelation, then back to the middle of the story and finally to “Chapter 29″ (ie: Acts 29… ie: us, today). More and more I’m learning that I need (and WANT) to be creative in preparing lessons for the teens. As I’ve been thinking and praying and brainstorming about how to present these stories in engaging and creative ways I’ve come across some good guides like Doug Pagitt, Tony Jones and most recently Mark Miller. So last night was the first night of starting out this narrative. We began with Genesis.
I asked the students to remove their shoes, grab a paper towel, and prepare for half-an-hour more of silence and meditation. As they entered our youth room they noticed that the windows had been blacked out with trashbags. Then as they sat in a semi-circle I poured cold water on their feet. Lights out. Absolute darkness. Chaotic music began playing (I mixed four songs together: 18 - In Reverent Fear; Setting Sun - Chemical Brothers; Distance is Darkness - As I Lay Dying; Twenty-Three - Project 86). We sat there in the dark, feet wet, with this insane music blasting. In the begining there was a formless void of water, chaos, darkness. The music changes, it’s peaceful, a man is calling out (A Dream Within a Dream - Dreadzone). God speaks into the darkness, “Let there be light.” I light a candle in the middle of our room, right next to a cross that throws an awesome shadow on our wall. More time for meditation on God’s first action in our world. Creating light. Chaos is no more. The music shifts yet again, this time a little more lively (God Moving Over the Face of the Waters - Moby). The accounts of creation, day one through five are read. When God separates the waters from the land we all dry our feet off with our paper towel. Time is given inbetween each day for meditation. As we come to day six when God creates humanity the music shifts again (Resurrection - John Debney) this time it is much more dramatic. After reading the account of God creating humanity in God’s own image, I speak for a little time about the gift of the imago dei, the responsibility of the imago dei and how it redefines our identitiy as well as everyone else’s. I call each student by name and ask them to come and light a candle as a symbol of God creating them in God’s own image. When we finish we light a candle for someone who despises us or whom we despise as a symbol that they too were created in the image of God. I passed around a (non-toxic, water-based… I know which battles to choose folks) marker and ask them to tattoo the words imago dei on each other. It is significant that they be given this mark and not do it themselves because the imago dei is a gift. It is significant that they give it to someone else because we need to be reminded that our brothers and sisters are created in the imago dei.
It was different, but was certianly more powerful and interactive than a lecture… and SO much more fun to plan. Now the hard part is how to continue to be hands-on and physical in helping to embody these stories as I continue to teach… should be fun.
