Vocabulary of the Church
led by Kit Crissey
Sunday, January 31 in Fellowship Hall
Have you ever wondered about the 1000 to 2500-year-old roots of religious vocabulary? Where did the words come from, the Hebrews, the Greeks, the Romans or the Anglo-Saxons? Are the modern meanings of the words exactly the same as their classical predecessors? Come to Fellowship Hall for adult education on Sunday, January 31, at 9:00 a.m. to hear wordsmith Kit Crissey present the second installment of his series on the vocabulary of the church. He will tell the tales of forty-four words that were not covered in the first presentation.
"Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality: Explode the Myths, Heal the Church"
led by Dick Wohlschlaeger*
Sundays February 7 through 28 in Fellowship Hall
Issues of human sexuality continue to swirl around us, both in the secular world (e.g., the definition of marriage in the court system, state legislatures, and the voting booth) and in the church (e.g., ordination and leadership roles in congregations). Our own denomination has been wrestling with these issues officially since 1978 and, unofficially, for much longer. To help us better understand what’s going on in our denomination’s polity and also to aid us in “thinking theologically” about human sexuality, our adult education program is pleased to welcome Jack Rogers as our theologian-in-residence Saturday,
February 20, and Sunday, February 21. This 9:00 class will be a book study in preparation for his visit. Copies of his book, "Jesus, the Bible, and Homosexuality" will be available in paperback beginning Sunday morning, January 24 during coffee hour, in class at 9:00, and in the church office throughout the week Cost is $12.00, payable either in cash or by check.
*The February 21 class will be led by the author, Jack Rogers.
Passion Art: Images of Christ's Last Days
led by Susan Untereker
Sunday, March 28 in Fellowship Hall
All four gospel writers depict Jesus’s last week as crucial to understanding his ministry. Through the centuries, artists have also deepened our appreciation of His suffering and ultimate triumph with great emotional and visually exciting impact.
You can experience some of that artistic impact during a “gallery tour” of Passion images from the permanent collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art on Palm Sunday, March 28. Paintings, sculptures and engravings by Western European, American and Mexican artists will be discussed in the context of Christ’s message of faith and forgiveness.
Easter Tidings
Sunday, April 4
Adult Ed classes will be on hiatus Easter Sunday due to the additional worship service scheduled at 9:00. Traditional worship services at 9:00 and 11:00 a.m. celebrate the resurrection with a cross adorned with fresh flowers (please bring one!), trumpets, and and Handel's joyful "Hallelujah Chorus."
Dying with Grace
Sundays, April 11 through April 25
in Fellowship Hall
While we all die, doing so filled with God’s grace is the challenge we will explore together in this three part series. Our focus will be on persons and their family and friends who know their death will be soon. In the first session we will discuss medical issues and choices at the time of death; in the second legal and family issues; and in the third religious and spiritual ones. The first and second classes will begin with brief panel presentations and will include time for substantial question and answer sessions and interactions among those attending. In the third class we will focus on how Christians understand death,
and what it asks of us, with time for small group reflection.
Sunday, April 11 A Good Death?
Panelists: Doctors David Eberly, John Hirshfeld, and Barbara Turner
A panel of physicians, with practices ranging from specialty care to general practice, will speak on medical issues present in end-of-life care. Questions to be explored include: Is there a “good death?” Can everyone expect one? What are the choices for us and for our loved care givers as death is near at hand? What are the choices for those moving from life-sustaining to end-of-life medical care and what ethical implications arise about these? How can we best engage medical practitioners in our stewardship of death?
