All welcome for wide-ranging discussions.
Date |
Title |
Topic |
Facilitator |
Description |
| Sun 15 May 2005 |
Casting Out Fear |
Living faithfully in frightening times |
Pat S. |
|
| Sun 22 May 2005 |
C.S. Lewis and the Christmas Mystery |
C.S. Lewis on Christmas |
Joyce T. |
Christ's incarnation makes questions of faith and reason freshly pertinent each Christmas. Many find help framing and answering their questions in the works of C. S. Lewis. |
| Sun 29 May 2005 |
Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors...Open to Change? |
Change in Church |
|
What can United Methodist churches do to be open to change in order to reach people for Jesus Christ? |
| Sun 05 Jun 2005 |
Who Owns the Future? |
Private ownership of genetic information |
|
In the beginning God created. What does it mean for humanity when control of life's building blocks passes into private ownership? |
| Sun 12 Jun 2005 |
Strangely Warmed |
Personal religious experience |
|
On May 24, Methodists remember the night when John Wesley's heart became strangely warmed. How do Christians understand personal religious experiences today? |
| Sun 19 Jun 2005 |
Social Holiness |
Social Holiness |
|
On the weekend of Aldersgate Day, in the 300th year since John Wesley’s birth, we recall how Methodism’s founder taught about living a life of social holiness. How does the life of Wesley and his teachings provide guidance for our lives today? |
| Sun 26 Jun 2005 |
Beelzebub |
Evil in modernity |
|
Over the centuries when our Bible was being written, various writers sought to personify evil in various ways. From the Book of Genesis with the serpent in the garden to the great dragon cast into the abyss in Revelation, evil was real. Evil is still present in our world. How can we speak of evil in contemporary language? How do biblical images of evil communicate with the modern mind? |
| Sun 03 Jul 2005 |
Islam |
Islam |
|
Islam is a growing, dynamic global religion. How can Christians relate to their brothers and sisters in the Islamic faith tradition? |
| Sun 10 Jul 2005 |
The Energy Bill Is Due |
Energy Policy |
David H. |
|
| Sun 17 Jul 2005 |
The Bible: A Lens to Life |
Scripture |
Steve L. |
The Bible is one of the best-known books in the world. How did the Bible come to be? How does the translation affect one's understanding of Scripture and how to live one's life? |
| Sun 24 Jul 2005 |
What Are They Saying About Harry Potter? |
Harry Potter |
Michele W. |
Is Harry Potter the classic battle between good and evil, or is it teaching Witchcraft 101? |
| Sun 31 Jul 2005 |
Jesus and Gender |
Gender |
|
When a Harvard president suggested that innate differences between the sexes might be responsible for the small number of women in the sciences, it provoked a debate about gender roles. Looking to Jesus, what can we learn about the Christian understanding of gender? |
| Sun 07 Aug 2005 |
The Origins of the World |
Evolution, Intelligent Design, and Creationism |
Steve L. |
A number of US school systems and courts are deciding whether schools can be more critical of evolution as a theory about the beginnings of life. How do our understandings of faith and science help us explain and interpret the origins of the world? |
| Sun 14 Aug 2005 |
Sacred Earth |
Environment |
|
As evidence of the effects of global warming continues to mount, leaders of two segments of the body of Christ have called Christians to address the issues. Is it time to change our consumerist lifestyle in the interest of those with whom we share the earth, as well as future generations? |
| Sun 21 Aug 2005 |
