Fill Your Cup and Your Soul

Fill your cup and your soul. That’s the message that greats visitors to the Jubilatte coffee shop in Tigard.

Jubilatte is an outgrowth of the popular Tigard Indoor Play Park and Tigard Preschool at Tigard United Methodist Church.

Church leaders thought that a coffee shop would be a natural way to provide a gift to the neighborhood. And with so many kids and parents coming and going throughout the week, it was easy to connect. While parents sip coffee and visit, a play area for kids and weekly storytime helps create a place of comfort and safety.

And this isn’t your grandparent’s “church coffee.” The beans at Jubilatte come from Portland Roasting Company, recently selected as “Best Roaster of the Year” by Roaster Magazine. Not only is it great coffee, it comes from fair trade sources with a commitment to help those in the coffee supply chain. From planting trees in El Salvador to providing school supplies to an orphanage in Sumatra, Portland Roasting Coffee is committed to improving the conditions of coffee communities.

So once your cup is full, what about your soul?

Jubilatte doesn’t serve your grandparents coffee, and it’s not your grandparents church. The baristas are more than baristas; they call themselves pastoristas. They have a passion for sharing their faith (or lack of faith) with others and love to discuss theology, spirituality, and more practical topics like potty training. But these pastoristas are different, because the purpose of Jubilatte is conversation not conversion.

As Christmas approaches, two book study groups are meeting at Jubilatte. One group will study Christmas is Not Your Birthday by Michael Slaughter, and other group will read The First Christmas by Marcus Borg and Dominic Crossan.

Jubilatte is open Monday – Friday 8:30 a.m.–2:00 p.m. and Sundays from 9:00a.m.–12:00 noon. They are located in Tigard United Methodist Church at 9845 SW Walnut Place, in Tigard, Oregon. You can also find them on Facebook.

Jubilatte’s start-up is supported by a $25,000 matching grant from the New Start Initiative of the Oregon-Idaho Annual Conference and $35,000 from the Tigard Church. Contact Beth Estock for more information about reaching new people.

(Photos and Story Contribution by Beth Estock, Director of New Faith Communities)