Midrash Nyc

Could it Be That God is She? For so long we have only considered a masculine God with male pronouns. What is the impact on women and nonbinary folx who don't identify with masculinity or male pronouns? If we were all created in the image of God, then how can we be more inclusive in our references to God? Watch Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins address this question in this third sermon in our GenderFULL God series. Join us this Sunday for the final sermon in this series which will take the form of panel discussion. Very exciting!

Gender is one of many categories that we deploy to organize society and create order. We demand, thus, that people who don't fit into categories neatly explain themselves, justify themselves. But as Christians we worship a God who doesn't fit into categories and refuses to justify Themselves. Listen to former Forefront Community Director, Kai (Sarah) Ngu (they/them), as they speak about "God as They" in our GenderFULL sermon series.

It's easy to be cynical about how to approach an increasing population of homeless and unhoused citizens when many political figures express concern and care, but approach the problem by ignoring the problem at worst or forcing people into unsafe and overtaxed shelters at best. Chelsea Horvath-Black and the workers at City Relief recognize that this demographic -- the "least of these" as Christ said -- have been perpetually overlooked and ignored by political administrations and seek to meet the homeless and unhoused as humans in recovery who are in need of food, healthcare, jobs, and places to live. In this conversation, Chelsea shares what led her to dedicating her life to caring for the homeless and unhoused, the challenges organizations like hers face when priorities for a revolving door of mayors is constantly shifting, and seeks to reframe the perception of homelessness not as perpetual, but as a stage that many can and have recovered from when needs are being properly addressed and cared for. For more

In this opening week of the series we are invited to see God beyond cultural or biblical views of masculinity that change and differ over time; but instead to see God with a broader lens that draws from Scripture, tradition, reason and experiences. God is not and was not limited to Christ’s body. God manifests Gods self in both Christ's body while also doing so through the spirit, through creation, and through us humans who reflect the diversity and expansiveness of the imago dei... image of God!

Watch Rev. Josh Lee preach on Easter Sunday 2022. Easter is a weird day because it’s filled with both grief and joy. Grief as a consequence of unnecessary government-sanctioned violence and joy, that death and violence won't have the last word. It’s because Mary stayed at the tomb with her grief… and wasn’t quick to rush home with the others that Mary is the first to see the risen Christ and experiences her sadness turned to joy.

Jesus Christ has come and provided access to the Kingdom of God to all! Palm Sunday sermon with Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins.

Mental health has been at the center of conversation for the past two years. So many people have experienced loss and host of unexpected feelings and emotions over the past two years. It is important that we express ourselves, and not suppress our feelings which will help release the pain. Preacher: Rev. Vendida Rodman Jenkins

Jesus encounters one man who’s born blind and gives him sight by spitting in the dirt and rubbing mud in his eyes. Jesus was operating at a time when being disabled meant being poor, unemployed, and excluded from mainstream society. What if Jesus didn’t pity this mans differently abled status, but he pitied the way society excluded and looked down upon him? Unfortunately, even after this man is given sight his neighbors, the religious leaders and even his parents don’t see what miracle God has done. Perhaps the moral of this story isn’t as much on the miracle that this man was given sight but on the rebuke that all those who had sight never really saw him or how God was loving those they had discarded.

Since the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, there's been a lot of talk around the phrase "Defund the Police" and all that it entails. Shedding light on the conversation is Alex Vitale's book "The End of Policing," an in-depth look at the history of policing, its shortcomings in crime prevention, and an honest evaluation of how any and all contemporary attempts at "reform" will always fall short if police are continuously looked to as the first, last, and best method of dealing with homelessness, drug treatment, and at risk youth. Instead, Vitale, citing his own international experiences and studies of various foreign and local approaches to policing, proposes shifting government funding to build up local communities, housing for the homeless, and mental health services to actually treat systemic biases that find themselves repeatedly played out in law enforcement. "The End of Policing" is not a call for the abolition of police, but for the abolition of a symptom of much larger systemic ills. ABOUT ALEX Al

The notion of "you’re never alone when you have Jesus in your heart" can feel dismissive of the real life pain and loneliness that comes with being in the wilderness. We have to endure Lent before Easter comes. What complex discoveries can we find when we acknowledge the nuance along the way? Watch Makenzie Gomez, Executive Producer speak about never being alone.

It's time to reframe Scripture that has been used to serve as the foundation for a belief system that would cause us to be accepted or rejected by God. We're advocating for a more inclusive Gospel and this is truly Good News. Watch Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins speak about Scriptural Interpretation, in "Born Again 2.0".

We aren’t the first generation to deconstruct or recover from church trauma… this has been apart of our human life cycle forever! In this sermon, Rev. Josh Lee focuses specifically on the wilderness season that Peter and the disciples found themselves in after Jesus death… full of questions, doubt, regret, uncertainty, perhaps certain of what they didn’t believe but unsure of what they do believe. Sunday we will glean from our ancestors on how they navigated reconstructing their faith after it all came crashing down.

We aren’t the first generation to deconstruct or recover from church trauma… this has been apart of our human life cycle forever! In this sermon, Rev. Josh Lee focuses specifically on the wilderness season that Peter and the disciples found themselves in after Jesus death… full of questions, doubt, regret, uncertainty, perhaps certain of what they didn’t believe but unsure of what they do believe. Sunday we will glean from our ancestors on how they navigated reconstructing their faith after it all came crashing down.

Our different perspectives and backgrounds allow us to practice cultural humility where we are able to self reflect, value each other's culture, and develop mutually beneficial relationships all through the love of Christ. Listen to Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins in this final sermon in our series "The Wander Years".

Rev. Josh Lee speaks on the passage of Jesus turning water into wine (John 2:1-11). This passage reminds us that God is present where the wine has run out, waiting to be revealed in extravagant abundance where we too have run out of energy and patience and found ourselves wandering looking for renewal!

A Season of Preparation. Jesus experienced hunger and temptation during his time in the wilderness. Our wilderness experiences can be times of testing and preparation as the Holy Spirit leads us through various seasons of our lives. It's important to be patient through the process. Watch Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins speak about the positive sides of being in the wilderness for a while.

On Jesus' twelfth birthday, he is finally allowed in the temple, but the problem was he didn’t exactly want to leave once he got there. When his parents realized he pulled a Home Alone stunt and found him amongst the religious leaders they doubted if he belonged there. How many of us have been told our culture is too different, we are too young, too old, too fat, too differently abled, too divorced, too single, too queer, too feminine to participate in the full life of the church. Well, Jesus knows the feeling and he made a place for himself and others in many of spaces where people said he and we had no place.

We welcome Joel Field this week as Guest Preacher. Joel is a long time Forefronter, preacher and financial advisor and strategist. Joel reminds us that Jesus showed us that it’s not about what we do as much as it is about where our heart is when we’re doing it.

Hospitality is the act of showing generosity and kindness and can be an extension of our worship. In our Forever Forward series, Rev. Venida Rodman Jenkins talks about how important it is to look beyond ourselves, and consider how we can reimagine hospitality as an extension of our worship. Reimagine inviting people (guests, visitors, strangers) into our church, spaces, lives, stories, worlds.

Rev. Josh Lee draws from modern tips, personal experiences and wisdom literature in the book of Proverbs to discover some tips on how to steward our time and treasures (money) well. Where do we spend our money and our time? Do they align with our values? Long term goals? How might we realign and reassess as we enter a new year and find our way out of this pandemic?