Ardis Stenbakken – Loveland, Colorado … The connection between faith and the arts, the creating of something new and beautiful, has been around since creation when God Himself put beauty in everything. So, the Campion Adventist Church in Loveland, Colorado, dedicated the month of October and a few days of November to celebrate this connection and invite the public to join in the “Faith and the Arts Festival.”
The month started with a full choir and orchestra concert Sabbath evening, October 7. It featured such classics as Beethoven’s “Kyrie in C” and the “Hallelujah Chorus.” A special feature was part of a full cantata written and composed by the Campion Church pastor Leandro Bizama, “Gethsemane’s Battle,” which was well received. One guest remarked, “It has been a long time since I heard such beautiful music as we had tonight!”
the month continued with evening presentations by experts in the congregation on topics such as beginning drawing classes, a song writing lab, beginning pottery lab; oil painting on porcelain demonstration, stories and lessons learned from 40 years of sculpting, and photography class; paper card workshop, scrapbooking, and Bible art journaling; basic nature photography class and lab. One nice feature of the classes was how people stayed around visiting and making connections with the artists and others who had similar interests.
Jamie Autrey, an art teacher and professional potter, presented the sermon, October 14, connecting the work of the potter to what Jesus does as He shapes and changes our lives. The well-known Loveland sculpture Victor Issa did a multimedia presentation, sculpting the head of Christ as it may have been during the Passion Week, October 21. Both Autrey and Issa are members of the Campion Church.
Dick Duerksen, who had been on campus all week as the guest speaker leading the week of prayer for Campion Academy and HMS Richards Adventist School, presented the sermon, “When God Smiles,” October 28. His sermon featured examples of his well-known nature photography and stories, showing how God shows His love to us as illustrated by Duerksen’s photography.
One of the oil painting on porcelain classes has resulted in Bible studies. At the last class, November 4, on Bible journaling, a woman from a non-denominational church in Fort Collins said how upset she was when she thought she had missed that class but saw the reminder on Facebook and came. She loved it. She spent some time talking to Pastor Bizama after the class was over.
A wide variety of people attended the events from both the congregation and the community. Many positive expressions of appreciation were heard for the events.
—Ardis Stenbakken is the Campion Adventist Church communication director and is involved with Women’s and Family Ministries. Photos by Leandro Bizama.
