INTRODUCTION
To save time when we gather on August 17, I'm going to write some of the things I was thinking of saying in person. This is some of my own history with woodworking, along with thoughts connecting working with wood to the Bible and our theology. At points along the way I'll take a side trip. Think of this as a first draft of a spirituality of woodworking.
My dad was handy. He did his own electrical, plumbing, brickwork and carpentry. Later, all things A-V, photography and computers. I watched and learned a lot about a lot of those things from him. I’ve made things with wood for as long as I can remember. Most of the things I made are worth forgetting. As an adult, I was into ‘repurposing.’ I made my son a bed from an old ping-pong table, which was not the only thing I made from old ping-pong tables.
SIDE TRIP: Speaking of repurposing, there are some famous examples in the Bible, right?
The first one that comes to my mind is Saul of Tarsus. Can you think of other examples?
The first one that comes to my mind is Saul of Tarsus. Can you think of other examples?
Until 2004, most of my woodworking projects should have stayed in the garage. That started to change when I started subscribing to woodworking magazines and watching some programs on TV. From the magazines, and from my own experience, here are a few things I have learned: 1) Glue is stronger than nails or screws – it gets into the cellular structure of the wood and binds it together. Take a piece that’s been glued and try to break it over your knee; it will likely break somewhere else that the glue-line. 2) I started using better tools. I am grateful to Leslie for all the tool gifts at Christmas, birthday and Father’s Day! 3) I started using hardwoods instead of pine or particle board. 4) Creativity. I usually draw up a plan, but I also try to let the process evolve to best suit the materials. The cynic will say: “Yeah, when you screw things up, you adjust and that is what the material was telling you all along. Right?” 5) Most important: patience. It used to be, whatever I was working on, it had to be done NOW! Not anymore. There’s always tomorrow, so I take time to try to do it right. Rerirement has helped this.
From 2004 until 2019, my ‘shop’ was one half of the garage at our home in California. All of my big tools were on wheels, and it was always a ballet to get a project done. In 2020, when we moved to Michigan, we found a home with an extra garage on the back of the property. When we arrived, it was a shed - bare studs with the OSB showing inside, two dim bulbs attached to the rafters, and 15 amps of power. The fall & winter of 2020-2021 was spent getting power (100 amps), putting in insulation, a drop ceiling and dry wall. I am now able to work in the shop year-round - with the help of some space heaters in winter.
SHOP TOUR
Here are a few of the important tools in the shop - and some of the side trips they inspire.
SAWS. There are lots of saws in my workshop: a table saw, a miter saw, a band saw, a scroll saw, a jig saw, a circular saw, and hand saws of various sizes.
SAWS. There are lots of saws in my workshop: a table saw, a miter saw, a band saw, a scroll saw, a jig saw, a circular saw, and hand saws of various sizes.
SIDE TRIP: What do saws do? They cut. There is a lot of cutting in the Bible. The phrase ‘cut off’ alone occurs 160 times. But when I hear the word cut I think of covenant. How many had to take Hebrew in seminary? You probably know that when the English says ‘God made a covenant’ the Hebrew is God ‘cut a covenant.’ "But this is the covenant that I will make (lit: cut) with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people." Jeremiah 31:33
JOINTER & PLANER. These two work together to true up wood to that the angles are all 90 degrees and the faces are parallel to one another. This is important it you want to make a table and you have to join several narrow boards to make a wide top.
SIDE TRIP: Speaking of joining, side to side, I am reminded of the definition of the word parable – to throw alongside. Something well-known, like the growing of a seed is thrown alongside something not so well-known, like the kingdom or reign of God.
DRILL PRESS. For making holes of various sizes with a variety of bits.
SIDE TRIP: I attended the funeral of Pastor L.M. Andersen. A fellow pastor was giving the eulogy and said, “L.M. was a boring person.” People gasped. He went on to say how L.M liked to bore into things to find out what they were made of, what made them tick. I’ve always appreciated that. I used to wear a button on the first day of Confirmation: “I WANT YOU TO BE A BORING PERSON.”