Sunday, April 18 A Death in the Family
Panelists: Lew Beatty and Trisha Hall, attorneys; Peg McCauley, licensed professional bereavement counselor
This panel will introduce social and legal implications of dying. How does the prospect of death bring out the best, and worst, in our family dynamics? How can individuals best communicate and prepare to have their wishes carried out by partners and children or other caring persons? Who should, and how can one, initiate conversations about death and last wishes? What formal preparations are wise? How can we plan for a death which reflects our values and includes good stewardship of our material goods? How does one deal with conflict in the family over end-of-life decision making? How can we do the last or unfinished work in our relationships as we contemplate our deaths or those of the ones we hold dear? Several webpages that may be of use as you think about and respond to these issues are:
American Bar Association | PCUSA - Estate Planning Tools | Charitable Giving
Family Discussions involving Estate Planning
Sunday, April 25 In Life and in Death, We Belong to God
led by Rev. Lisa Day, Associate Pastor for Congregational Care and Older Adult Ministry
In this final week of the series, we will discuss: What does our faith teach us about death and dying? How final is death? Is there a false dualism between body and soul? What are Christian perspectives on death and what comes next? We will
look at ways one might be present in hope and consolation with those who are dying. We will consider what a fitting memorial service or funeral looks like and what steps one might take in advance to prepare.
Inquirers' Classes
Sundays, April 11 through May 2
9:00 a.m. in the Study
Twice each year — in the spring and in the Fall — Dick Wohlschlaeger, with the support of our membership committee and a number of our elders, leads a four-week class for those interested in exploring membership. We call it an Inquirers’
Class because it creates opportunities for questions to be asked and answers thoughtfully given. Classes include the dissemination of some practical information and discussion about just what it really means to be Presbyterian, a little background about SPCincluding how the infrastructure of our church and its many committees is organized, and a chance to meet each of our pastors and several of our elders. If you would like to be part of this group, or know of anyone who has been attending recently and might, please contact the church office (610-543-4712 or spcparish@swarthmorepres.org); we would like to send them an invitation. Walk-ins are also always welcome!
Adult Education Future Planning
Sunday, May 2
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall
facilitated by Paige Morse, chair of the Adult Education Committee
Did you love a particular adult education offering this year and want to see more of it? Did you not like any of the offerings and want to see something else? Do you have thoughts about programs, teachers, formats, coffee or anything else? Come share your thoughts. We need your input, your critiques, your request and your ideas. As we believe that the Holy Spirit moves through the collected Body of Christ, we’ll discuss as a group adult education at SPC – where we are and where you want us to be.
Mission Report from the Philippines
Sunday, May 9
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall
led by Dave Morse
Cobbie and Dessa Quesada Palm, our
mission co-workers in the Philippines, have in recent years been welcome visitors among us quite regularly — almost annually — conducting Sunday morning classes, leading
A Time with Children, and meeting interested members over lunch. Rarely have any of us had the chance to reciprocate. So it was a privilege last summer for Dave Morse, a member of our World Mission Task Force, to visit Silliman University, see Cobbie and Dessa in their place of ministry and to meet the student we sponsor there, Sarah Jean Cuyag. This morning Dave shares what he learned during a most memorable few days, explains the work of our overseas friends, and fields questions from to all who can attend at 9:00.
Mission Report from Nicaragua
Sunday, May 16
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall
led by Tom Stephenson and Erin Floyd
Tom Stephenson (a member of our World Mission Task Force) and Erin Floyd (a veteran Nicaragua traveler and Swarthmore College student) report on the recent trip to Nicaragua and new developments in our partnership with ASODECOMAT.
Spiritual Gifts Redux
Sunday, May 23
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship HallHave you taken the Spiritual Gifts classes and would like to discuss your discovery, development and deployment progress with others? Would you like to hear how others have found insights as to what church activities to say no to and how to seek and actively embrace others that better suit their gifts? Do you just miss the time with your classmates? If the answer is yes, please join us in the Study on Sunday morning.
If you did not take the class but are interested in what this Spiritual Gifts class means to others, please join the discussion facilitated by Tasha Knob and Joyce VanRavenswaay Sunday morning.
Program Year Concludes Sunday, May 23
Ideas for next year welcomed!
