The Board Game Faith Newsletter, Issue 15
Hello, Board Game Faithful!
Daniel: Apologies for missing the last scheduled newsletter! Between moving and Geekway to the West (the local board game convention I attend), two weeks ago was pretty busy. Speaking of Geekway, however: it was AWESOME! Please see our Instagram for photos of games played.
Behind the Episodes
Daniel: Getting to talk with Mandi Hutchinson was just a delightful experience. After listening to her and Suzanne on board game podcasts for a few years, it was a joy to discover that she is every bit as positive and welcoming and gracious off-air as she is on-air. If you haven’t checked out her “Salt and Sass Games” podcast, please do!
Kevin: Mandi brings so much energy, I feel invigorated anytime I think about our conversation!
Coming Up
Daniel: Next episode we welcome Rev. Alice Connor, an Episcopal priest who is also an author and board game podcaster. She writes reviews of religious-themed board games for the web site, “Daily Worker Placement.” As some of our listeners have expressed an interest in the subject, we are especially excited to get to talk with her about games dealing with religion.
Games We're All About Right Now
Kevin: John Company 2nd Edition is a honed work of genius. How else to display the workings of empire than by rolling dice to benefit your family? The game is set in India and England during the East India Company (the largest, most enduring, and most profitable monopoly in the history of the world), and it’s a superb game that also makes you think, “these people were terrible people.”
Daniel: I’m very much enjoying Rolling Heights, which I purchased without even playing it based on all the rave reviews my friends gave it at Geekway. Right now I’m just playing it solo, but I’m looking forward to trying it with others. From rolling meeples to constructing a miniature city out of blocks that feel a little like Legos, it’s a game unlike any other I can think of. Really loving it!
Kevin: The 5 year old boy in me really wants to knock Daniel’s city over. Godzilla!!
Spirituality
Daniel: Last night we had my final board game group at the church I’m leaving. Afterwards, a few of the members in their 20’s hung around to pose for a groupie with this old man. It’s not the end of the group, however: these same awesome young adults have volunteered to continue to organize and lead the group. In fact, they started last night: they made sure everyone was included, taught new games, and even prayed at the end. It was an awesome moment, and a reminder to me that the community of faith (the body of Christ, in Christian terms) is beautifully put together by all sorts of amazing people. It’s not dependent on any one of us, and as one generation steps aside, another one steps in to reinvent ministry in new ways for a new age. I sure do love these human beings, and am grateful they are in my life.
Media We're Digging Right Now
Kevin: Succession ended and wow, what an ending. A show about unhappy people who have made their own sadness. As Logan Roy says to his children, “I love you, but you’re not serious people.” None of it is serious but they all take it so seriously. A triumph of a show! I’m also reading the novel The Overstory by Richard Powers, and I can never look at a tree the same way again (BTW, trees are mentioned over 300 times in the Bible).
Daniel: A happy discovery for me recently has been the music of Dar Williams. I first got interested in her work when “Iowa” showed up on my Spotify Discover Weekly playlist, and then dived into a couple of her albums after that. Two tracks that took my breath away are “You’re Aging Well” (especially poignant for those of us coming to terms with the passage of time) and “When I Was a Boy” (a liberating examination of gender and identity).
Thank You!
Thanks so much for being a part of the BGF community. We are grateful for each of you and the ways you make the world more awesome. And if you haven’t had a chance to tell us a little about yourself yet, we would love it if you could fill out this form please!