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Jubilee! Circle: An Oasis for Spiritual Seekers

Jun 28, 2018 12:00PM ● By Candace Chellew-Hodge

“Welcoming.” “Nontraditional.” “Loving.” “Home.” These are just some of the words used by members to describe what it’s like at Jubilee! Circle, a spiritual community that blends popular music with positive messages culled from Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish and other traditions, read through the lens of A Course in Miracles.

    “Jubilee! Circle is a diverse community of people who sense the depth of mystery within each moment of this life but who have been failed by more conventional interpretations of it,” says member Matt Kip. “We come together each week to learn from each other, support each other, be real with each other, laugh and cry with each other.”

    It’s that spirit of community that has drawn other members, such as Esther Sosa, who said: “Jubilee! has become my chosen family. I’m so ‘at home’ that I feel as though I’ve been a ‘Jubilant’ since the Circle’s inception!”

    Jubilee! Circle began in 2010, with a vision by myself and a handful of dedicated members. After spending our first eight years in a yoga studio, we moved into our permanent space at 2627 Millwood Avenue last August. Our worship style is based on that of the Jubilee! Community in Asheville, North Carolina, and our community has become affiliated with them.

    At Jubilee! Circle, you’re more likely to sing songs from the Beatles and Bruno Mars than a traditional hymn, as we blend secular music into our messages.

    “Candace creates a weekly message that somehow never fails to speak directly to exactly what I’m going through,” Kip notes. “And her words point not to doing the right rituals or worshipping the right version of God, but instead to the great struggle within us to master our own minds, to release the stranglehold of ego, and to liberate ourselves from our self-imposed mental prisons.”

     Since moving into its new space, Jubilee! Circle has begun offering many monthly public events, including our coffee house and open mic night on the first and third Fridays, an ongoing writing workshop on the second Saturday, and a monthly talk on A Course in Miracles on the second Friday.

    “Jubilee! Circle is a place where spiritual growth is central to everything,” says long-time member Beth DeHart. “We are a group of individuals who recognize that change is vital to growth, and thus, we welcome change. Even when it’s hard.”

    That growth, though, always comes with a healthy dose of humor and laughter—one of the main sounds heard every Sunday at Jubilee! Circle as we celebrate our unity in mind and spirit.

    “Jubilee! offers a safe, nonjudgmental space to grow, to create, to play—humor always abounds,” says member Carolyn Gregory. “There is support and acceptance for who you are and who you are becoming.”

    As more people move away from religion to spirituality, member Emily McCravy says Jubilee! Circle provides an oasis for the spiritual seeker: “Jubilee! is a tall, cool drink of water on a stretch of desert highway.”

For more information, call 803-569-6385 or visit JubileeCircle.com. 

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