Our program year concludes Sunday, May 23. Many thanks to our adult education committee for all their good work gathering ideas, recruiting leaders, and processing feedback from participants. Each year's offerings are developed organically, with input from all interested parties welcome. And as you might suppose, the process of developing next year's offerings has already begun and will continue throughout the summer. Your ideas - for topics, formats, potential leaders - are not only welcome but greatly appreciated. Please be in touch with the chiar of our Adult Education Committee at education@swarthmorepres.org or Rev. John Weicher at john.weicher@swarthmorepres.org to share your thoughts.
Sunday, September 12
Doug Dicks, Mission Co-worker from Amman, Jordan
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall
Douglas Dicks, our Mission Co-Worker for Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, will lead a conversation on "Jerusalem 2010: Challenges and Changes to a Sacred Landscape." Doug has been our mission co-worker in the Holy Land since 1995. He lived in Jerusalem and Bethlehem for the first 12 years, then moved to Amman when he was unable to obtain a long-term visa from the Israeli government. He served as staff support for the Middle East Study Committee of the PCUSA and attended the 219th General Assembly in July in Minneapolis. More information on Doug's work is available on the PCUSA website .
Sundays, September 12, 19, & 26
Talking with Children About Faith, led by Rev. John Weicher
9:00 a.m. in the Study
In this 3-week series, we will be learning how to talk with children (week 1), talk about our faith (week 2) and then how to talk with our children about the faith (week 3). This class is for anyone who has children in their lives and wants to connect with them in faithful ways. There will also be an eye towards those who may be teaching church school.
Sundays, September 19 & 26
Understanding Our Sacraments, led by Rev. Lisa Day
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall
Christians live our life between the font of baptism and the Lord’s table – the two sacraments recognized by our denomination. At the font, we are claimed as Christ’s own forever and called to service in the church and the world. It is there we receive the promise that when our baptisms are complete in our death, Christ will welcome us with joy into his Kingdom. In addition to this sacrament which we receive only once, we are given the gift of the opportunity to return frequently to the Lord’s Supper. This communion meal recalls Christ’s sacrifice, feeds and strengthens us for the service to which we are called in this life, unites us with God and one another, and gives us a foretaste of the banquet at which God will be the host. Please join Pastor Lisa Day
for a two week adult education series in which we will explore the rich meanings of our two sacraments: Baptism (September 19) and the Lord’s Supper (September 26).
Sunday, October 10
Lectionary Bible Passages
in the Study led by Ken Wells
Did young Jeremiah really say the secret best place to achieve Zen relaxation is in front of the fish tanks at Petco in Babylon (Jer.29:1,4-7)? And did the one leper who gave thanks actually confide to Jesus that beauty really does start on the inside - 'It's like a state of mind that can be induced by a playful floral and musky scent that mixes the feminine with the masculine" (Luke 17:11-19)? Come prepared to join Ken Wells in discussion of two of the Bible passages featured in today's lectionary.
Sundays, October 3, 10, 17
Peacemaking Series
9:00 a.m. in Fellowship Hall
It is an SPC tradition to use Peacemaking Sunday, the first Sunday in October, as the kickoff to a series of classes led by local and global experts on current peacemaking issue. Our thanks to the hardworking members of the Peacemaking Committee that make this possible. This year's series features the following:
Sunday, October 3
What Muslims Believe: How We are Alike and How We Differ
Rev. Donald Wagner
The Rev. Dr. Donald E. Wagner is an ordained Presbyterian clergyman and former Associate Professor of Religion at North Park University in Chicago, where he was also the Executive Director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies. Don served for more than ten years as Director of Evangelicals for Middle East Understanding. He is the author of four books: Dying in the Land of Promise (2003), Anxious for Armageddon (1995), Peace or Armageddon (1993), and All in the Name of the Bible (1988).
Sunday, October 10
Report from General Assembly 2010
Ellen Kecskemethy
Our own Ellen Kecskemethy, now a student at Franklin & Marshall College, served as the Young Adult Advisory Delegate for the Presbytery of Philadelphia at the 219th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in July in Minneapolis. She will report on her experience there and on actions of the General Assembly, especially in the area of peacemaking.
