Painting the Stars

Vincent van Gogh was a P.K. (preacher’s kid) who reckoned he would follow in his father’s footsteps. A missionary stint among the working poor in Belgium occasioned a crisis of faith. He also grew disillusioned with the Church, which he felt seemed cold and uncaring toward the hungry and despairing.

Van Gogh found solace in painting. And in the immersion of oneself in Creation. He would write, “Whenever I have need of – dare I say, religion? – I go outside at night and paint the stars.”

Pastor Jeff and his friend and colleague, David Felten, have produced a video curriculum that celebrates the communion of science and faith, contemplating what a meaningful faith might look like today. Painting the Stars: Science, Religion, and an Evolving Faith explores the promise of an evolutionary Christian spirituality that offers direction and purpose for 21st-century pilgrims. Featuring over a dozen leading theologians and progressive thinkers, the seven-session program includes a participant reader by evolutionary theologian Bruce Sanguin, author of If Darwin Prayed: Prayers for Evolutionary Mystics.

Pastors Jeff and Michael will co-facilitate the study at Friendship Village on Tuesdays at 11:00, starting July 8.

Learn more at paintingthestars.com.