2024: Bearing Witness to Grief: Climate Collapse, Resistance, and Grounded Hope
We invite you to save the date and join us for our first ever West Coast Summer Gathering.
In keeping with our theme, we will slow down our usual pace in order to make time for longer conversations, more free time, collective lament, artistic expression, and the natural beauty of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains.
Our plenary speakers—Hannah, Ched, Elaine, and Jonathan—will make their content available in print or video form or both well ahead of the Gathering so that our time with each of them will allow for richer engagement and deeper discussion. Themes of the plenary sessions include:
· an exploration of the grammar of grief
· a consideration of the moral weight and political ramifications of emotions around climate collapse
· the connections between grief and anger
· the conflict between wildness and settlement
· biblical narratives of climate catastrophe
We plan to implement the circle process of the Restorative/Transformative Justice movement for some of our conversations.
Our Gathering preacher, Sylvia, who will also guide us in lectio divina, will examine how ecological trauma is present throughout the biblical story, and God’s own grief in relation to the violence done to creation. Our Gathering artist, Patti, will present elements of her recent project “grief web,” drawing on the field of Extinction Studies and some known grief rituals in other-than-human creatures.
Unlike other Summer Gatherings, participants will need to secure their own housing. Below is a helpful guide with information about lodging options and the four airports that serve the region. The guide also includes suggestions for those who plan to lengthen their stay, arriving before or staying after the Gathering.
We hope to offer creative childcare and will have more information to share soon.
We will have a virtual registration option for those who can’t be present in person, and we will livestream the plenaries, liturgies, and lectio divina sessions. We will use Zoom breakout rooms for guided conversation after the plenaries.
We would appreciate your thoughts about Summer Gathering 2024; you can share them here. If you have more general questions about the Ekklesia Project, email us at info@ekklesiaproject.org.
We hope to see you in Monrovia in July!
Gathering Planning Team:
Debra Dean Murphy, Cecil Prescod, Patti Fong, and Ragan Sutterfield
MOUNTAINSIDE COMMUNION CHURCH
303 W Colorado Boulevard ▪ Monrovia, California 91016
GUIDE TO TRAVEL, ACCOMMODATIONS, AND THINGS TO DO
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TRANSPORTATION TO GATHERING AT MOUNTAINSIDE COMMUNION CHURCH
AIRPORTS: Hollywood Burbank, LAX International, Ontario, and John Wayne/Santa Ana
Hollywood Burbank Airport is 25 miles away and a very easy in/out little airport with some major carriers like Southwest, United, Alaska, Spirit, JetBlue, Delta and more. Uber/Lyft ~$50-75.00. You can also catch the Metrolink next to airport to Union Station (VC line), then take the “E” rail system to Monrovia station (~1 hour 20 min; <$10.00 for both tickets). Monrovia Station is 1.3 miles from Mountainside Communion Church.
LAX International: Likely cheapest but one of the busiest in the nation. You can take the FlyAway bus to Union Station (see signs for FlyAway on lower level; blue signs; run every ½ hour). Then take the “A” or Goldline rail system to Monrovia station (~1.5 hours; ~10.00 for FlyAway and 1.50 for Metro). Monrovia Station is 1.3 miles from Mountainside Communion Church.
Note: MetroLink at Union Station are NOT the trains you need to get to Monrovia; you want light rail not the Amtrak to get to Monrovia Station. Follow signs to the Goldline/A line.
Ontario: About 30 miles from Monrovia; easier in/out than LAX but no user-friendly public transportation from this airport to Monrovia. Uber or Lyft likely to be costly but varies by time of day.
John Wayne/Santa Ana: If you are visiting Orange Co. before the Gathering, say, doing Disneyland or California Adventure in Anaheim, heading to San Diego for Sea World or renting a car, this is a good option; 47 miles from Monrovia (warning: If driving, try to avoid commuting hours of 8-10AM or 3:00-7PM)
TRANSPORTATION DURING /AROUND GATHERING:
The LA Metro includes rail lines (buses can be very slow in LA area; Foothill Express fairly reliable). Monrovia Station is 1.3 miles from the church; you can get a TAP card at any station or download the mobile app from “fares” here. Rides are $1.75 each way; you can also download day(s) passes.