Sunday, October 17
The Search for Peace in the Holy Land
Dr. Mark Braverman
Dr. Mark Braverman is a Jewish American with deep family roots in the Holy Land. He grew up in Philadelphia and trained as a clinical psychologist. Four years ago he gave up his practice to become a full-time activist for peace in historic Palestine. His book, Fatal Embrace, focuses on the role of religious beliefs and theology in the current discourse on Israel/Palestine and on the issue of interfaith relations. It features an introduction by Walter Brueggemann, whom he quotes at length in the book. Copies of the book will be available for $17.00 each. Payment may be made either in cash or by checks made payable to Mark Braverman.
Mark also attended the 219th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and has written a two-part blog on the Assembly's actions on the Israel/Palestine conflict.
Sunday, October 17
Where Two or More Are Gathered in My Name: SPC Explores Small Groups
in the Study led by Lauren McKinney
The rain falls steadily outside, as you put on a pot of tea for your expected visitors. You wonder, will anyone come tonight in this weather? You hope so, because you’ve recently received alarming news about your mother’s health and you want to share it with them. They will calm you down, and best of all, listen. And you’ve found a book that the newest member will like so you can’t wait to share it with him. The doorbell begins to ring, and everyone shows up in the next few minutes. The hall fills with wet umbrellas and your living room fills up with good friends, although you barely knew them a few months ago.
This is what a small group can look like, several people getting together in homes to support each other, read the Bible together, pray, and seek wisdom. Some of us are planning a revival of this time-honored way to share our journeys with fellow church members. Vippy Yee, Barb Lappen, Lisa Day, and Lauren McKinney have begun meeting, with Session’s blessing and under the umbrella of Adult Education, to craft a pilot program for small groups. Each of us has had significant small group experience at some point in our lives, and we wish to share our vision with you. The SPC Church Study Task Force (January 2007) indicated the congregation’s felt need for such groups, which foster Christian community, spiritual depth, and relationship-building.
We have developed some basic ideas for how small groups could work here, and would like to present them and hear your thoughts on Sunday, October 17 at 9:00 AM. If you are interested but cannot attend the meeting, please contact Barb Lappen, Vippy Yee, Lisa Day, or Lauren McKinney to be put on our list of potential small group members. Groups will be developed and leaders trained by February. Meanwhile, keep that tea kettle hot!
Sunday, October 24
Financial Sustainability
in Fellowship Hall
led by representatives of our Membership, Finance, and Financial Stewardship Committees
Elders representing the committees listed above will present and discuss information about SPC's financial health. The discussion will consider three of the key levers for financial sustainability for SPC - pledging, membership and budgeting. These critical elements comprise the foundation of our financial health. Managed both individually and through a strong partnership among the committees they will effectively guide the church's finances and budget for the short-term and long-term. Some key trends include: increase in pledging amounts, slight membership decline, and budget austerity. This group will discuss how the committees are working collectively and proactively to address the challenges facing us as we prepare the 2011 budget and engage in good stewardship.
Sundays, October 24 through November 14
Inquirers: Class for Those Interesting in Exploring Membership
in the Study led by Dick Wohlschlaeger
Twice each year — in the Spring and in the Fall — Rev. Dick Wohlschlaeger, with the support of our membership committee and a number of our elders, leads a four-week class on Sundays from 9 to 10 am for those interested in exploring membership. We call it an Inquirers’ Class because it creates opportunities for questions to be asked and answers thoughtfully given as well as the dissemination of some practical information. There is discussion about just what it really means to be Presbyterian and how the infrastructure of our church and its many committees are organized. Participants will have a chance to meet each of our pastors and many church leaders. At the end of the class those wishing to join Swarthmore Presbyterian Church are formally welcomed into the congregation. If you are interested in this class, please call the church office at 610-543-4712 or email our parish administrator at spcparish@swarthmorepres.org so that we may include you in our mailing list. Or simply join us on October 24!
