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Writer's pictureNicholas Gutierrez

My Bethany Life - Weeks 16 and 17

Week 16 In-Brief


From December 6th to the 10th, I was still on campus technically. Almost all of my finals were due on the 10th except one that was due on the 20th of December. So that was technically week 16; I was too busy with finals to write that post and felt it didn’t need a whole post as I was just doing my finals.



Week 17


Back on campus for my January Intensive where I have class for 10 days for three hours per day. The class I am taking is called Ritual and Reflection in the Life of Faith. All I am learning about is what rituals are in a religious context and what they are in the life of the church which is mainly the sacraments and ordinances. I am also learning about the creation of new rituals and how to be a good ritual maker. Storytelling is involved with this class too. Even though this is not a theopoetic class, it very much is. This week has been very interesting!


Monday class was the introduction to the class; we went over the syllabus and other house keeping things. Then we went over what are rituals, what are ordinances and sacraments and the differences between them, and then we went over the readings. The nice thing about the start of class is that my professor opened class with morning worship. We had to sign up for the remaining times to lead morning worship for the rest of class.


Tuesday class—we talked about the basic movements of worship, the bases of ritual development, the modes of ritual sensibility, the attributes of ritual practice and reasons why to make them, welcoming new members into the church, and the readings. At night, I went to adoration for the first time at the parish. It was nice spending an uninterrupted hour with the Lord.


Wednesday class—we all went on a field trip to a Brethren church to learn about baptism. Some of my fellow classmates practiced baptizing. After class, we had common meal with a lot of leftovers from Olive Garden.


Thursday class—I led opening worship which was based on the Epiphany readings, and I also had an icon of the Adoration of the Child Jesus by the Magi. We then talked about the readings and communion.


Friday class—we changed class topics because we are going to be on zoom next week. We talked about anointing and the readings associated with it. After class, during the afternoon, I visited one of classmates who made shortbread and brewed tea. That evening, some of us got together ate pizza and played games. Even though we were wearing masks the whole time, it felt normal, and I felt very thankful to God for this time with my classmates.


Saturday morning, I had my monthly Ohio Haiku meeting. That afternoon I had a meeting with National Council of Phi Beta. Then I went to mass and swung by the Young Adult Ministry event that happened.


Sunday morning, I had another meeting with Phi Beta, but this time it was for Ritual Committee. Then I studied for my quiz this Monday. After studying, I had another meeting with Haiku North America. That evening, I had DND with my friends, and I ended the night with Bible study.


I am also declaring a second MA with a concentration in Theological Studies. Hopefully, it will be approved, and I will earn 2 MAs at the end of my time here.


Prayers and thoughts are always appreciated for me as I continue my journey in higher education! Thank you for reading and have a blessed day!


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