| | Hi friends,
As we look ahead to Advent/the Nativity Fast, we want to highlight how you can join us in our work: (re)joining the Simone Weil House Mutual Community and its practice of redemptive lending; visiting the Second World kiosk to talk over coffee about “building the new in the shell of the old” in our new covered seating space; or dropping by our regular Wednesday dinner for food, friendship, and “clarification of thought” inspired by excerpts from Weil’s The Need for Roots.
For our friends afar, there’s plenty for you too: a virtual info session about what “living communion” starting with the (zero interest) redemptive lending practice could look like in a community you are already part of (church, school, etc.); our virtual reading group exploring second world ideas beginning with The Need for Roots; and supporting our cottage industries by buying our house-made beeswax Advent candles or handprinted cards carved by Emma.
Read on for details about all these (and more!). We hope you can join us!
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Living Communion & the Simone Weil House Mutual Community |
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For those who are new to SWH, the Living Communion initiative started as a vision for Christian parish life: Gathering to celebrate “the new covenant in [Christ’s] blood” makes us family, and the family story (Scripture) has a lot to say about what that means for our economic lives. The parish where this family-making mystery is celebrated should have the tools to live it a practical way, as they did in the not so distant past of parish credit unions, maternity guilds, potluck meals, etc.
We started a conversation with someone researching the roots of the parish credit union movement who worked for Notre Dame Federal Credit Union, a national Catholic credit union that was willing to explore with us how we could take seriously what Scripture says about interest and redeeming debt. NDFCU supported us in organizing ourselves at Simone Weil House as a community of credit union members, empowered to approve loans without reference to credit score, and guarantee them for one another at zero interest. They are also supporting us to help other Christian communities to adopt this practice as well as part of a larger vision of what it means to live what we believe about the Body of Christ.
We’re excited to revive our local community and invite others to become their own centers for this practice with…
- Mutual Community / Redemptive Lending Re-introduction Potluck - Friday, 11/21 Mass at 5:30pm, Dinner & Discussion from 6:15pm - 8pm
Join us at 5:30pm for Mass and at 6:15pm for our re-introduction of the Simone Weil House Mutual Community. We will be setting the groundwork for fully restarting the banking and interest-free lending practice with predictable monthly mutual community potlucks, starting in January. This event will get into the basics of the practice, the understanding of interdependence in Christ it challenges our community to live into, and why it is as important now as it was in deep Biblical history to develop an alternative to lending/borrowing at interest. Potluck dinner. RSVP here.
- Black Friday It’s a Wonderful Life Screening & Discussion - Friday, 11/28 from 4-7ish
What better way to spend Black Friday? Let’s gather together for Thanksgiving leftovers and a viewing of the movie. We will call attention to its interweaving of familial, communal, and economic themes, and how it showcases the necessity of Christ-patterned action in order for mutuality to actually work. You may know, It’s a Wonderful Life is a major inspiration for our redemptive lending project!
- Virtual Info Session for Communities - Monday 12/1 from 5-6pm Pacific via Zoom
While we piloted the Living Communion initiative at Simone Weil House, its most fitting home is a church (or school) community–where the familial bonds it seeks to enliven and extend are formed and renewed in the liturgy. During this session, we’ll explore these connections, introduce the basics of the redemptive (zero interest) lending practice and the inspiration it takes from the practices of past Christian communities, and what this could look like in the community you are already part of. We’ll also share stories from the two Christian communities already practicing this, and a timeline for onboarding a cohort of communities in the spring. This event is virtual and open to individuals and communities throughout the country. Feel free to invite others. RSVP here.
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| | | | | | Thanksgiving at Simone Weil House! (2pm)
Join us for Thanksgiving Dinner! We’ll start around 2pm. All are welcome!
... and the next day too for an Black Friday screening of It’s a Wonderful Life, discussion, and leftovers. 4-7ish. | | | | | |
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Christmas Card & Advent Candle Sale! This Advent, we are reviving the Simone Weil House Press project! All purchases (by suggested donation) directly support the work of the house. Order here!
Christmas Cards: Block prints designed and carved by Emma, and hand printed by members of the Simone Weil House community. This year we’re offering previous year’s designs again (photos below), as well as a new print of Christ Emmanuel (photo coming soon). $25 for a set of 5 cards. Pickup or shipping available.
Beeswax Advent Candles: 100% beeswax taper candles, dyed and hand dipped by members of the community in our basement candlemaking studio. $30 for a set of 4 Advent candles (3 purple, 1 pink). Pickup or shipping available. |
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| | | | | | | | | | SAVE THE DATES - Advent at Simone Weil House
- Advent Evening of Reflection - Friday, 12/5 at 6pm for potluck, 6:30-8pm reflection - Join us for our annual evening of prayer and reflection exploring how the Advent Gospels highlight the economic and communal dimensions of “prepar[ing] the way of the Lord.”
- Lessons & Carols - Friday, 12/19 at 6pm - A traditional Lessons & Carols service, led by Annie!
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Finally, a reminder of our ongoing Second World invitations…
- Kiosk Open Hours & Village Commons - Monday-Wednesday, 2-6ish
Come by the Second World Kiosk any afternoon Monday through Wednesday, 2ish-6ish. The highlight is always the invitation to talk about a world made new and discuss ideas… and we have proper second world literature to seed the discussion! We also have hot drinks (we make aeropress coffee, tea, hot cocoa) and often homemade sourdough, pay what you wish. We have bar seats and a covered seating area and nice little cafe tables, so you can read or work as well as talk with us and the other guests!- For the Village Commons - a common closet, pantry (fridge and pantry), media box, book shelf, and things area. Come share food/clothes/nice things you have to offer, and take what would help you!
- Wednesday Dinner & Clarification of Thought - Every Wednesday at 6pm
Open invitation, just show up! It’s a potluck if you want it to be, and not if you don’t. We usually have a dinner discussion that ties in with our Agronomic University reading (below), and we end with Compline, a meditative, psalm-based liturgical prayer that prepares us for sleep.
- Thursday Virtual Reading Discussions - Thursdays, 5-6:15pm Pacific via Zoom
This fall we’re starting with Simone Weil’s The Need for Roots (full text). This book explores Weil’s vision for rebuilding France after WWII, and is thus a fitting place to begin our exploration of the new world we're being called into by our belief in Christ. We’re a few weeks in now, but welcome new folks to join! Email us if you’d like to be on the email list, and want to know where we are in the book.
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| | Double rainbow over Dorothy Day House; Bert & Helia under our new covered seating area at the Second World Kiosk! |
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| | | | | | HOUSE NEEDS As we approach the end of the year, we are most in need of financial contributions to help us cover our basic monthly expenses. You can make a one-time or recurring donation online by clicking the button below, or mailing a check (made out to In My Backyard) to: In My Backyard 5311 NE 15th Ave Portland, OR 97211 You can find a list of other, less urgent needs here. Thank you so much for supporting our work and community. | | | | | |
| | | Via Zeffy, a free alternative to Paypal for non-profits |
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| | Who We Are The Simone Weil Catholic Worker is an attempt to live, at small scale, “a society where it is easier to be good.” We are an intentional Catholic community in Portland, Oregon that offers hospitality to folks in need of shelter and serves as a node for neighborhood and parish-based social, economic, and intellectual life. |
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