Back to School
Christ's Church Parish Hall
As we get the kids or grandkids ready to go back to school, it's a good time to stop and reflect on what it was like for us when we were students.
As much as I would like to think that I am always in the process of learning, I am convinced that it is only through the discipline of a routine with structured lessons that I truly feel like I am learning.
On Monday evenings from September to June, I mentor an Education for Ministry class at Christ's Church in Rye, NY.
It is a four-year program created and managed by The University of the South at Sewanee in Tennessee. The course is offered locally and administered by trained mentors who facilitate the learning process in a small group setting of 6-12 people.
The website (http://www.sewanee.edu/EFM/), describes the course this way:
The Education for Ministry (EfM) program provides people with the education to carry out that ministry. During the Service of Confirmation we ask God to "Renew in these your servants the covenant you made with them at Baptism. Send them forth in the power of the Spirit to perform the service you set before them." EfM offers an opportunity to discover how to respond to the call to Christian service.
What makes tis year so special is a change in the course material, replacing all of the books and reorganizing the lessons to make the learning experience much more interactive and engaging.
While the program runs for four years, students enrolled in all four years get to work and share together, kind of like the old one-room schoolhouse method. It makes for very enlightening conversation and helps reinforce the learning, as we are encouraged to participate across all four years of study.
Now is the perfect time to join, since all of us, regardless of the year will be using new material, modern books by noted experts in their field. The main ones are listed here:
Year One
A Short Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (Fortress Press, 2007)
John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament, Yale University
Year Two
Introducing the New Testament (Baker Academic, 2009)
Mark Allen Powell, Robert and Phyllis Leatherman Professor of New Testament, Trinity
Lutheran Seminary
Year Three
Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years (Penguin Books, 2009)
Diarmaid MacCulloch, Professor of the History of the Church, University of Oxford
Year Four
Theology for a Troubled Believer: An Introduction to the Christian Faith (Westminster John
Knox, 2010)
Diogenes Allen, Stuart Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, Princeton Theological Seminary
So, if you are like me, envious of the kids who get to expand their minds and discover the subjects that challenge the way they think, giving them an appetite for more, why not look into EfM?
It can change the way you look at your role in this world, and give you insight into what comes next.