SpokaneFāVS
It’s Bloomsday weekend, which for downtown churches pretty much means limited parking or canceled services. But some churches are building services around the big event. The Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes, for example is having a “Bloomsday Blessing” at 4 p.m. on Saturday. “Feel free to wear your athletic shoes to Mass and bring a friend. This Mass fulfills the Sunday obligation for those participating in the race. On Sunday, the Cathedral Choir will be on the front steps greeting runners with Sacred Music and Song,” the church website reads.
It’s also Cinco de Mayo weekend. Spokane Christian Church is celebrating with La Victoria En Cristo Cinco de Mayo Dinner, a community potluck that will be from 4 to 6 p.m.
For some in Spokane’s Buddhist community, May 5 has a different meaning. On the Chinese calendar it’s Vesak Day. Ven. Thubten Chodron of Sravasti Abbey explains what the day means in the above video and is encouraging people to recognize it by taking extra time to meditate.
Now onto next weekend — if you care about East Central Neighborhood you may want to put May 13 on your calendar. Salem Lutheran Church will host a block party from 5 to 9 p.m. to kick off West Central Resiliency Convergence. “Like you we are worried about rising costs, the growth of big government and big business, the loss of local control, and foreign counties deciding how costly oil prices will be. We are young and old, have and have-nots, new and long-timers to West Central,” the Book Parlor wrote in its newsletter. A schedule of events to discuss these issues can be found here.
Also next weekend, SpokaneFAVS very own Rev. Marj Johnston will be installed as rector of First Congregational Church-UCC in Dayton. She was called to the church in November. Congratulations Marj!
Tracy Simmons is an award-winning journalist specializing in religion reporting and digital entrepreneurship. In her approximate 20 years on the religion beat, Simmons has tucked a notepad in her pocket and found some of her favorite stories aboard cargo ships in New Jersey, on a police chase in Albuquerque, in dusty Texas church bell towers, on the streets of New York and in tent cities in Haiti. Simmons has worked as a multimedia journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut and Washington. She is the executive director of SpokaneFāVS.com, a digital journalism start-up covering religion news and commentary in Spokane, Washington. She also writes for The Spokesman-Review and national publications. She is a Scholarly Assistant Professor of Journalism at Washington State University.
