Adult Study

Whether you are interested in world religions, learning more about the life and teachings of Jesus, wanting to consider deepening spiritual practices, or eager to engage in conversation about topics that affect our life and world, there are eager and thoughtful conversation companions and teachers waiting for you here.

Shorter term study and spirituality groups spring up quickly at our church. We think about the importance of protecting our environment, about Jesus, about sexuality and spirituality, how to learn to pray and meditate, how to think about the Bible, how to work for justice and peace, and any number of current books. Childcare is provided for all church events.

Thinking about the meaning, promise, problems, and challenges of spirituality, faith, and Christian traditions in our time is a major component of our congregational life. We regularly acknowledge that it is not easy, but nevertheless often rewarding, to reflect on how the symbolic expression of church life connects to the complex realities of the 21st century. So we are constantly asking a range of questions, from what we can say about who Jesus was, to how we can develop a lively prayer life in our busy world, to how we can talk about sexual morality in an intelligent, open-minded, and responsible manner, to how we can work for justice for women, poor people, LGBT persons, and people of color.

Our Christian education program for adults has three parts:

• Adult Study at 9:30 a.m. This is an open, Sunday morning group that studies a wide variety of topics, usually in segments of 4-6 weeks apiece. Topics range from current events (e.g. Islamic-Christian relations, global warming) to personal spiritual searches to Bible study. Discussion-oriented.
• Short-term study groups which form around the reading of a book, a particular topic, or a spiritual search. Similar to Adult Sunday School, but not on Sunday.
• Many Sunday morning sermons have a strong educational component, often about history in biblical times or historical or current events.