Sunday, October 31
Living Waters
in Fellowship Hall led by Dan Terpstra
Dan Terpstra is an elder at the First Presbyterian Church of Oak Ridge Tennessee and an instructor for the Living Waters for the World at Clean Water University, a program held periodically in Mississippi and California to train church members and
others who wish to help with volunteer projects installing safe drinking water facilities for villages, hospitals, and schools in poorer developing countries. Dan is an engaging and knowledgeable speaker; he will review the goals, work and current challenges of this mission with pictures and documents and entertain your questions and comments on all. Visit the Living Waters website for current information on their work in Haiti.
Sunday, November 7
Broad Street Ministry
in Fellowship Hall led by Rev. Erika Funk
Radical hospitality. New ways to encounter the arts. Seminarian immersion. These are just a few of the captions that might spring to mind when you consider the urban ministry that has taken root in the heart of Philadelphia. Many of our youth have worshiped there, two of our youth advisors eat and worship there regularly on Wednesday evenings, and a devoted handful of women travel in pairs every Thursday to mend for men and women who are offered a hearty meal, fellowship, and a variety of basic services. On Sunday, November 7, BSM comes to us in the form of Rev. Erika Funk, Pastor and Youth Initiative Director, who will share with us some of the enormous energy that fuels this amazing community of God’s people. If you can't be here November 7, check out the BSM website, which will give you a clear sense of BSM's mission and current happenings --it is a place where all are welcome to worship, to eat, and wherer there are plentiful needs for volunteers to offer their assistance in maintaining these programs on a shoestring budget.
Sunday, November 14
News from Nicaragua
in Fellowship Hall led by mission co-worker, Doug Orbaker
On November 14, our mission co-worker in Nicaragua, Doug Orbaker, will spend an hour sharing the latest developments in his ministry there. Doug, currently on medical leave in the US, is one of the mission co-workers that we support with our mission dollars. Doug plays a critical role in facilitating of our mission partnership with seven rural communities near Matagalpa. SPC adults and youth are also invited to learn MUCH more about this work by being part a trip planned for next Spring. Travel will be from June 25, 2011 through July 2, 2011; those interested should be in touch with Tom Stephenson (members directory - login required) as soon as possible.
Sundays, November 21 through December 12
Jesus, Global Crises, and Revolution of Hope
in Fellowship Hall led by Rev. Jim Lappen
In this class we will seek to respond to two preoccupying questions. The first is: What are the biggest problems in the world today? That is, which problems cause the most suffering in the present, pose the greatest threat to our future, cause most of the other problems, lie at the root of what’s wrong with the world — and therefore are at the root of what must be done to set the world on a better course? The second is: What do the life and teachings of Jesus have to say about the most critical global problems in our world today? Our text will be Brian McLaren’s book, Everything Must Change. Copies will be available during Fellowship Hour beginning Sunday, November 7 at a cost of $7.00 each. This class may change your life!
Sunday, December 12
Dreaming of a Green Christmas
in the Study led by Pat Neff
Christmas can be a joyful time without being a burden on the environment. Almost half of the paper America consumes each year is used to wrap and decorate consumer products, generating over 4 million tons of trash!!! With a little effort and imagination, we can reduce the environmental impact of the holiday season. Being green isn't ll wrk - it can actually be quite creative and lots of fun. This Sunday we will learn "furoshiki" - the Japanese art of wrapping gifts and creating tote bags with fabric - without the fuss or waste of paper and tape. Pat Neff will demonstrate. We will also share some other tips for celebrating Christmas with respect are care for the earth God has given us.
Sunday, December 19
Family Carol Sing
in Fellowship Hall led by Vippy Yee, Marv Gelb at the piano
On the last Sunday before Christmas, we gather for a sing-along that is more about community than education. "Festive education hour" we might call this! All are invited to Fellowship Hall between worship services to sing through lots of our favorite Christmas songs. Grab 'n Go coffee will include some extra trimmings this morning as well; come early to get some hot chocolate, cider, muffins and the like. Children and youth classes and choirs (with the exception of the Junior Choir) will not meet or rehearse this morning so that all may participate in this family-friendly gathering.