Towns/places to stay that are near Monrovia:
The “A” line: You can easily stay somewhere along this light rail line, especially in neighboring cities. Check out hotels or Airbnbs west of Monrovia in South Pasadena, Pasadena or Arcadia; go east of Monrovia to Duarte, Glendora, Azusa.
Downtown Pasadena is lovely (mostly), with upscale shopping and lovely neighborhoods and architecture. South Pasadena is a cute town with a light rail station. Other cities are mixed and tend to be cheaper, especially east of us on the rail line.
THINGS TO DO:
*City of Monrovia info page* Includes notes on “Samson the hot tub bear” as well as links to hiking, Friday night fair, the community garden on our church property, and more.
*HIKING (AND MOUNTAIN BIKING ON SOME OF THESE TRAILS)*
Monrovia lies at the Foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, which are full of hiking, mountain biking trails. Almost too many to list, but here are some favorites with trailheads that begin within 1.5-5 miles of the church.
Here is a link to info about the Hillside Preserve just above the church in the foothills; here is a link from that page to trailheads including an ADA trail. Webpage notes the different access points as well as links to many maps for topography, exotic plant species, etc. Some parts of the trail easy; you can do some intermediate portions. Recommend hiking shoes or sturdy shoes. (Canyon Park may be open again after a fire but check website for update.)
Arcadia (just a mile+ to the west of church): Also has trails; check this site for the Santa Anita Canyon loop; check the Forest Service site here for Chantry Flat and other trailheads (some damaged/closed due to fires so check for updates).
Sierra Madre is a small, arty town nestled in the foothills with a Passionist Retreat Center (Mater Dolorosa) that usually allows for people to walk the area in silence. Hiking trails listed here.
Eaton Canyon in Pasadena is an easy hike (~4miles).
WALKING
If you want to take a walk into neighborhoods with a gentle incline, head to the nearest mountains (north). Houses range from new to early 20th c. Craftsman style.
The town of Monrovia has one main drag: Myrtle Avenue. This closes every Friday night for a fair with food, small business stands, and bouncy houses. Here is a list of restaurants and shops that the city maintains. All these are within 1-2 miles of the church.
Sierra Madre is another good walk-about town with small shops and restaurants as well as a Creative Arts Center that sells local artists’ work.
BIRDING
For info on birding, see Pasadena Audubon Society page.
GARDENS/MUSEUMS
The Los Angeles Arboretum is about 3 miles from the church. Lovely botanical gardens and events; tickets range from $5.00 to $15.00.
Huntington Library and Gardens (Pasadena; 7 miles from church): Amazing place, mixing stunning botanical gardens with museum and a library that boasts works by Lincoln, Jefferson, Franklin, a Gutenberg Bible, Canterbury tales from 15th c., and more. See hours, cost (~$29.00 fee). Highly recommend even though it’s costly.
BEACH
If you come early and want to do the beach via light rail from the San Gabriel Valley, you can take the light rail from Monrovia or surrounding areas to Santa Monica (a crazy-ish beach area, especially on the weekends – but VERY “LA”; the pier and surrounding areas will be recognizable from countless films). See Metro for planning of that long ride. If you want to drive to a close beach, I recommend Seal Beach [Google “Seal Beach Pier Playground”]– only 35 miles from church but about 45 min to 1.5 hours drive depending on traffic.
CAMPING
Most of the camping sites near Monrovia closed after the Bobcat fire. You can check for updates on these through this YELP listing, clicking on the individual website for information.
Check out “HipCamp” (Airbnb for camping) for some options locally.
IF YOU ARRIVE EARLY, STAY LATER:
The heart of Downtown LA is about 22 miles from Monrovia and some of it is easily accessible through the light rail, such as Olvera Street, Chinatown, or Little Tokyo (all stops along the light rail from Monrovia). Los Angeles is chock full of stuff to do, great restaurants and the like. A favorite: take the bus from Pasadena to the Hollywood Bowl. Leave early for a concert under the stars and a pre-concert picnic on the grounds of the Bowl. Lots of small venues for music, art, etc. Here is a list of other well-known music venues, but smaller ones are sprinkled throughout the city and surrounding areas.
Camp along the CA coast at Leo Carrillo State Park or Malibu Creek State Park; reserve these sites and more here (plan ahead!).
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The planning team is grateful to Erin Dufault-Hunter for providing this detailed guide!