Building Community in the Context of Extremism |
Culture Wars I |
|
Whether we are interacting with people of other faiths or with people in our own denomination, we regularly find persons with strong beliefs naming the issues in ways that highlight division. How are we to build on a sense of community and the seeking of common goals? |
| Sun 28 Aug 2005 |
Monumental Commandments |
Church/State Relations |
|
A monument in the Alabama Judicial Building inscribed with the Ten Commandments was recently removed from public view in compliance with a federal court order. These words are important for Judeo-Christian ethics and the development of our legal system, but why is there so much controversy surrounding a 5,280-pound chunk of granite? |
| Sun 04 Sep 2005 |
By Any Other Name |
Culture Wars II |
|
The terms liberal and conservative have been widely used in the 2004 presidential campaigns, but they can obscure complex issues and contribute to divisiveness. Jesus provides a model that helps us recognize differences but affirm one another as children of God. |
|
Date |
Leader |
Text |
Chapter |
Pages |
| 8/1/04 |
Steve L. |
John's Message
|
Introduction; Chptr 1:
John's World (note: two selections) |
1-6; 7-18 |
| 8/8/04 |
David R. |
Chptr 2: John Tells His
Story |
19-28 |
| 8/15/04 |
Tim F. |
Chptr 3: John Diagnoses
the Human Condition |
29-38 |
| 8/22/04 |
Art M. |
Chptr 4: John Tells Us
About Jesus Christ |
39-50 |
| 8/29/04 |
Tim F. |
Chptr 5: John Clarifies
Our Vision |
51-62 |
| 9/5/04 |
Michele |
Chptr 6: John Looks at the
New Millennium |
63-72 |
| 9/12/04 |
TBA |
Being Methodist
|
Introduction |
ix-xvii |
| 9/19/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 1: The House |
1-7 |
| 9/26/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 2: The Oops |
8-15 |
| 10/3/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 3: The People |
16-23 |
| 10/10/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 4: The Book |
24-32 |
| 10/17/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 5: The Guide |
33-40 |
| 10/24/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 6: The Start |
41-48 |
| 10/31/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 7: The Means |
49-57 |
| 11/7/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 8: The Doing |
58-64 |
| 11/14/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 9: The Way |
65-72 |
| 11/21/04 |
TBA |
Chptr 10: The Others |
73-78 |
| 11/28/04 |
TBA |
Advent: TBA |
Advent: TBA |
|
| 12/5/04 |
TBA |
Advent: TBA |
Advent: TBA |
|
| 12/12/04 |
TBA |
Advent: TBA |
Advent: TBA |
|
| 12/19/04 |
TBA |
Advent: TBA |
Advent: TBA |
|
| 12/26/04 |
TBA |
Esther & Ruth
|
Series Introduction;
Introduction to Esther and Ruth |
vi; 1-5 |
| 1/2/05 |
TBA |
Unit 1: Esther 1:1-2:4:
Parties, Politics, and Power |
6-12 |
| 1/9/05 |
TBA |
Unit 2: Esther 2:5-3:15:
Personnel, Programs--and Pogroms |
13-20 |
| 1/16/05 |
TBA |
Unit 3: Esther 4:1-5:8:
Such a Time as This |
21-28 |
| 1/23/05 |
TBA |
Unit 4: Esther 5:9-6:14:
Plots, Parades, and Providence |
29-35 |
| 1/30/05 |
TBA |
Unit 5: Esther 7:1-8:17:
Counterplots and Counter-edicts |
36-42 |
| 2/6/05 |
TBA |
Unit 6: Esther 9:1-10:3:
Dueling Decrees and Purim Parties |
43-50 |
| 2/13/05 |
TBA |
Lent |
Lent: TBA |
|
| 2/20/05 |
TBA |
Esther & Ruth
|
Unit 7: Ruth 1: Naomi No
More |
51-58 |
| 2/27/05 |
TBA |
Unit 8: Ruth 2: Reaping
Redemption |
59-66 |
| 3/6/05 |
TBA |
Unit 9: Ruth 3: Winnowing,
Wings, and Weddings |
67-74 |
| 3/13/05 |
TBA |
Unit 10: Ruth 4: Bartering
for the Bride |
75-82 |
| 3/20/05 |
TBA |
Palm Sunday |
Palm Sunday: TBA |
|
| 3/27/05 |
TBA |
Easter |
Easter: TBA |
|
