Adult Christian Discovery
Worshipping in the Anglican Tradition: The Book of Common Prayer is the name we are giving to our Adult Forum course for this fall. We shall explore the history and meaning of our common prayer tradition. We’ll reflect upon what the various liturgies teach, and we’ll ask how well they speak to us today.
This offering is intended both for newcomers to our liturgical tradition and for folk long familiar with the liturgies of The Book of Common Prayer.
One criticism of our worship tradition is that it is difficult for many visitors to negotiate our liturgies with Prayer Book, hymnal, bulletins, and lectionary inserts. Add to that our jargon (e.g. nave, narthex, L.E.M.’s, collects, propers, wardens and vestry), and we Episcopalians provide newcomers with an uphill climb.
In our exploration this fall we shall decipher some of the lingo and seek to understand what is behind the various services. We’ll explore some of the public liturgies as well as the offerings for individuals and families. Thanksgivings for birth and adoption, baptism, marriage, prayers for the sick and dying, Christian burial, special liturgies for holy days, the liturgical calendar, supplemental texts and rites will all be grist for the mill.
On one autumn Sunday the 10:30 a.m. service will be an Instructed Eucharist where we’ll pause occasionally to teach about the various elements of the liturgy. (Of course, the instruction will take the place of the sermon, so the service won’t be overly long)! And during the latter part of the Season after Pentecost (September through November) we will use the actual Book of Common Prayer rather than the seasonal worship booklets to which we’ve become accustomed.
The Latin phrase, lex orandi lex credendi, says that the law of worship is the law of belief. Or a better translation is as we worship so we believe. As we come together week in and week out, the language and forms of our prayers and creeds and readings of the scriptures shape us as believers in, and as followers of, Jesus. Plan to join us to explore how we are being formed and what we believe as a result.
Worshipping in the Anglican Tradition: The Book of Common Prayer will involve presentations by various people. Participants will be encouraged to bring their questions and to share their experiences of worship.
Adult Forums are held on Sunday mornings during the Christian Discovery Hour from 9-10 a.m. Offerings are available for children and youth during that same time. The fall programs will begin on Sunday, September 19. Detailed schedules and outlines will be in the August Broadcast and on our website as they become available.
Past Courses
Justice and Empire: Paul's Letter to the Romans -- January 17-March 28, 2110 -- Dr. Larry Welborn
Paul's epistle to the Romans, his last and most visionary letter, was written to Christ-believers at Rome during the reign of Nero. This course will focus on aspects of the Roman context of Paul's theology, exposing "justice," "faith," and "reconciliation" as the elements of a new politics of identity in Christ. Paul's challenge to the empire of Nero provides the elements of a "political theology" that can inspire our practice in the 21st century.
Lecture 1 -- January 17, 2010
Lecture 2 -- January 24, 2010
Lecture 3 -- January 31, 2010
Lecture 4 -- February 7, 2010
Lecture 5 -- February 14, 2010
Lecture 6 -- February 21, 2010
Lecture 7-- February 28, 2010
Lecture 8-- March 7, 2010
Lecture 9-- March 14, 2010
Lecture 10--March 21, 2010
Response to Economic Crisis Among the Early Christians -- September 20-October 25, 2009 -- Dr. Larry Welborn
A series of economic crises shook the Roman world in the mid-first century: famines (natural and man-made), disruptions in supply, and multiple bankruptcies. Evidence of these crises is found in the archaeological and literary record of the cities where Paul preached. This course will explore Paul's letters for insights into a distinctively Christian response to economic crises. Could it be that Paul's bold thoughts about the economy will have relevance for Christians facing a global economic crisis in the 21st century?
Dr. Welborn is Professor of New Testament and Early Church History at Fordham University in New York and a visiting professor at MacQuarrie University in Sidney, Australia. He and his wife make their home here in Dayton.
Lecture 1 -- September 20, 2009. Listen to an MP3
Lecture 2 -- September 27, 2009
Lecture 3 -- October 4, 2009
Lecture 4 -- October 11, 2009
Lecture 5 -- October 18, 2009
Philosophy and Theology: Lenses on Abiding Questions -- November 1-December 20, 2009 -- Drs. Joseph Kunkel and John Paddock
What about life after death? What is the soul? What insights do philosophy and theology bring to current ethical issues? Do other religions have validity? What about Satan? This will be a refresher on some basic philosophical and theological concepts and a conversation about how they might assist us in reflecting on those persistent questions about which people ponder.
Dr. Kunkel is retired Professor of Philosophy and Ethics at the University of Dayton and Dr. Paddock is the rector of Christ Church.
Lecture 1 -- November 1, 2009
Lecture 2 -- November 15, 2009
Lecture 3 -- November 22, 2009
Lecture 4 -- November 29, 2009
Lecture 5 -- December 6, 2009
Lecture 6 -- December 13, 2009