Christine Havens

Portland

Wine, Food and Travel Writer at Freelance

Wine, food, and travel writer. Former winemaker.

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Articles

‘I’ve Heard There Was a Secret Chord’

3 weeks ago | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens

In the spring of 2024, Bishop Andy Doyle of the Diocese of Texas was at Camp Allen for a clergy retreat. He and another cleric began talking about music, and soon the bishop was chatting to a colleague about how his banjo lessons were progressing.
On the Hunt for Relics

Nov 28, 2024 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens |M.T. Anderson

NickedBy M.T. AndersonPantheon, 240 pages, $28Nicked is a great-hearted, mischievous novel. The story, the characters, the theological exploration nicked my heart straightaway. M.T. Anderson deftly weaves hagiography and a contemporary account of a 1087 theft of St. Nicholas’s body from its original resting place in the Lydian village of Myra to produce a novel that captures the essence of the medieval nonfiction he finds so fascinating.
The Remains of St. Nicholas’s Day

Nov 9, 2024 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens |M.T. Anderson

NickedBy M.T. AndersonPantheon, 240 pages, $28Nicked is a great-hearted, mischievous novel. The story, the characters, the theological exploration nicked my heart straightaway. M.T. Anderson deftly weaves the historical contemporary accounts of a theft in 1087 of St. Nicholas from its original resting place in the Lydian village of Myra, where he resided as bishop, with the saint’s hagiography to produce a novel that captures the essence of the medieval nonfiction he finds so fascinating.
‘A Smaller but More Responsive Church’

Oct 14, 2024 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens

The Diocese of Easton, which a decade ago was contemplating a merger with one of its neighboring dioceses (Maryland, Delaware, or Southern Virginia), now understands itself as a resurrected small diocese and an example of growth within the Episcopal Church. This renewal is the direct result of Parousia, an initiative aimed at helping the diocese regain its vitality. The diocese’s convention approved ten discernment resolutions in 2015 under the guidance of Bishop Provisional Henry N. Parsley.
Austin’s ‘Cool Church’ Welcomes SXSW Concertgoers

Mar 22, 2024 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens

By Christine HavensLove and passion warm Lisa Kay Pfannenstiel’s voice as she describes her church’s involvement with South by Southwest (SXSW). In her role as “house manager” (or staff events planner), Pfannenstiel helped guide St. David’s Episcopal Church into becoming an integral part of Austin’s interactive and music conference held each March. For 16 years, St. David’s has been a venue for music during the festival, offering radical hospitality both to audiences and performers.
Let’s party like its 1999: Ga ga over the La La’s

Sep 7, 2023 | wine-chronicles.com | Christine Havens

It’s 2014. Just about 15 years since the 1999 harvest. I remember listening to Prince singing “Let’s Party Like its 1999” back in the day. So, yes, time flies. In the Northern Rhône harvested Syrah grapes were among the healthiest and ripest ever seen, observers noted, leading to voluptuous, deeply colored wines with finely structured tannins and opulent fruit.
Trinity on the Hill Serves Post-Oppenheimer Los Alamos

Aug 17, 2023 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens

By Christine HavensOppenheimer, Christopher Nolan’s highly acclaimed blockbuster, is an intense experience, a grand portrayal of the Manhattan Project’s leader. When the movie ends, it might be easy think that’s where the story ends, to let the notoriety of the work and its consequences be the last word. But of course, it’s not. Los Alamos continues as a community and the Los Alamos National Laboratory has greatly expanded its role.
Tempered by the Holy Spirit: Clergy Metalworkers

Jul 24, 2023 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens

By Christine HavensEpiscopal priests Diana Wright, Jeremiah Griffin, and Matthew Hanisian are among a growing number of clergy taking up metalworking and blacksmithing. They use their craft as a way to deepen their relationship with God through this creative spirituality, which then augments their priestly vocation. At once incarnational and transcendent, what they do forges a link to the sacred and yet is a very human act of revealing God’s image within.
St. Mary’s, Hillsboro, Texas

May 15, 2023 | livingchurch.org | Christine Havens

In Search of GrowthNot Defined by a Building (or Lack Thereof)By Christine HavensIn discussing their parish, Roberta and David Skelton remember the laughter of the Rev. Hunter Ruffin, one of the priests who has helped them in recent years.