ROUTER – for shaping wood, putting decorative edges, etc. CLAMPS & GLUE – can’t have too many clamps. GRINDER & SHARPENER – a dull tool is a dangerous took. DUST COLLECTOR, MASK & FACE SHIELD – along the same lines, a dusty shop is a dangerous shop.
LATHE. This is my favorite tool and the one you will be using when you come to the shop. This one is for shaping wood (there are metal lathes, too). The story is often told about Michelangelo. When asked about the difficulties that he must have encountered in sculpting his masterpiece, David, he replied with an unassuming and comical description of his creative process: “It is easy. You just chip away the stone that doesn’t look like David.” Working with the lathe is easy. You use tools to take away everything that doesn’t look like a bowl, or a vase, or a candle holder.
SIDE TRIP: During this year's Easter season, you may have preached on John 15 and the pruning that Jesus describes: “Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit.” John 15:2
Sculpting, working at the lathe, God’s pruning – all the same. God prunes everything that doesn’t look like you.
Sculpting, working at the lathe, God’s pruning – all the same. God prunes everything that doesn’t look like you.
WDJD? (What Did Jesus {the carpenter} Do?)
There are many articles (and at least one book) that speculate what Jesus, as a tektōn (τέκτων)[1] may have built. These lists include: roofs (often made of wooden beams), ladders (to reach second floor sleeping area), plows, sickles, brooms, winnowing forks, chests (for provisions, for clothes, and for the poorest families, chests doubled as tables), weapons, chairs and boats. And if you’ve ever read The Last Temptation of Christ – crosses! I like to think of Jesus making doors - the means by which we can go out and explore the world God made and through which we can welcome people into our homes…and churches. I like to think that Jesus spent most of his time making tables – places for people to gather over food, drink and good conversation.
[1] 45.9 τέκτων, ονος m: one who uses various materials (wood, stone, and metal) in building - 'builder, carpenter.' οὐχ οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τοῦ τέκτονος υἱός 'isn't he the carpenter's son?' Mt 13.55. There is every reason to believe that in biblical times one who was regarded as a τέκτων would be skilled in the use of wood and stone and possibly even metal. –Louw-Nida Lexicon
[1] 45.9 τέκτων, ονος m: one who uses various materials (wood, stone, and metal) in building - 'builder, carpenter.' οὐχ οὗτός ἐστιν ὁ τοῦ τέκτονος υἱός 'isn't he the carpenter's son?' Mt 13.55. There is every reason to believe that in biblical times one who was regarded as a τέκτων would be skilled in the use of wood and stone and possibly even metal. –Louw-Nida Lexicon
WOODWORKING & SPIRITUALITY (OR THEOLOGY, IF YOU PRFER)
My definition of spirituality: Living on the earth, feet on the ground and connected to all that is earthly and earthy, all the while animated, guided and directed by the Holy Spirit of the risen Christ. Some people give the impression that to be ‘spiritual’ is to somehow rise above the mundane and secular affairs of the planet. The most spiritual person was, of course, Jesus. And he only rose above it all once – at his ascension. Otherwise, he was deeply connected with the earth and its people.
“The Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father's only son, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14 NRSV
So the word of God became a human being and lived among us. We saw his splendour (the splendour as of a father’s only son), full of grace and truth. –J.B Phillips
The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish. –The Message
So the word of God became a human being and lived among us. We saw his splendour (the splendour as of a father’s only son), full of grace and truth. –J.B Phillips
The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish. –The Message
There are many definitions of spirituality. One way these definitions vary depends on what one considers to be the source of the spirit/Spirit. It seems to me that many non-religious people would say the source of spirit is from within the themselves. If and when they become aware or attuned to this, they call themselves ‘spiritual.’ From a Christian perspective, I see the source of Spirit as external:
“The LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.” --Genesis 2:7 NRSV
One day the Eternal God scooped dirt out of the ground, sculpted it into the shape we call human, breathed the breath that gives life into the nostrils of the human, and the human became a living soul. --The Voice
The Lord God formed the human from the topsoil of the fertile land and blew life’s breath into his nostrils. The human came to life. –Common English Bible
One day the Eternal God scooped dirt out of the ground, sculpted it into the shape we call human, breathed the breath that gives life into the nostrils of the human, and the human became a living soul. --The Voice
The Lord God formed the human from the topsoil of the fertile land and blew life’s breath into his nostrils. The human came to life. –Common English Bible
If I am a spiritual being it is because, I too, like the first “living being” contain the breath of God (wind, spirit – ruah, pneuma). And if the breath is God’s (holy), that makes the vessel holy, too.
