Cultural Resolutions

With the New Year comes New Year's Resolutions. If you haven't done so already, go ahead and resolve to be a catalyst in culture this year! The Catalyst team and friends have compiled a few ideas to help you get connected to culture, create opportunities to engage and influence your community, and demonstrate a piece of the Kingdom of God in this world.

SERVE

• Anyone, anywhere

ART & ENTERTAINMENT

• Support local galleries with local artists or school exhibits
• Visit city museums
• Take an art class
• Support local bands, films and festivals
• Check out the local symphony or performing arts theater
• Join a community theater

SPORTS

• Invite your neighbors to attend a sporting event
• Volunteer to coach a youth sports team
• Join a recreational sports team

READING & EDUCATION

• Read all kinds of current books (not just by Christian authors)
• Start a neighborhood book club
• Read the classics
• Read popular culture magazines (like Paste, www.pastemagazine.com, or Risen, www.risenmagazine.com)
• Volunteer to read to children or the elderly
• Attend poetry readings
• Read the newspaper (local and national)
• Check out international news online
• Take a continuing education class at your local community college

CIVICS

• Attend your neighborhood or homeowner association meetings
• Run for a position on your city council
• Serve on your chamber of commerce
• Take time to read up on local political issues
• Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper
• Serve on your local school board
• Write an encouraging letter to your mayor
• Find out who your congressman or senator is and schedule a visit with them (or write them a letter)

HOST EVENTS

• Sponsor an "open mic" night at a local coffee shop to showcase budding young singer/songwriters in your area
• Host a social justice event on or off your church campus that brings together some of the leading local social justice movements in your backyard
• Invite your neighbors to your house to watch a thought provoking movie, such as Crash or Hotel Rwanda, and then have a brief discussion afterwards
• Sponsor/host clinics or classes that are relevant, excellent, and feature experts in the field (ie: music, cooking, arts, etc.)

PERSONAL

• Get outside the "Christian bubble", work on seeing beyond "us vs. them"
• Learn a language
• Strike up a conversation with a stranger in line or at a restaurant
• Eat out at non-chain restaurants
• Encourage relevant petitions to be signed by your friends, such as the One campaign (www.one.org) or the Save Darfur campaign (www.savedarfur.org)
• Get behind a project that creates culture, either with your time, talent or money. For example: movies, documentaries, a new hang out for teens, coffee shops, or music that makes an impact

Do you have other ideas? If so, let us know on the Catablog.

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