Don’t miss the exciting “On Common Ground” classes we have planned for Winter 2012! We have two different classes. Check below for class descriptions and dates and times.
For classes that use a particular text as noted below, please purchase your book using the provided links, from your favorite bookseller or, if noted that the text will be available, at the church.
If paid childcare is needed during sessions, please contact Marianne Rinaldo beforehand to make arrangements.
In case of inclement weather, any decision about canceling class will be posted on the church website and on the church voicemail. Check the church website, or call the church office at 434-4580.
To register, please download the registration form (Adobe Acrobat PDF format), print it, complete it and put it in the box in the church hallway.
February 19th
February 26th
March 4th
March 11th
March 18th
March 25th
Led by: Aaron Saari
Text: Any translation of the Holy Bible
Long considered the red-headed step-child of the other canonical gospels, Mark has now taken its place in Christianity as arguably the most important gospel in the Holy Bible. Written as flames decimated the city of Jerusalem, the Gospel of Mark invites readers into a convenant relationship with God through the person of Jesus.
But the corners are dark; the warnings dire; and the vision of community one that is ushered in so as to prepare for the Parousia, or Second Coming of Christ. How do we make sense of this document today?
Following along with the Markan liturgical texts of Year B, we will examine the gospel from a variety of angles. In tandem with Aaron’s burgeoning blog, we will attempt to discuss Mark from a variety of perspectives, including orthodoxy, progressive Christianity and Buddhism. If you think that the Bible is boring, irrelevant or not a part of your faith, why not give this glass a shot? Discover the Gospel of Mark again… for the very first time.
February 12th
February 19th
February 26th
March 4th
March 11th
March 18th
March 25th
Led by: Avery Sledge
Text: Unprotected Texts: The Bible’s Surprising Contradictions about Sex and Desire by Jennifer Wright Knust, our Spring 2012 Weekend Intensive speaker ($16.37 from Amazon.com, $16.37 from Barnes and Noble, or $25 at church)
In a refreshingly sensible tone, Knust, assistant professor of religion at Boston University, tackles today’s most contentious biblical texts and brings to light some intriguing others in this effort to detail and explain what the Bible says about sex.
Although it is academic in its embrace of biblical scholarship and treatment of texts, this is also a personal book. Knust, a lifelong Baptist (and an ordained American Baptist pastor), begins with an anecdocte from her childhood that defends the value of studying and questioning the Bible. Matters of how biblical interpretations bear on real issues for people today are never far from the discussion. As Knust is clear-eyed in showing the Bible’s acceptance of polygamy, slavery, prostitution and premarital sex, she calls into question facile judments and absolutist claims about what the Bible says. In her able hands, readers will learn and appreciate the variety of ways the Bible treats and judges sex. She also demands of readers that they then think for themselves about how biblical texts should be interpreted and applied.