Hello, friends of New Wineskins! We have made some adjustments to our schedule to accommodate the upcoming Memorial Day weekend and another scheduling conflict in June. Here are the dates for June and July:

– Sunday, June 2
– Sunday, June 23
– Sunday, July 7
– Sunday, July 21

Please mark your calendars accordingly, and we hope to see you at our summer gatherings!

We know Mary mostly through the Christmas story…the (probably very) young virgin fiancee of Joseph Carpenter who gave birth to Jesus in a barn surrounded by farm animals after a visit from an angel, a visit with her cousin Elizabeth, and a Top 40 hit song, the Magnificat.

But there is much, much more to Mary’s story, and what she has to teach us.

In honor of all mothers, and in loving solidarity with women everywhere who are not and may never be mothers, our focus for this Sunday’s Mother’s Day edition of New Wineskins will be not just Mary’s “physical” motherhood, but what her spiritual motherhood can reveal for all of us.

Please join us this Sunday, May 12, in the 167 Side Room of the Marietta Brewing Company as we discuss and celebrate Mary’s universal motherhood.

Happy Half-Hour: 6:30pm

Food service & Conversation Begins: 7:00pm

For those of us who grew up with our parents’ (or grandparents’) religion, a time usually comes when we have to appropriate our faith for ourselves. Generally, we have two ways to proceed: either stay on the path, or carve a new one.

For many, this can be a time of deep doubt and difficult questions. We often find that the pat answers we were given in childhood no longer make sense in the world in which we find ourselves. The simple faith with which many of us were raised might seem too simple or, even downright ridiculous.

Often, this angst can lead to existential crisis, a questioning of not just faith, but identity. And that can lead straight into deconstruction: the systematic taking apart of our inherited faith systems. (Read more here)

And that can be a good thing.

While deconstruction can feel stressful and anxiety-filled, it can also help us confront realities we might otherwise deny or ignore. And in its best forms, it can lead to a re-construction that brings us to a richer, more dynamic faith experience.

Join us this Sunday, March 31, in the 167 Side Room of the Marietta Brewing Company for a conversation on deconstruction, the difficulties it can bring, and the better future it can bring to life.

Happy Half-Hour: 6:30pm

Conversation Begins: 7:00pm

Faith an’ begorah! It’s St. Patty’s day!

So what would our favorite snake-charming leprechaun think of what’s become of his tradition (notwithstanding the fact we just referred to him as a snake-charming leprechaun!)?

The Celtic tradition in Christianity is actually a deep and important part of our heritage, and is perhaps one of the most often overlooked in the 21st Century church. Marked by a deep connection with nature, an organic faith rooted in trinitarian theology, Celtic spirituality opens the doors for us to experience the Christ through contemplation and mysticism and its own unique liturgical movements.

Especially important to Celtic spirituality is the notion of “thin places:” those spaces (both physical and in relationships) where the realms of heaven and earth seem to be so near they almost overlap.

This Sunday at New Wineskins, we’ll hoist a glass (green beer if you like, although good St. Pat would firmly disagree!) to our Celtic ancestors and discuss ways we can add richness to our own practices by bringing some of theirs into our world today.

Please plan to join us Sunday, March 17, in the 167 Side Room of the Marietta Brewing Company as we celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by learning more about Celtic Spirituality!

Happy Half-Hour: 6:30pm

Conversation Begins: 7:00pm