Stammtisch - Join Us for Weekly Conversations

In case you are familiar with what a "Stammtisch" is and are a bit confused, no, we are not a group of German speakers who are also interested in the emerging church.

Before I lose readers with shorter attention spans (hey, I know you're out there; I'm one when reading blogs at times, too!), here is the important info:

Stammtisch - a Weekly Time for Informal Conversation and Tomfoolery with Peacemeal

Tuesday nights, 8:30-??
The Banshee Irish Pub, 320 Penn Avenue, Scranton

Wednesday nights, 8:00-??
**Location Change due to change in business hours**
Aroma Cafe, 901 Mulberry Street, Scranton
Northern Light Espresso Bar, 536 Spruce Street, Scranton

So, what is this weird word we're using? For most people, they may read the word "Stammtisch" and say, "Bless you!" But no, we didn't sneeze. From About.com:

"In Germany, a Stammtisch is a table reserved for regular customers at a restaurant or pub ... They go by various names—German Language Circle, Teestunde, German Happy Hour, Die Gruppe, Stammtisch—but they all have one thing in common: practicing and enjoying German in an informal setting. German conversational groups meet in private homes or local restaurants in places as diverse as Seattle, London, Berlin, or Sydney. Such groups may meet once a week, every two weeks, or monthly. (Weekly is best!)"

For Peacemeal, you can replace in the above description of "Stammtisch" the "practicing and enjoying German in an informal setting" part with something like "practicing and enjoying a life modeled after Christ and the early Church." We have been dreaming since almost our inception about how to live together more as a community in ways that bring us together beyond just Friday night meals and worship. With that in mind, and also with a goal of being present in the world and to our larger community of the public in the Scranton area, we're going to try to start these two Stammtisches.

If you've been interested in who we are, what we're like, what we're doing ... please meet up with us on one of these two nights. We think this will be a great, informal, non-threatening, comfortable way for anyone who is intrigued by us to get to know us a bit better on their own terms. And for those that already feel like they are connecting with what we're doing, reading, and talking about but don't feel like they can make a huge commitment right now, please come and hang out and talk with us on these nights whenever you feel like you can.

I'm not sure if we'll have a metal Stammtisch sign for our table, but look at our Flickr photo page and I'm sure you'll recognize one of us. See you there!

| stammtisch, emerging church, conversation, Scranton, the Banshee, Aroma Cafe |