Can a comparison be made between the effects of a physical breath and a spiritual one? What does a breath bring? To the body, a breath brings oxygen. To what end? To animate the blood. To what end? To animate the body. To what end? So that thought and action might be possible. Into the living being, God breathes Spirit. To what end? To animate the life principle (aka blood). To what end? To animate the body. To what end? So that I might love the Lord our God with all my heart and soul and mind and strength and my neighbor as myself.
What has this to do with woodworking? At least this: I can, in a very small way, imitate some of God’s creativity.
The very first bowl I ever made of the lathe was one of the very few I have made from a single piece of wood. But even that little bowl was not a solid, uniform color. The grain pattern and colors are varied and beautiful. And I’ve never seen a piece of wood that was a completely solid color and had no grain pattern. Since that first bowl, almost all of them have incorporated from two to ten different kinds of wood. There’s diversity, many colors, many textures, many shapes. I like incorporating contrast and, from time to time, other materials like stone or metal. When I look around at the other “living beings” around me, I see the same kind of creative variety and diversity.
I think of my workshop as something of a sanctuary. I like to pause from time to time to give thanks for the gift of this place, and for the opportunity it affords for me to lose myself in the creative process of making something out of wood. While I have sold a few things (at one craft show), and done a few commissioned works, the majority of what I have made has been given away as gifts or as support for various fundraisers for churches and other non-profit organizations. One example is a set of four baseball bat wine glasses, that were made from old baseball bats. They're decorated with Detroit Tigers decals and will be at the raffle for the Saginaw Classic Legacy Band at their Christmas Concert, December 13, 2024.
LETS GET TO WORK
Everyone who attends will get a ‘semi-finished’ candle holder. Semi-finished means you will have the opportunity to put it on the lathe and add some decorative details. Here are some of your choices:
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Texturing
Beading
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Burning rings
Texturing
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When you are finished, you can add a 2024 Lincoln penny to the bottom. This is the way I date my work. I will also demonstrate what happens when you add tung oil finish to make the grain stand out. If you wish, at home you can sand it smoother and use the finish of your choice - tung oil, polyurethane, varnish, lacquer, Danish oil, etc.
A WORD ABOUT SAFETY
Do not wear loose clothing or jewelry around the neck that can hang outside of your clothing.
If you wear long sleeves, plan to roll them up.
If you have rings that can be easily removed, do that.
Clothing should be comfortable but not so loose that it can catch on the machine or get entangled with any rotating parts or the wood being turned; shirts should be tucked in.
Long hair should be tied back (up is better).
I have a face shield for each participant.
Whichever tool you use to add decorative touches to your project:
If you wear long sleeves, plan to roll them up.
If you have rings that can be easily removed, do that.
Clothing should be comfortable but not so loose that it can catch on the machine or get entangled with any rotating parts or the wood being turned; shirts should be tucked in.
Long hair should be tied back (up is better).
I have a face shield for each participant.
Whichever tool you use to add decorative touches to your project:
- Keep it resting firmly on the tool rest and only on the tool rest.
- Always contact the tool rest with the tool before contacting the wood.
- Hold tools firmly with both hands and against the tool rest.
- When it is time to contact the spinning project, proceed slowly.
DIRECTIONS
To the Soyster home: CLICK HERE
1450 Seminole Lane, Saginaw. Just off Center Road, north of State Street and one street south of Brockway.
Cell/text: 805-302-3475
To Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church: CLICK HERE
4432 Mackinaw Road, Saginaw. Between Weiss and Shattuck.
Phone: 989-799-0162
1450 Seminole Lane, Saginaw. Just off Center Road, north of State Street and one street south of Brockway.
Cell/text: 805-302-3475
To Faith Evangelical Lutheran Church: CLICK HERE
4432 Mackinaw Road, Saginaw. Between Weiss and Shattuck.
Phone: 989-799-0162