Musical Moments! – Todd Fadel

August 26, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

A favorite musical moment for me was when black-vest-white-t-shirt-clad Michelle Shocked joined Ric Hordinski’s Saturday night Americana Collaboration for “I’ve Got Some Good News” and did, what I observed as, the most amazing Jagger impression by any living human (including Mick himself). The other great moment was, for Angie and I (Agents of Future), the on-the-fly version of “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” during Friday’s inaugural “Beer ‘n Hymns” worship time. One of the attenders helped us all remember the lyrics... Read more

Real Peace in Our Time – Gareth Higgins

July 10, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

When I was growing up, I was always afraid of violence. Northern Ireland was a European centre of politically-motivated killing for most of my childhood. Politicians and public officials were killed all the time. Political activists who espoused violence were often killed too. And people who had no direct involvement in either politics or violence were caught up in it, going about their business, killed in bus stations or pubs or on the street. Nearly 4,000 died in around 25... Read more

Crafting A Thin Place: Karla Yaconelli

June 23, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

There is a Celtic saying that “heaven and earth are only three feet apart, but in the thin places that distance is even smaller.” A “thin place” is where, for a brief time, the separation between heaven and earth dissolves and we are able to glimpse the existence of a world that is beyond what we know through our five senses. A “thin place” is exactly where my late husband and I found ourselves the very first time we experienced the Greenbelt... Read more

Where is Waldo? – Melvin Bray

June 21, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

Amid all the other things you’re trying to keep in mind as you prepare for the Goose, I want you to remember this face (Right here to the left – how could you forget a mug like that?) I shouldn’t be too hard to spot, because for one thing I look nothing like this guy: For another thing, I’ll be wearing a very ubber-stylish neon lanyard around my neck identifying me as one of the people to crucify (upside-down, of... Read more

Logan Mehl-Laituri: Born (Again) on the Fourth of July – by Andy Scott

June 20, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

Logan Mehl-Laituri was born on the Fourth of July. Sort of. Laituri, a veteran of the Iraq War, was baptized on July 4, 2006 after becoming convinced that his role as an active participant in military operations with a weapon was incompatible with his understanding of Christianity. On that day, Laituri became someone new, and sees it as an integral part to understanding his identity in Christ. It’s just that sort of irony that makes Laituri’s story so compelling –... Read more

Beth Nielsen Chapman Contest!

June 17, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

If you are a ticket holder to the Wildgoose festival and would like a free Master Songwriting 30 minute session with Beth Nielsen Chapman, go to bethnielsenchapman.com and get a free download for signing up to the mailing list, on the left side of the website. THEN email your song and lyric to: bncnews@me.com by Wednesday. Make sure to include the following information in your email: Name, Song Title, Lyric, MP3 attachment, Phone #. All information we collect is strictly confidential, and... Read more

First Tent!

June 15, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

Our first tent has been erected on the Wild Goose Festival site at beautiful Shakori Hills in Silk Hope, North Carolina, thanks to site coordinator Jacob Kuntz. It’s really happening! Spread the word. : ) It’s not too late to get your tickets! Read more

Spiritual But Not Religious: Anne Rice, Christianity, and Wild Goose Culture

June 10, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

The Wild Goose Festival seeks to be a place where people of faith and people who struggle with faith (which might be all of us?) can wrestle together with what it means to be people who live at the intersection of justice, creativity, and spirituality in the 21st century. This is a conversation our larger culture is having, involving artists, authors, blue collar workers, ministers, and more. Last summer it spilled onto Facebook, as best-selling novelist Anne Rice announced that she was quitting... Read more

Why I’m Taking the Kids to Wild Goose: Mark Yaconelli

June 9, 2011 By wildgoosefestival

“It takes three things to attain a sense of significant being: God, a soul, and a moment.” –Abraham Heschel Wild Goose is a moment–a moment in North America where creativity, compassion, and community can be felt and celebrated. My sons are both entering their adolescence. Adolescence is when the veil of childhood slips away and we realize that parents are fallible, authorities lie, institutions oppress. My eldest son Noah is studying the war in Afghanistan. Yesterday in school they talked... Read more