Plattsburgh UMC offers fall Adult Education courses
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Aug. 19—PLATTSBURGH — The Plattsburgh United Methodist Church will offer Adult Education this fall focusing on progressive Christianity and progressive theology.
"I really feel that there is a reformation going on in Christianity, and we are at the beginning stages of it," said the Rev. Phil Richards, Lead Pastor, of the Plattsburgh United Methodist Church, Saranac United Methodist Church and Three Steeples United Methodist Church.
"I want to be able to offer some of the thinkers of the 21st century that are really re-looking at Jesus for the 21st century, looking at Christianity for the 21st century to provide a more inclusive, diverse viewpoint than what we see often times in the media. and so, that's why were offering it."
FIRST SESSION
"Do I Stay Christian?" by Brian McLaren, will be offered Monday nights from 7 to 8:15 p.m. or Wednesday afternoons from 1 to 2:15 p.m. on ZOOM Video Conferencing.
Email the Rev. Sally White to sign up at: Pastorgrammy10@yahoo.com beginning September 12 or 14.
"Do I Stay Christian?" addresses in public the powerful question that surprising numbers of people―including pastors, priests, and other religious leaders―are asking in private. Picking up where "Faith After Doubt" leaves off, "Do I Stay Christian?" is not McLaren's attempt to persuade Christians to dig in their heels or run for the exit.
Instead, he combines his own experience with that of thousands of people who have confided in him over the years to help readers make a responsible, honest, ethical decision about their religious identity.
There is a way to say both yes and no to the question of staying Christian, McLaren says, by shifting the focus from whether we stay Christian to how we stay human.
"He's a United Church of Christ pastor who has begun to write books on how one can be Christian in the 21st century, and this one is 'Do I Stay Christian?' where he starts off with the premise of no, historically looking at the Christian church and why people are saying no to Christianity," Richards said.
"And then he goes into the yes, and why it's important to work to change where people are at at this particular time. Then, he's doing the how, how to stay Christian in these tumultuous time, so to speak."
McLaren will join the study group for a discussion in December.
SECOND SESSION
"Saving Jesus for the 21st Century" is a Thursday Night Group meeting at the Plattsburgh United Methodist Church, 127 Beekman St. in Plattsburgh, from September 15 through December 15 from 7 to 8:30 p.m.
Sign up with Pastor Phil Richards (pastorphils@gmail.com) by September 12.
Ever feel like Jesus has been kidnapped by the Christian Right and discarded by the Secular Left?
"Saving Jesus Redux" is a DVD-based small group exploration of a credible Jesus for the third millennium.
Contributors include Brian McLaren, Diana Butler Bass, and Robin Meyers join Marcus Borg, Walter Brueggemann, John Dominic Crossan, Matthew Fox, Amy-Jill Levine, and a host of others for a conversation around the relevance of Jesus for today.
"That's a video study made up of a variety of scholars and theologians that are really looking at Jesus for the 21st century and why Jesus is worth saving," Richards said.
"Saving Jesus Redux" curriculum:
Intro: Jesus Through the Ages
Who was Jesus?
What Can We Know About Jesus (and How)?
The World into Which Jesus Was Born
Jesus' Birth: Incarnation
Teachings of Jesus: Wisdom Tradition
Jesus' Program: The Kingdom of God
Jesus' Ministry of Compassion
Who Killed Jesus?
The Atonement
The Resurrection of Christ
Why Jesus Is Worth Saving
People from all walks of life daily confront challenges on every level from personal, emotional, psychological, political and planetary, let alone spiritual.
"That's why we want to offer these courses to give people an alternative vision or possible vision of what Christianity can be," Richards said.
"It always is evolving, and it always has been evolving. I think what these scholars and theologians are showing is how it can evolve in this period of time, and that it is important to evolve in this period of time.
Email: rcaudell@pressrepublican.com
Twitter@RobinCaudell
