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Faith & Life Group Registration: Spring 2025
March 5, 2025
You are warmly invited to consider registering for one (or more!) of five Faith & Life Groups on offer for our Lent/Spring session. You can read the full descriptions below and on the signup form.
Please register by Monday, March 17.
Questions?
Please reach out to Beth Spaulding (bspaulding68@gmail.com) or the leader of the group directly.
To Live in the World as Prayer
Leaders: Carter West and Duncan Hollomon
Emails: cartergw24@gmail.com; duncanhollomon@icloud.com
Day/Time: TBD by the group
What does it mean at this time in our lives to live in the world as prayer? Join Carter and Duncan for 6 weekly Zoom sessions, where we will consider together various ways we can be embodied prayer, such as prophet, peace-maker, evangelist, monastic, activist, pastoral companion, and loving family member. We’ll offer some poetry and other readings, but the emphasis will be on inquiry, sharing and discovery, as well as spending time in silence together.
Exploring Our Faith as Adults through the Confirmation Curriculum (Part II)
Leaders: Meredith Quinn and Lindsey Baker
Emails: meredithmquinn@gmail.com; Lindsey.e.baker@gmail.com
Day/Time: Sunday evenings, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
March 23 (in-person); March 30 & April 6 (via Zoom)
April 13 (in-person closing gathering)
(we understand that individuals may need to miss a session or two — that is fine)
Led by two moms whose kids were confirmed last year, this group will experience First Church’s confirmation curriculum as adults. Together, we’ll explore topics such as ancient creeds and modern covenants, death (!), grace, and the sacraments. We’ll have time to reflect on “the big questions” and share how we relate to our faith and these topics today. We will roughly cover the second half of the confirmation curriculum – please join us whether or not you were part of the previous group in the fall.
Cross Purposes: What Jesus Did on the Cross
Leader: Rev. Norman Bendroth
Email: revdrnorm@gmail.com
Day/Time: TBD by the group
The question of what Jesus accomplished on the cross has been a central topic of Christian theology for centuries. Theories of the atonement seek to explain how Christ’s life, death, and resurrection reconcile humanity with God, reflect the rich diversity of Christian thought and the multifaceted nature of redemption. Join us for a thought-provoking and enriching journey, as we seek to understand better the profound mystery of what Jesus did on the cross.
Breathing Prayer and Midday Mindfulness
Leader: Sunessa Schettler
Email: sunessa@gmail.com
Day/Time: Thursday mornings, 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., March 20, 27, April 3, 10, 17, hybrid (in person at First Church and via Zoom) or outdoors at First Church in good weather
Join Sunessa for a time of opening the body, mind, and spirit as we move through the seasons of Lent and Easter.
Church: A Larger Picture
Leader: Henry Gates
Email: hjgates@comcast.net
Day/Time: Wednesdays afternoons, 4:00 – 5:30 p.m., April 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, and May 7 (in-person)
This 6-week group will look at how church life evolves from the points of view of scripture, history, and experience. Sources will include selections from John von Rohr’s The Shaping of American Congregationalists: 1620-1957, along with Christ and Culture by H. Richard Niebuhr. Please contact Henry directly for information on how to access these readings.
Continuing to Hope for Peace and Justice in the Holy Land
Leader: Adam Weiss
Email: adamw@startmail.com
Day/Time: Thursday evenings, 6:30-8:00 p.m., March 20, April 3, and April 17 (via Zoom)
This group began to meet at the end of last year, and is focused on how members of First Church can answer the Christian call to be peacemakers in the Israel-Palestine conflict, especially given the violence of the past 17 months and the role played by the US government/military. The group is currently focused on education about the history of the conflict by reading Rashid Khalidi’s book The Hundred Years War, as well as identifying organizations that play a humanitarian or peacemaking role that individuals can support.